兒童權利公約施行法自2014年11月20日實施至今已近三年，而依據該施行法之規定，政府已陸續展開國內法令與公約是否牴觸之檢視及以各級政府為對象之兒童權利教育宣導課程等工作，並於2017年11月完成兒童權利公約首次國家報告國際審查，施行法顯然已逐步將公約內涵國內法化而具重要之指標及實質意義。惟公約實踐之關鍵係公約規範能否確實成為檢視國內法律及政策之基準，以及得否為權利遭受侵害之兒少所具體主張；其中國家是否建置相關機制協助兒少行使其權利，確保兒少於未成年之際不因自身能力及發展尚未健全而無法行使其權利，對兒少權利之保障尤為重要。 儘管自2009年以來，除兒童權利公約外，立法院已先後透過施行法將其他四部聯合國人權公約轉換成為國內法律；然針對公約適用之若干核心議題，包括解釋及適用公約時應遵循之原則、公約與國內法律衝突時衍生之法律適用及權利遭受侵害之救濟機制等，皆有待闡釋及釐清。就此，本論文總結英國、德國、法國及美國等四國之實踐經驗而認為儘管公約之落實並「無一放諸四海皆準之方式」（no one right way），但以下公約國內法化之核心問題亟待確立：（一）施行法應明訂公約具直接適用效力條文之優位地位；（二）明確將「公約解釋模式」此一法院於個案審理中最強而有力、最能直接將公約標準導入國內法律體系之工具納入施行法；（三）透過公約解釋性文件資料庫之建置協助司法人員掌握公約規範之精神與內涵；（四）明文要求增修法律前應提出法案影響評估以確保增修內容與公約並未牴觸等，期使國內法制更能順利接軌國際人權公約。 本論文另以兒少被傾聽的權利為例，藉由與法官、律師、社工等17位兒少實務工作者進行深度訪談，彙整推導出兒少被傾聽的權利於司法程序中獲得實質實踐之效果不明（有權利但不一定有救濟）、兒少表意之環境未達「兒少友善」之標準，顯見國內兒少被傾聽權利之落實與公約標準確實存有相當之落差。此外，部分協助兒少行使其被傾聽權利之機制設計未確實掌握兒童權利之內涵、整體兒少司法環境未能以兒少為中心進行調整，以致於相關機制欠缺公約所強調之核心功能，無法使特定弱勢兒少享有與一般兒少同等之權利保障，亦有待補強及改善。。 本論文嘗試由實務面思考兒童權利公約於國內實踐之現況並導引出應更受重視之諸多面向及困境，期待法院及政府各級機關能更廣泛地採行及運用公約之規範及理念，在國內深化落實兒童權利公約之際，對於「兒童權利」精神所在及其可能為兒少所帶來之改變能有進一步之認知及體悟，並以此為基礎，在影響兒少甚鉅之司法及行政事件中建構一個更能鼓勵兒少參與及表達意見之友善環境。 / Following the coming into effect of the “Act to Implement Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)” on 20 November 2014, the Taiwan Government has adopted various initiatives to implement the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), demonstrating the Act’s steady, yet far-reaching influence in incorporating the CRC into domestic law. In addition to harmonizing national legislation for children with the standards contained within the CRC, it is also of crucial importance for the government to ensure that children whose rights are being violated or disregarded have access to remedies, and that an effective framework is available to children to assist in the exercise and enjoyment of their rights. Despite the fact that the Taiwan Government has promulgated four implementation acts to incorporate international human rights conventions into domestic law since 2009, several fundamental issues remain with regard to the interpretation and application of the convention. Drawing on the experiences of England, Germany, France and the United States, this thesis makes the following observations: (1) the ‘convention-compliant’ approach to legal interpretation is one of the most powerful tools by which convention rights are directly transposed into domestic legal norms and should be expressly provided for in the Act; (2) to resolve potential conflict(s) between domestic law and convention rights, the Act should explicitly state that the CRC shall prevail in cases of inconsistences; (3) the Act should provide for the establishment of a database of interpretative documents issued by United Nations treaty bodies, to aid the practice and understanding of the CRC; and (4) human rights impact assessments should be undertaken before passing any new laws or amendments. The observations in this thesis are also based on in-depth interviews conducted by the researcher with 17 children’s practitioners. Such interviews highlight that not all children enjoy the right to be heard in family proceedings and that there is a gap between law and practice. More specifically, they highlight that “for rights to have meaning, effective remedies must be available to redress violations”; and family proceedings should be more child-centred with child-friendly designs, so that children in such settings can exercise their right to be heard effectively. This thesis also attempts to demonstrate that when mechanisms set up by the government fail to accomplish their legislative purpose and act as a safeguard for children’s rights, it is the more vulnerable groups of children (for example, children in care) who suffer from being denied the same rights as other children.

