11 March 2008 - Child Rights at the Human Rights Council 38
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Child Protection and the Special Procedures: Petit issues parting battle cry [NGO briefing]
[11 March 2008] - In one of his last public speeches before leaving office, Juan Miguel Petit, Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography highlighted the problems plaguing the UN Special Procedures and issued a battle cry to NGOs, calling on them to “stay close to the Special Procedures...and remind them they can do very important things.”
During an NGO briefing organised by OMCT and BICE, called Child Protection Challenges and the Special Procedures System, NGOs also applauded Mr Petit's efforts to collaborate with civil society.
Mr Petit told participants: “We don't have to be scared of discussion – mandates sometimes need to be renovated and there is benefit to renewed discussions. There needs to be a pluralist approach to the new position.”
He added there was much scope for encouragement: “A lot of countries did not used to speak about child rights, but countries are now trying to improve laws and adhere to international conventions. Although that is not enough because of the many violations still exist, it is still a starting point,” he said.
He went on to say that there are many “black holes” in the realisation of children rights.
“In talking about exploitation we must ask is this exploitation new? Is society getting worse, or is it because we have new tools to monitor violations? I think it is a bit of both,” he said.
The importance of Special Procedures
“We have to support Special Procedures – it is an enormous mechanism for protecting children. Countries need to be criticised, even if they don't realise it, and there needs to be free and independent speakers,” Mr Petit continued, maintaining that “we are facing a new chapter in the life of the Special Procedures.”
He said that crimes against children are particular hard for people to justify. “A lot of crimes can be understood, such as burglary, but we cannot understand what is in the mind and the soul of someone who rapes a child,” he said.
Mr Petit believes there is a lack of professionals who are trained to deal with children and their problems. He went on to cite a number of problems plaguing the Special Procedures system.
He said: “Governments don't allow visits, or they may allow them, but then don't have the time to participate.”
UN needs to “look through the window, instead of in the mirror”
“Secondly, the UN system uses a lot of time looking in the mirror. Instead of the mirror the UN needs a window to look outside,” Mr Petit said.
He added: “And there is a lack of Special Rapporteurs. The Special Procedures sometimes feel alone. I would ask NGOs to stay close to the Special Rapporteurs, to remind them it is possible to do very important things.”
A representative from BICE said: “Mr Petit deserves our big thanks – he has made sure the doors and windows are always open to NGOs.”
Cecile Trochu, of OMCT, noted the importance of the integration of child rights into the work of the Special Procedures. She then talked of some examples of how some Special Procedures have integrated child rights into their work.
She noted how the Special Rapporteur on Torture had reported on children in detention with adults, using an expansive interpretation of their mandate to include issues relevant to children, for example an interpretation of the law on torture to take into account state responsibility, even where violations have been committed by private persons. She said: “There has been a realisation that children are particularly affected by torture by virtue of their status as children, and that they have particular vulnerability because of their developmental stage.”
Ms Trochu also spoke of the work of the Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, who has amongst other issues addressed violence against girls in the family. She cautioned, however, that the Rapporteur has never provided in depth analysis of the effects of violence against girls. She said such an analysis would be very useful in the future, particularly in light of the appointment of a Special Representative to the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children.
Ms Trochu finished by recommending that Special Procedures take into account the age dimension of violations, and that Special Procedures even without children as part of their mandate should collaborate with those where children do come expressly fall within their remit. See the whole of Ms Trochu's statment
Perspective from Togo
Enyo Gbedemah, of BICE in Togo, spoke about the organisation's work in the country, particularly in respect of 'girl porters', who may be employed to carry goods in markets. Lots of these children, he said, face huge family pressures to work, and may begin in the markets from the age of nine.
Many girls are also employed to work as domestic workers, he said, and this may be strongly linked with sexual exploitation.
Mr Gbedemah also spoke of the plight of children trafficked in West and Central Africa, noting how the issue was related to questions of immigration and internal displacement.
