National Human Rights Action Plan of China (2016-2020)

(3) Rights of children

The principle of "putting children first" shall be upheld, the responsibility of the government and the whole of society for the protection of children's rights and interests shall be highlighted, and the goals set in the National Program for Children's Development in China (2011-20) shall be fully realized.

・ The Law on the Protection of Minors shall be amended.

・ The children guardianship system shall be improved, and a social network for the care of minors shall be established. A guardianship system, which is based on family guardianship, guaranteed by supervision of relevant institutions and persons such as the neighborhood and school, and supplemented by state guardianship, shall be established in due course. The legal system shall be improved to remove the guardianship status of parents or other custodians who fail to perform their responsibilities or seriously infringe upon the rights and interests of children under their guardianship.

・ Children's right to health shall be effectively protected. The state shall establish a service system to prevent and treat birth defects, covering the pre-pregnancy, pregnancy and neonatal stages, and accessible to both urban and rural residents. The State shall also enhance the prevention and treatment of childhood diseases and injuries. By 2020 the mortality rate of infants and kids under the age of five shall be no higher than 7.5 per 1,000 and 9.5 per 1,000, respectively. The vaccination rate under the national immunization program, calculated by taking the rural township as the basic unit, shall be kept above 95 percent. The nutrition-enhancement program for students receiving compulsory education in rural areas shall be carried on. Physical education in schools shall be given great priority in order to constantly improve the students' physical health. More guidance shall be given to improve the mental health of minors.

・ Protection of children's rights and interests in property shall be improved. Protection shall be extended, in accordance with the law, to the children's rights to proceeds generated by property, bequests, intellectual property right, right of inheritance, and independent right of property dominion within certain limits.

・ Comprehensive maintenance of public security on and around school premises shall be strengthened, school bus safety management shall be enhanced, and violence on campus shall be prevented and stopped.

・ A social environment conducive to the involvement of children shall be created. Encouragement and support shall be given to children to participate in family, school and social affairs, and channels shall be opened up for children to get involved and express themselves.

・ Children's right to leisure and recreation shall be guaranteed. Efforts shall be enhanced in the construction of facilities for children's activities and services in communities. By 2020 there will be "children's homes" in over 90 percent of urban and rural communities. At least one full-time or part-time social worker in relation to children shall be employed in each urban subdistrict and rural township. The schoolwork load shall be lessened by addressing both the root cause and symptoms.

・ Deprived children shall be taken care of. Children's welfare and service systems at city, county, township (subdistrict) and community levels shall be established, in addition to the implementation of a plan for the construction of children's welfare institutions and institutions for the protection of minors at the county level. The system of welfare for deprived children shall be improved. The security system for orphans shall be perfected. The level of guarantee for the rights to life, education, healthcare and other rights of AIDS-affected children and prisoners' children under 18 years old shall be improved. Greater protection and care shall be extended to children of migrant workers left behind in the countryside.

・ A working mechanism against violence to children shall be in place, which will prevent, monitor, report, investigate, evaluate, and handle cases of violence to children and provide necessary assistance. Great store shall be set on punishing the abduction, maltreatment and abandonment of children, forcing children into begging and other illegal criminal activities, including all forms of sexual abuse of children. Severe punishments shall be meted out to criminal activities, such as employment of child labor and exploitation of children.

・ Every attention shall be paid to reducing the number of arrest, prosecution and imprisonment of juvenile suspects. Reform shall be made of the working mechanism in relation to the trial of minors and children-related family cases, and a mechanism shall be established to link up judicial and administrative protection of children. Efforts shall be made to do well in community-based correction of juvenile delinquents.