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Corrections (Mothers with Babies) Amendment Bill (Consistent) (Section 19) [2006] NZBORARp 34 (26 June 2006)
Last Updated: 11 January 2019
26 June 2006
ATTORNEY-GENERAL
LEGAL ADVICE
CONSISTENCY WITH THE NEW ZEALAND BILL OF RIGHTS ACT 1990:
CORRECTIONS (MOTHERS WITH BABIES) AMENDMENT BILL
- We
have considered the Corrections (Mothers with Babies) Amendment Bill (‘the
Bill’), a Member’s Bill in the name
of Sue Bradford MP, for
consistency with the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990. The Bill was
introduced to the House of Representatives
on 15 June 2006 and is currently
awaiting its first reading. The next Members’ Day is scheduled for 28 June
2006.
- We
have concluded that the Bill appears to be consistent with the Bill of Rights
Act.
- The
purpose of the Bill is to amend the Corrections Act 2004 in order to enable a
baby, whose mother is imprisoned, to be cared for,
breastfed by, and to bond
with, his or her mother, as far as this is in the best interests of the child
and if certain other conditions
are met.
- The
Bill proposes to amend the Corrections Act 2004 to:
- increase the age
limit until which a child is entitled to be accommodated in the prison with his
or her mother from 6 months to 24
months. This 24 months age limit is based on
the World Health Organisation’s resolution regarding the appropriate
period for
continuation of breastfeeding.
- introduce an
obligation for prisons to provide for appropriate facilities for the
accommodation of children under 24 months and to
give these children sufficient
opportunities to be breastfed.
- ensure that
imprisoned mothers of children accommodated in prison enter into parenting
agreements, including an obligation for the
mother to care for her child and a
reciprocal obligation to be provided with and participate in parenting
education.
- Arguably
the point could be raised that the Bill favours imprisoned women with children
up to 24 months old over imprisoned women
with older children or imprisoned men
with children. This could be viewed as giving rise to a prima facie issue of
inconsistency
with section 19(1) of the Bill of Rights Act which provides the
right for everyone to freedom from discrimination on the grounds
of
discrimination in the Human Rights Act 1993. The prohibited grounds of
discrimination that could be considered relevant are sex,
which includes
pregnancy and childbirth, and family status.
- We
are, however, of the view that this Bill should not be analysed in terms of the
rights of the parents, but instead should be considered
from the perspective of
the best interests of the child.
- Support
for this approach can be found in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of
the Child (CRC) which has been ratified by
New Zealand. Article 7(1) CRC
provides that the child shall, as far as possible, have the right from birth to
be cared for by his
or her parents. Article 3 CRC further stipulates that in
respect of all actions by a State concerning children the best interests
of the
child shall be the primary consideration.
- A
similar approach, focussing on the best interests of the child, can be noted in
limiting the scope of the Bill to children up to
the age of 24 months which is
considered by the World Health Organisation to be the appropriate period for
continuation of breastfeeding.
The Bill thus enables the child to be breastfed
up to this age. Necessarily, in this respect, the Bill focuses on accommodating
children
with their imprisoned mothers and not with their imprisoned fathers,
and does not include children over the age of 24 months.
- In
the timeframe available, we have not been able to fully consider all the
literature on imprisoned mothers, bonding, and the effect
of imprisonment on
babies. We note, however, that new section 81A(2)(a)(i) imports these
considerations by requiring placement of
a baby with his or her imprisoned
mother if inter alia, it is in the best interests of the baby. The placement of
the baby with the
imprisoned mother can be ended if that is in the best
interests of the baby.
- Our
conclusion is that it is doubtful whether the Bill raises an issue of
discrimination under section 19 of the Bill of Rights Act.
If section 19 is
engaged, our view is that it is justifiable that priority is given to
accommodating children with their imprisoned
mothers to enable on-going
breastfeeding up to 24 months where this is in the best interests of the child.
We can for that reason
conclude that the Bill appears to be consistent with the
Bill of Rights Act.
- In
accordance with your instructions we attach a copy of this opinion for referral
to the Minister of Justice. Copies are also attached
for referral to the
Minister of Health, and Sue Bradford MP, if you agree.
Ivan Kwok
Acting Chief Legal Office of Legal Cou
|
Margaret Dugdale
Counsel Policy Manager nsel Bill of Rights/Human Rights Team
|
Cc: Ministe Ministe
|
r of Justice r of Health
|
Sue Bradford MP
In addition to the general disclaimer for all documents on this website,
please note the following: This advice was prepared to assist
the
Attorney-General to determine whether a report should be made to Parliament
under s 7 of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990
in relation to the
Corrections (Mothers with Babies) Amendment Bill. It should not be used or acted
upon for any other purpose. The
advice does no more than assess whether the Bill
complies with the minimum guarantees contained in the New Zealand Bill of Rights
Act. The release of this advice should not be taken to indicate that the
Attorney-General agrees with all aspects of it, nor does
its release constitute
a general waiver of legal professional privilege in respect of this or any other
matter. Whilst care has been
taken to ensure that this document is an accurate
reproduction of the advice provided to the Attorney-General, neither the
Ministry
of Justice nor the Crown Law Office accepts any liability for any
errors or omissions
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