He said: “The conditions for these girls exposes them to sexual exploitation."
He concluded by highlighting the important role of Special Procedures. He said: “The state has primary responsibility, but Special Procedures help the state to realise their obligations, to consider recommendations, and to help people come up with solutions.”
A representative from Terre des Hommes then drew attention to the organisation's campaigning activities in respect of trafficking since 2001, when the issue was low on the international agenda.
She said: “There is an enormous need for advocating for minimum standards for the treatment of trafficked children, for example regarding residential care and repatriation.”
She noted that the organisation has learned that “the only form of repatriation that works is voluntary,” and concluded by emphasising that the voices of children must be listened to and will affect the success of rehabilitation.
The UN, McDonald's and “boring” webpages
Roberta Cecchetti, of Save the Children, then asked several questions: what can be done better under the new mandate? How can the positive impact of the work of the Special Procedures be better collated? What collaboration has their been between Mr Petit and other Special Procedures who do not have an express reference to children in their mandate? And what would Mr Petit recommend NGOs do during the first months of the new mandate?
Mr Petit said: “The Special Procedures have sometimes been very fragmented. We could develop some joint actions. In particular, I don't understand why we don't have a good web page.”
He noted many of the UN web pages were “boring”.
“It is hard to find a document – so many of them, like McDonald's, look the same,” he said.
He added he did not understand why Special Procedures do not publish an annual report.
“Why not have an international day of the Special Procedures in which we could highlight some big questions each year. Maybe we could have a Special Procedure in chief who could underline important issues. These are just some example of things we could do.”
He noted there were few opportunities for Special Procedures to meet and exchange information and ideas. He recognised that some people were happier that Special Procedures remained isolated. “Our impact could be much bigger”, he said.
Further information
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Interview with Juan Miguel Petit: "No one owns child rights" [news]
Juan Miguel Petit has been the UN's Special Rapporteur on the sale of children child prostitution and child pornography since 2001. Mr Petit, a graduate in law and social sciences, has worked for many years as a journalist and social scientist. He was a member of the Board of the National Child Institute of Uruguay (1985-1990) and has been involved in a variety of NGO programmes for children, including assistance to street children.
During the military dictatorship in Uruguay (1973-1985), he worked as a journalist and editor of opposition publications. More recently he edited a monthly news magazine. Mr. Petit currently works as technical coordinator of the National Rehabilitation Centre, a recent initiative aimed at the education and social reintegration of young detainees, which gives them access to study or work opportunities outside of prison while they are serving their sentences.
He also writes about social issues for the Uruguayan newspaper El País.
How do you feel about the upcoming renewal of your mandate?
I feel we did a lot of things but I would have liked to have done more. I would have liked to have visited more countries, but this was not always made possible.
I have learned a lot. I hope to have given a good service to people working in the field and I intend to continue working in human rights and on trafficking with the UN.
I think that renewal is always necessary. It is important that new visions are introduced, and there is a need for perspectives from different cultures and countries.
We carried out nine country visits, and composed six thematic reports which we thought could be important for people working in the field, such as on missing children and preventative programmes. We also tried to highlight good practices.
We are still lacking interchange in the field. It is important that experiences are shared. We have been very active in asking questions of governments that we feel are important. It is difficult getting governments, for example, to sign the Optional Protocol (what is this?) when talking of abstract contexts, but when we speak of specific stories it adds life to the issue.
Is there a particular issue or experience that you were most affected by?
I am basically a trained journalist so individual cases focus reality much better. There have been lots of personal experiences, particularly in local programmes and shelters.
For example, we were taken by an investigative journalist to meet children in Romania, who we spent a couple of hours with. We went to eat in a well-known hamburger restaurant, and there was another child their surrounded by friends and family. You could see in big cities how there can be an enormous gap – the faces of the children we were with showed they were fascinated. There was a huge divide in where they had come from, and also where they were going.
When we see things like that, there is an urgent need that pushes us to build bridges for all the children, and the families too.
