CRC Concluding Observations: Seychelles, 2018
Published: 5/Mar/2018
Source: UN Committee on the Rights of the Child
CRC/C/SYC/CO/5-6
Rights of the child to a name and nationality, to know and be cared for by his or her parents and to his or her identity
20.The Committee remains deeply concerned that no law has been enacted to ensure the right of children born out of wedlock to know their biological father and that the State party considers implementing the Committee’s recommendations to be difficult owing to sociocultural aspects. The Committee is also concerned that the Citizenship Act does not provide for the acquisition of citizenship of the State party by children born to unknown parents or abandoned by their parents on the territory of the State party, a situation which may render them stateless.
21. Taking note of target 16.9 of the Sustainable Development Goals on providing legal identity for all, including birth registration, and reiterating its previous recommendations (see CRC/C/15/Add.189, para. 31 and CRC/C/SYC/CO/2-4, para. 41), the Committee urges the State party to:
(a) Urgently revise legislation to ensure that all children born out of wedlock have the legal right to know and maintain contact with both their biological parents;
(b) Introduce legal safeguards for children in the State party who would otherwise be stateless, in line with article 6 of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, and consider ratifying the Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons and the Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness;
(c) Seek technical assistance from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and UNICEF, among others, for the implementation of these recommendations.
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