Oil economy, migration flow push need for strengthened child rights legislation

As Guyana works to strengthen its legislative framework on children’s rights, focus is being placed on the changing economic conditions here as a result of the country’s petroleum sector.

This was highlighted at a stock-taking meeting organised by the Legal Affairs Ministry in partnership with the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH) and the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) Guyana. The meeting featured key representatives from the Government and civil society bodies who engaged in critical discussions on shaping the way forward to improve local legislative framework for children.
Guyana is the first country in the Americas to sign on to all four HCCH Children’s Conventions that deal with child maintenance, child adoption, child abduction and child protection.
According to Country Representative of UNICEF, Sylvie Fouet, this progress comes at a time when the country is experiencing a change in its economic environment.

“At a time speaking of an oil economy and of migration flows, these are two examples which may propel the use of these Conventions. There is a need for local action to ensure that the best interest of children comes first,” she posited.
This view was also shared by Legal Affairs Minister Basil Williams, who emphasised that the interests of children must be paramount. He noted that the family law has changed significantly as a result of issues such as globalisation and migration, which Guyana is now compounded with in light of its ongoing oil explorations and discoveries.
“The increasing oil exploration in Guyana has contributed to increased migration patterns and consequently the change in family dynamics. Therefore, recognising that the legal landscape has changed, Guyana has chosen to embrace the protection that the Hague Conventions on Family Law brings, especially to children. As our Constitution recognises, the best interest of the child must always be paramount and when confronted with this changing world, the Hague Conventions allow Guyana to ensure that the child’s interest remains paramount,” he posited.
To this end, Williams noted that the Ministry’s Drafting Division has commenced working on a bill to give the 1980 Child Abduction Convention the force of law in Guyana. The Abduction Convention applies where one parent of a child removes a child out of the jurisdiction without the consent of the other parent and provides for the expeditious return of the child.
“Therefore, the Convention provides recourse for the aggrieved parent to approach the courts for relief. Where there is extensive cross-border movement, particularly in a country with porous borders, all the necessary steps should be taken to secure the protection of our children. As we are all aware, child abduction causes psychological damage to both the child and the parent. Moreover, when a child is abducted and taken to another country issues such as different legal systems come into play,” he noted.
Meanwhile, the Legal Affairs Minister noted that there has been a substantial increase in requests of international adoption applications both from family members and strangers in respect of children who are citizens of and residents in Guyana.
“Therefore, it is important to ensure that our laws reflect the international best practices to dealing with these issues,” he contended.
Williams further posited that the implementation of the Hague Adoption Convention into domestic legislation will necessitate a review, improvement and expansion of the existing Adoption Unit of the Childcare and Protection Agency (CCPA) and the operations of the Adoption Board. He added that it will also enhance the procedural arrangements involved in the adoption process and provide more opportunities for capacity development in the department.
“The co-operation provisions of the Convention provide the basic framework for the exchange of information and for the necessary degree of collaboration between administrative authorities in the Contracting States. Already, we have an Adoption (Amendment) Bill, which seeks to give this Convention the force of law in Guyana and a working draft of Hague Adoption Regulations outlining the procedural aspects of the Convention,” the Legal Affairs Minister stated.
Nevertheless, Wednesday’s high-level stock-taking exercise was held at the Marriott Hotel in Georgetown and saw participants engaging in defining a multi-year action plan towards both the implementation of the HCCH Conventions and the applicable articles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
HCCH Representative Ignacio Goicoechea lauded Guyana’s move to engage partner countries, many of which are eager to share their experiences with Guyana on implementation of these conventions.
“No state that joins a new convention will have all the matters resolved from day one… There is no unique model for every country in the world. These conventions need to match with the child protection system of each country. And I think the task for us is to try to swiftly and efficiently accommodate the international conventions with the current system of child protection and the judiciary system,” the HCCH Representative stressed.