E/C.12/HND/CO/2
50.
The Committee recommends that the State party take steps to ensure that the
Act for the Protection of Honduran Migrants and Their Families is effectively
implemented and ensure that returning migrants are reintegrated into Honduran
society, in particular by providing opportunities for employment under just and
favourable conditions. It urges the State party to continue its efforts to improve living
conditions at the centres set up to receive repatriated migrants, especially with regard
to access to suitable social, legal and medical assistance, and to work with the
countries of destination to coordinate programmes for the safe and dignified return of
Hondurans wishing to return to the country.
Right to health
51.
Notwithstanding the efforts made under the National Health Plan, the Committee is
concerned by the lack of financial and human resources, weak infrastructure, shortage of
medicines and the poor quality and supply of health-care services, especially in remote and
rural areas and for persons living on low incomes.
52.
The Committee recommends that the State party allocate sufficient resources to
the health sector and continue its efforts to ensure the accessibility, availability and
quality of health care, especially in remote and rural areas and for persons living on
low incomes. The Committee recommends that the State party strengthen
infrastructure in the primary care system and ensure that hospitals have the
necessary medical staff, supplies and emergency medicines.
Sexual and reproductive health
53.
The Committee is concerned that abortion is considered, without exception, a crime,
and it is concerned about the negative impact that the ban on the use and distribution of
emergency contraceptives has on women’s and adolescents’ exercise of the right to sexual
and reproductive health (art. 12).
54.
In the light of its general comment No. 22 (2016) on the right to sexual and
reproductive health, the Committee recommends that the State party:
(a)
Reconsider its ban on abortion with a view to ensuring compatibility
with other fundamental rights, such as women’s right to health and life, and to
respecting women’s dignity, in particular within the framework of the Criminal Code
reform that is currently under discussion;
(b)
Lift the ban on the distribution of emergency contraceptives and take the
necessary steps to ensure the accessibility, availability and affordability of emergency
contraception to all women and adolescents in the State party;
(c)
Strengthen its efforts to curb the high teenage pregnancy rate, especially
among low-income families, and ensure the accessibility and availability of sexual and
reproductive health services, especially in rural areas;
(d)
Incorporate comprehensive, age-appropriate content on sexual and
reproductive health into primary and secondary education curricula for both sexes.
Right to education
55.
The Committee is concerned by the fact that free primary education is not yet
universal, by the limited availability of preschool education and by the high repeat and
dropout rates in both primary and secondary education. The Committee is concerned as
well by the reports received about the poor quality of education in the State party and the
repeated interruptions of the school year. The Committee is also concerned by reports about
the Guardians of the Nation programme, which is conducted by the armed forces at military
GE.16-11828
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