292 search results for
Access to justice
Recommendation 10:
Collaborate with First Nations, Métis and Inuit governments and Indigenous organizations to address the factors leading to child and family poverty in order to prevent, reduce and eradicate child and family poverty in Indigenous communities. The federal government must comply with the rulings of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal to provide adequate funding for child welfare services on reserve and ensure the full application of Jordan’s Principle for First Nations children. Federal and provincial governments must ensure culturally safe supports and public services are also provided to Métis and Inuit children and to other Indigenous children living off-reserve in urban centres not covered under Jordan’s Principle.
2022 BC Child Poverty Report Card
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First Call Child and Youth Advocacy Society
First Call Child and Youth Advocacy Society
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2022
2022
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Recommendation 8:
Children’s rights, participation, welfare, and best interests are unquestionably interlinked. Children are persons with their own legal rights and must be guaranteed the right to participate in guardianship and family law proceedings (Grover, 2015; Martinson & Tempesta, 2018). Children’s rights to participate are in line with the UNCRC’s recommendations and FLA’s best interests provisions (Dundee, 2016), and work to safeguard and prioritize children’s voices and preferences about their own well-being.
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Recommendation 14:
Children must be provided with legal representation to ensure that their best interests are at the forefront of decision-making in high-risk cases (Elrod, 2016; Lovinsky & Gagne, 2015; Martinson & Tempesta, 2018; Tempesta, 2019), which includes providing court appointed and funded lawyers to ensure that children’s claims are meaningfully considered and given due weight (Elrod, 2016).
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Recommendation 18:
Children are often not informed about their participatory rights in family law and in child welfare proceedings. Yet the UN Committee General Comments conclude that receiving this information is essential to implementing participation rights. The CBA 2020 Report recommends that in all cases where courts formally assess children’s best interests, children should be meaningfully informed about their participation rights, including their right to independent legal representation.
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Recommendation 2:
The literature has noted a specific need to monitor children’s rights across Canada (Byrne & Lundy, 2019; Canadian Coalition for the Rights of Children, 2016; CBA, 2020; Collins, 2019). Options for effective monitoring include establishing regional institutions and a National Commissioner dedicated to regularly assessing children’s rights, conducting ongoing child rights impact assessments, and ratifying the Third Optional Protocol to provide a communications procedure for children and youth to directly contact the UN CRC Committee regarding child rights complaints (Byrne & Lundy, 2019; Canadian Coalition for the Rights of Children, 2012; CBA, 2020; Collins, 2019).
Child Rights Impact Assessments (CRIAs) should inform the development of policy on children’s rights, as well as aid in the assessment of the actual impacts of policies related to child rights (Byrne & Lundy, 2019; CBA, 2020). Following the UN CRC Committee’s recommendations, the CBA (2020) notes that CRIAs should involve perspectives from various stakeholders, including children. Currently, CRIAs are not systematically used in decision-making across any provinces and territories other than New Brunswick and Saskatchewan (CBA, 2020). Given their key role in ensuring adherence to children’s rights, CRIAs should receive adequate funding to function effectively (Martinson & Raven, 2020a).
Child Rights Impact Assessments (CRIAs) should inform the development of policy on children’s rights, as well as aid in the assessment of the actual impacts of policies related to child rights (Byrne & Lundy, 2019; CBA, 2020). Following the UN CRC Committee’s recommendations, the CBA (2020) notes that CRIAs should involve perspectives from various stakeholders, including children. Currently, CRIAs are not systematically used in decision-making across any provinces and territories other than New Brunswick and Saskatchewan (CBA, 2020). Given their key role in ensuring adherence to children’s rights, CRIAs should receive adequate funding to function effectively (Martinson & Raven, 2020a).
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Recommendation 19:
Canada needs to develop its own federal, provincial and territorial repatriation legislation, drawing from the shortcomings of NAGPRA and led by communities of Indigenous artists, curators, cultural administrators, Elders, and other respected Indigenous cultural leaders within Reserve and urban communities. While it must foremost be concerned with “human remains,” this legislation should expand the notion of repatriation beyond bodies to funerary objects, “sacred” objects, and objects of cultural patrimony. These laws must be meaningfully co-developed in collaboration with Indigenous peoples.
- These “Repatriation Acts” must be passed in every province and territory within the borders of Canada, and not simply apply to federal reserve lands.
- The legislation must have extremely strong compliance measures, with an accountability provision that allows Indigenous representatives to ensure the legislation is being enforced. As Indigenous people are not flora and fauna, Parks Canada should not be involved in the implementation of the legislation. Jurisdiction over “Repatriation Acts” could fall under the Canadian Heritage Portfolio or even the Minister of Justice.
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Recommendation 4:
BC should recognize the expertise of people with lived and living experience as a guiding principle in its mental health law.
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Recommendation 1:
BC should recognize human rights as a guiding principle in its mental health law.
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Recommendation 3:
BC should recognize access to quality services as a guiding principle in its mental health law.
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Recommendation 7:
BC should promote self-determination at every opportunity as a guiding principle in its mental health law.
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