The law governing children’s rights is part of international human rights law and therefore plays an important role in the protection of human rights. However, the effectiveness of the protection of children’s rights depends on a State’s compliance with children’s rights instruments and the implementation mechanisms within a given State. There are implementation mechanisms for the protection of children’s rights at the national, regional and international levels. The protection of children’s rights at these three levels is provided for by children’s rights instruments. The monitoring of particular implementation mechanisms with regard to children’s rights is effected by reporting processes through State Parties to domestic institutions, regional, and international organisations. The reports provided by States Parties must contain relevant information with regard to measures that States Parties have taken to implement children’s rights instruments. Inadequate implementation mechanisms for the protection of children’s rights have emerged as the greatest threat to the realisation of children’s rights. This means that the adoption of children’s rights instruments may yield results only when effective implementation steps are taken by the respective States Parties. There are four “cornerstone” principles that underpin the protection of children’s rights.1 These are: non-discrimination; the best interest of the child; the right to life, survival and development; and respect for the views of the child.2 This study will evaluate the right to education and the best interests of the child principle as covered in children’s rights instruments at regional and international levels.Education is a powerful tool in ensuring the protection and enjoyment of children’s rights. Therefore, ineffective implementation of the right to education may have adverse consequences for society. The best interest of the child principle is the guiding principle in all matters concerning children’s rights.3 Therefore, the application and effectiveness of the best interests of the child principle will ensure adequate protection of children’s rights. Further, the study will examine the right to education and the best interest of the child in order to demonstrate how the United Nations (UN) and regional human rights instruments have provided for their implementation. Ratification of children’s rights instruments is a symbolic gesture on the part of States Parties to the recognition and significance of protection of children’s rights. The compliance with children rights instruments or treaty obligations is crucial to ensure adequate protection of children’s rights. Thus, non-compliance with treaty obligations will have a negative impact on the protection of children’s rights. The evaluation of the right to education and the best interests of the child principle will be undertaken against the backdrop of children’s rights instruments. The children’s rights instruments are provided for by the United Nations (UN) and regional human rights systems. The dissertation will evaluate the right to education and the best interests of the child principle within three regional systems, namely, the European Union (EU), the Organisation of American States (OAS), and the African Union (AU). It will also examine pertinent case law within the three regional systems. Finally, the efficacy of implementation mechanisms for the enforcement of children’s rights will be assessed. / Public, Constitutional, & International Law / LLM

La liberté religieuse est une liberté fondamentale reconnue dans les démocraties. Elle est invoquée devant la Cour européenne par des religions mais aussi par des individus. Les nouveaux cultes et leurs adeptes acquièrent des droits collectifs et individuels plus étendus. En France, des principes fondamentaux conduisent le législateur et le juge à consacrer et garantir le pluralisme religieux : toutes les croyances ont la même valeur. Chacun est libre de pratiquer sa religion en public ou en privé, notamment dans sa famille. Le juge garantit le respect de la conscience de l’individu lorsqu’il est saisi. Mais la libre pratique religieuse des membres de la famille connait certaines limites qui sont purement objectives et non fonction du type d’appartenance religieuse. Pourtant, la perception du phénomène religieux par les autorités n’est pas toujours égalitaire. Le traitement politique, social et judiciaire des religions minoritaires notamment, remet parfois en cause le pluralisme. Si l’appréciation in concreto des situations par le juge est le principe, le manque d’homogénéité de la jurisprudence, qui met en exergue certains préjugés, ajouté aux réticences des juges du droit à contrôler plus avant les motivations des juges du fonds, entament la garantie du pluralisme. Les condamnations de la Cour européenne le montrent. Les difficultés concernent notamment les questions de l’appréciation de la faute, cause de divorce, ou de l’intérêt de l’enfant. La référence à un standard, étalon d’une bonne pratique religieuse, est parfois latente. En la matière, l’analyse souveraine des juges du fond est souvent sacralisée, ce qui peut poser des difficultés, tout comme le manque d’ouverture de certains experts qui rendent des avis qui peuvent, in fine, avoir un impact fort sur le juge. L’absence de pré-majorité religieuse et l’application stricte du principe de laïcité à l’école posent aussi certains problèmes. Les solutions étrangères sont intéressantes sur ces questions. / Religious freedom is a fundamental freedom recognised by democracies. Not only religious groups, but also individuals, bring it up before the European Court. New religious groups and their members are granted more collective and individual rights. In France, fundamental principles bring legislators and judges to define and guarantee religious pluralism: all beliefs are equal. Everyone is free to practice his or her religion in public or in private, especially within the family. Judges referred to guarantee that the individual conscience will be respected. Nevertheless, the free religious practice of family members has objective limits, regardless of the religion one belongs to. Still, the way the authorities view the religious practice is not always the same. The political, social and legal treatment of minority religions in particular puts sometimes religious pluralism in question. Even if usually the judge appreciates situations in concreto, pluralism sometimes fails to be guaranteed due to a lack of homogeneity in the jurisprudence, tainted with prejudice, as well as the reticences of the ordinary judges to check more in depth the motivations of the trial judges. The condemnations of the European Courts are proof to this. The difficulties concern for the most part the appreciation of the fault, cause for divorce, or of the interest of the child. The reference to a standard of good religious practice is sometimes latent. In this matter, the expertise of the trial judges is often considered as sacred, and this can lead to some difficulties, as well as the lack of open-mindness of some experts who give opinions that can, in fine, influence the judge. The absence of religious age pre-majority and the strict application of the principle of secularism at school also pose some problems. Foreign solutions on this matter are interesting.

