A/HRC/10/18 page 13 detention and deportation, in breach of their rights and the principle of non-refoulement. The Special Rapporteur calls for improved measures from asylum countries, especially first-asylum countries, to offer shelter to these groups in adequate welfare centres, eschew detention in principle and in practice, abide by the principle of non-refoulement and expedite processes to enable these groups to resettle in the final destination country. 44. With regard to the implementation of children’s rights, 2009 is a key year since the country is due to appear before the Committee on the Rights of the Child as part of its obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has already submitted its report on the implementation of the rights of the child in the country (CRC/C/PRK/4), on which the Special Rapporteur commented in his reports submitted to the United Nations in 2008. Suffice it to note that the State report is decidedly thin on special protection measures for children in difficulty. 45. A detailed report on this issue has also been submitted by civil society, based on interviews with children, and there are various elements deserving attention and analysis.19 The first of many concerns raised by the report is the fate of children left behind by those who exit the country in search of refuge elsewhere. According to the report, these children are likely to be kept under constant surveillance and discriminated as a consequence of the acts of others. The second is the fate of children who have left the country without permission and are subsequently sent back to the country. Third, there is the issue of children whose parents are charged with political crimes and/or sent to prison. Fourth, the challenge of children deprived of a family environment, who regrettably risk ending up in a substandard State institution. 46. The report also highlights various shortcomings in the national 11-year compulsory education system, such as lack of books and hidden school fees. The use of children in activities which are tantamount to forced labour deserves serious attention. The report notes that children are mobilized to cultivate and harvest opium poppy. Children between 14 and 16 have to undergo military training in the Red Young Guards, combined with ideological studies.19 47. Another area of concern is linked with the above-mentioned reforms of the criminal law, particularly the introduction of “public education” in order to rehabilitate those who have committed minor crimes. In this way, local authorities, such as schools, have leeway to “educate” the children concerned to improve their behaviour, but has also reportedly led to abuses committed by those same authorities. 48. With regard to people with disabilities, one constructive development was the adoption of a new law in recent years, reforming the antiquated system and the former practice of incarcerating people with disabilities. The Special Rapporteur is adamant that the damage caused 19 See Situation Report on the Rights of the Child in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Citizens’ Alliance for North Korean Human Rights and the Asia Centre for Human Rights, Seoul, 2008.