A/HRC/36/15
64.
Three municipalities in the Caribbean part of the Netherlands had made progress in
terms of access to health care and to quality primary education. In order to address the
remaining challenges, the Government had focused its efforts on poverty reduction,
economic development, the advancement of the rights of children and good governance.
65.
Regarding questions on the use of ethnic profiling by law enforcement officers, the
delegation stated that such profiling was prohibited by law. The police had adopted a code
of conduct setting out professional standards and guidelines for law enforcement officers.
Persons who had been subjected to ethnic profiling could use a mobile telephone
application to make notifications and complaints and to record information on police stops.
66.
The Government strongly condemned hate crimes and hate speech. It had launched a
broad anti-discrimination campaign that included the issue of hate speech and it had
established hotline services to address hate speech on the Internet, including by removing
online expressions of hate speech. In response to questions regarding freedom of assembly,
the delegation stated that the Public Assemblies Act provided adequate regulations for local
authorities to ensure the right to freedom of assembly, as was shown in a recent evaluation.
67.
The delegation informed the Human Rights Council that the Government did not
intend to withdraw its reservations to the Convention on the Rights of the Child owing to
the peculiarities of its legal system. Nor would the Government sign the International
Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their
Families, as the Convention did not differentiate between the rights of migrants in a legal or
illegal situation.
68.
The delegation stated that the police were trained to recognize both physical and
psychological violence against women. It highlighted the joint efforts of the police, the
prosecutor’s office and non-governmental organizations in providing legal assistance and
psychological support to victims of domestic violence. Regarding questions on the
detention of migrants, the delegation indicated that alternatives to detention were widely
used and available to migrants.
69.
The representative of Aruba stated that the government had established a countertrafficking task force that had drafted a new national action plan against trafficking for
2015-2019, had formalized standard operating procedures to guide front-line responders in
the effective identification of trafficking victims and their referral for care, and established
a counter-trafficking coordination centre. During the period 2014-2016 several
investigations had been launched into possible cases of human trafficking and about 500
government employees had been trained to effectively identify cases of human trafficking.
70.
The representative of Sint Maarten reported on measures taken by the government to
ensure access to education for children from families in need. The Ministry of Education
had adopted a concept of community schools that aimed to provide a safe learning
environment for children between 4 and 12 years of age after regular school hours.
Moreover, the government subsidized private after-school programmes.
71.
The representative of Sint Maarten stated that the government had continued to
monitor and implement human rights in its territory and had considered the possibility of
establishing a human rights institution. At the same time, existing institutions were working
to address violations and mainstream human rights issues.
72.
The representative of Curaçao stated that, although Curaçao was not a party to the
Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, the government adhered to the article 3 of
the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (European
Convention on Human Rights) and the principle of non-refoulement. Its constitution and
legislation prohibited all forms of discrimination.
73.
Haiti noted the establishment of the national human rights institution, the
implementation of programmes to improve the rights of children, tackle discrimination and
combat human trafficking and the ratification of the Convention on the Rights of Persons
with Disabilities.
74.
Honduras noted the adoption of the national action plans on human rights and on
business and human rights.
7
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