The diploma thesis deals with ethical dilemmas, which social worker ordinary experiences during his work at the OSPOD (Service for the Protection of Children's Rights). The aim of the thesis is to present OSPOD, documents which are part of this work and ethical connection with social work. The aim of the research is to identify the most serious ethical dilemmas and the possibilities how to solve them. The qualitative method of research using semistructured interviews is used to realize the aim of the thesis. The research is carried out at the OSPOD in Český Krumlov.

Cette thèse de caractère pluridisciplinaire traite des progrès de la biologie de la reproduction dans le domaine de l’infertilité face à la Convention internationale des droits de l’enfant (CIDE) des Nation-unies. La première partie montre que, en France, il y a conciliation entre l’intérêt supérieur de l’enfant et l’assistance médicale à la procréation, encadrée par le triptyque des lois de bioéthique de 1994. La deuxième partie traite des dérives de ces techniques pratiquées à des fins sociétales et non médicales. Des parents intentionnels désireux d’un « enfant à tout prix », puisque la loi n° 2013-404 du 17 mai 2013 ouvrant le mariage aux couples de même sexe n’a pas « ouvert » le droit à l’accès de ces techniques de reproduction assistée, se rendent au cours d’un « tourisme procréatif » dans un pays où la maternité de substitution ou gestation pour autrui (GPA) est licite et ont un enfant grâce à une mère de substitution, qui assure la gestation de l’embryon, puis du foetus via une fécondation in vitro. Mais lors du retour en France de l’enfant, eu égard aux articles 16-7 et 16-9 du code civil, se pose le problème de la filiation de l’enfant sans compter sur les risques de la maternité de substitution, d’où l’incompatibilité des techniques de reproduction assistée à des fins sociétales avec la Convention internationale des droits de l’enfant, l’adage latin "mater semper certa est" étant la garantie de l’intérêt supérieur de l’enfant. / This thesis has a plurisdisciplinary approach and deals with the improvements of biology of reproduction in the field of infertility regarding the International Convention on the Rights of the Child of the United Nations (ICRCUN). The first part shows, that in France, there is conciliation between the best interests of the child and the medical assistance to procreation, legalised by the triptych of the bioethics law of 1994. The second part deals with the drifts of those practices used for societal ends and not medical. Intended parents willing to have “a child at all costs”, as the law n° 2013-404 of May 17, 2013 allowing the marriage to couples of the same sex has not “allowed” the right to have access to thoses technics of assisted reproduction, do “procreative tourism” and go to a country in which the surrogate maternity or gestational surrogacy (GS) is legal and have a child thanks to surrogate mother who ensures the gestation of the embryo, and the foetus through an in vitro fertilization (IVF). However, back to France, according to articles 16-7 and 16-9 of the Civil Code, the issue of the filiation of the child arises, without counting on the risks of the surrogate maternity, hence the incompatibility of the methods of assisted reproduction to societal purposes with the International on Rights of the child, the Latin proverb "mater semper certa est" being the guarantee of the best interest of the child.

<p>It is an unfortunate and cruel reality that both government and armed groups used child soldiers during armed conflict. Child soldiers have become an integral part of government forces as well as insurgent groups in Africa and elsewhere. Most of them are being exploited as combatants, while others perform functions, such as porters, spies who are able to enter small spaces, cooks, messengers, lookouts, and even suicide bombers. Some of the most disturbing aspects of child soldiering are that some of them are being forced to kill or are themselves killed, sexually abused and are exposed to drugs. The use of child soldiers in conflicts is not a recent phenomenon and has indeed become a common practice that characterises modern conflicts. Recruitment is usually carried out forcefully or voluntarily by both government and rebel forces. The difference between these two types of recruitment is not always clear since their decision to join is always influenced by external factors. Examples of such reasons for voluntary recruitment include the desire to revenge, adventure, peer pressure, and need for belonging and survival. Concerning the reason for survival, some argue that, the children do not actually choose freely to become combatants, but are rather forced by circumstances. There are numerous reasons for the continuous targeting of children by armed forces and armed groups. These include shortage of combatants, the fact that children are easy to train physically and psychologically, and also that children are obedient and are readily available. The recruited children are compelled to take part in brutal induction ceremonies, where they are threatened and forced to kill or witness the killing of someone they know.</p>