What has been the best thing about your job? And the worst?
The best thing about my job has been that when we visit programmes we can see how they work with children, assisting victims, and we can try to offer them alternatives.
The worst is when we see situations which we think may well not change.
But at least we have had the opportunity to see these situations, as many people don't. We have the chance to fight.
How do you think the role will complement that of the Special Representative to the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children?
They have to coordinate. I would suggest that they focus on the same thematic issues and countries so that they can complement each other's work.
If you could give one piece of advice to child rights activist, what would it be?
I would say that people must bear in mind no one is the owner of child rights, or can offer the best solutions. We must all work together according to a democratic mentality.
How would you sum up child rights?
The right to be what you are, and to develop according to what nature has handed out, and not be preventing from developing because of the the obstacles created by other people.
CRIN is running a series of interviews with leading global child rights activists in fortnightly editions of our Tuesday CRINMAIL. Get inspired by the words of:
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Report from the plenary [news]
[11 March 2008] - The day began with an Interactive dialogue following the presentation of yesterday's reports.
Among the interventions from States, a delegate from Russia asked Mr Petit about his opinion on the role of the family in preventing exploitation and helping the victims. He also asked: “Given the appointment of the Special Representative on Violence Against Children, what does Mr Petit see as the difference between that post and his mandate?”
The Norwegian delegate, along with a number of others, noted the Special Rapporteur on torture's efforts to integrate a gender perspective into his mandate, specifically regarding the inclusion of gender-based violence into the definition of torture. He also asked about the creation of the Special Representative on Violence Against Children, and how Mr Petit viewed the scope for collaboration between the two mandates.
A delegate from Tunisia, with reference to Mr Petit's report, said: “This violence is a challenge to all of us.”
A delegate from Slovenia asked Mr Petit: “What mechanisms could be created internationally to create a system of best practices and exchange of information?”
Meanwhile, a representative from Sudan noted the international outrage following the foreign adoption scandal involving French NGO Arche de Zoe last year.
Petit response
Later, during the afternoon session, Mr Petit responded to some of the points raised.
He said: “International cooperation is very important to combat trafficking, and monitor borders. It involves everyone. The representative from Pakistan was asking about a prevention policy, and I would say there are four main pillars of a such a policy.” Mr Petit said the pillars are:
1.Law enforcement. Police and others need to investigate all cases appropriately.
2.Awareness must be raised regarding the issue
3.Justice must be pursued. A culture of impunity must not exist.
4.There must be specific programmes, such as special education.
He added international cooperation is very important, and spoke about the need for children's rights programmes in schools, such as sex education so that people not afraid to talk about these issues.
Mr Petit also commented on the appointment of the Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Children, noting: “Coordination is clearly very important. The two mandates are complementary and are not overlapping. There are common agendas that can be taken.”
He finished by cautioning that transparency with NGOs is “very important”, and reinforced the need for self-regulation.
Please note: This report is an extract from today's proceedings. For a more comprehensive report, visit the International Service for Human Rights who produce daily updates throughout the session: http://www.ishr.ch/hrm/council/dailyupdates/index.html
For more information, contact:
Child Rights Information Network
1 St John's Lane, London EC1M 4AR
Tel: + 44 20 7012 6866 or 67; Fax: + 44 020 7012 6899
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.crin.org
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=16627
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**Coming up**
Wed 12 March 2008
09.00 to 10.00 Room E3025: Support to Victims of Trafficking, including Asian Perspectives
11.00 to 13.00 Room XXII: Women's Human Rights: Marriage without Consent, Emerging Family Patterns
Thursday 13 March 2008
13.45 to 15.00 Room TBC: Intellectual Property v. Human Rights?
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Further information about child rights at the Human Rights Council is available on the CRIN website at: www.crin.org/hrc. To submit information, contact us on [email protected]. CRIN, c/o Save the Children, 1, St John's Lane, London EC1M 4AR, UK.
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