<p>It is an unfortunate and cruel reality that both government and armed groups used child soldiers during armed conflict. Child soldiers have become an integral part of government forces as well as insurgent groups in Africa and elsewhere. Most of them are being exploited as combatants, while others perform functions, such as porters, spies who are able to enter small spaces, cooks, messengers, lookouts, and even suicide bombers. Some of the most disturbing aspects of child soldiering are that some of them are being forced to kill or are themselves killed, sexually abused and are exposed to drugs. The use of child soldiers in conflicts is not a recent phenomenon and has indeed become a common practice that characterises modern conflicts. Recruitment is usually carried out forcefully or voluntarily by both government and rebel forces. The difference between these two types of recruitment is not always clear since their decision to join is always influenced by external factors. Examples of such reasons for voluntary recruitment include the desire to revenge, adventure, peer pressure, and need for belonging and survival. Concerning the reason for survival, some argue that, the children do not actually choose freely to become combatants, but are rather forced by circumstances. There are numerous reasons for the continuous targeting of children by armed forces and armed groups. These include shortage of combatants, the fact that children are easy to train physically and psychologically, and also that children are obedient and are readily available. The recruited children are compelled to take part in brutal induction ceremonies, where they are threatened and forced to kill or witness the killing of someone they know.</p>

Within the Surinamese jurisdiction the Constitution grants women the right to health and imposes a legal duty on the state to facilitate the realization of this right. Also treaty law, in particular, the ICESCR article 12 and the CEDAW article 12 grant women the right to the highest attainable standard of health and the right to non-discriminatory access to healthcare. But due to the criminal law applicable to abortion women lack non-discriminatory access to reproductive healthcare and therefore do not enjoy the highest attainable standard of pregnancy related health. Despite its decision not to enforce the abortion prohibiting criminal laws, Suriname remains in a state of failure to comply with its legal duties as imposed by the Constitution and treaty law. This, due to the state’s reluctance to repeal the criminal laws on abortion and its failure to enact effective health regulations to facilitate women in need of an abortion.

Within the Surinamese jurisdiction the Constitution grants women the right to health and imposes a legal duty on the state to facilitate the realization of this right. Also treaty law, in particular, the ICESCR article 12 and the CEDAW article 12 grant women the right to the highest attainable standard of health and the right to non-discriminatory access to healthcare. But due to the criminal law applicable to abortion women lack non-discriminatory access to reproductive healthcare and therefore do not enjoy the highest attainable standard of pregnancy related health. Despite its decision not to enforce the abortion prohibiting criminal laws, Suriname remains in a state of failure to comply with its legal duties as imposed by the Constitution and treaty law. This, due to the state’s reluctance to repeal the criminal laws on abortion and its failure to enact effective health regulations to facilitate women in need of an abortion.

Eritrean refugees are compelled to flee their country mainly to avoid forced conscription into indefinite military service, arbitrary arrest and detention for prolonged periods without trial. The majority of Eritrean refugees are young people, who leave their country in search of a better life and sources of livelihoods. The mass migration of Eritrean refugees has started to have adverse effects on the country’s socio-economic landscape. The main destination and country of refuge for the majority of Eritrean refugees is Ethiopia. Although no serious violations of human rights have been reported among Eritrean refugees living in Ethiopia, it a well-known fact that the Ethiopian Government has not fully extended the internationally accepted rights of those who have been forced to flee their own states, to refugees. For example, freedom of movement for refugees is restricted, which is obviously compounded by the encampment policy, which requires that all refugees should be confined to designated refugee camps. This situation seriously undermines the UNHCR’s efforts to enhance refugees’ self-reliance, independence, and chances of local integration. There has not been much research undertaken regarding the Ethiopian Government’s legal framework on refugees and its impact on the protection of the rights of refugees. In 2014, Ethiopia hosted the largest number of refugees in Africa. This phenomenon was largely attributed to the Ethiopian Government’s ‘open door’ policy towards refugees. The present study is an attempt to critically examine Ethiopian refugee law and determine the extent to which the national laws protect the rights of refugees. Although the study is limited in scope to the situation of Eritrean refugees, the principles and standards of treatment discussed apply to all refugees living in Ethiopia. / Public, Constitutional and International Law / LL. M.