21 June 2007 - Update: The Secretary-General's Study on Violence against Children 31
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NGO Advisory Council: Call for Action to end violence against children [petition]
VIOLENCE SECRETARIAT: Update on Progress Report [news]
CHILDREN'S COMMISSIONERS: Statement from the Nordic Ombudsmen for children on follow up [news]
COMING UP: Launch of Arabic Violence Study [event]
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This list is the primary means of communication for all those interested in the UN Study on Violence Against Children. Updates are sent approximately once a month. Please feel free to forward these updates to others who may be interested.
If you do not receive this email in html format, you will not be able to see some hyperlinks in the text. At the end of each item we have therefore provided a full URL linking to a web page where further information is available.
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NGO Advisory Council: Call for Action to end violence against children [petition]
A few weeks ago, the NGO Advisory Council for follow up to the UN Study on Violence Against Children issued a call for action requesting organisations around the world to sign up to the statement supporting the appointment of a Special Representative to the Secretary-General on violence against children.
To date, more than 200 NGOs and other organisations from over 60 countries have signed the statement. Our goal is to have at least 1000 organisations endorse the statement by September 15, 2007, representing all countries in the world.
The statement will then be presented at the UN during the General Assembly to demonstrate the strength of NGO support for a Special Representative. If your organisation has not yet signed on, please do so right away. Please also circulate the statement to other interested organisations and encourage their support.
See the full list of signatories: http://www.crin.org/violence/petitions/petition.asp?petID=1004
The call for action is currently available in English, French, Spanish, Arabic and Russian. A briefing document detailing the need for a Special Representative is also available in English, French, Spanish and Arabic (see below). If your organisation is able to help us with the translation of the two documents in other languages, please contact CRIN on: [email protected].
English report: http://www.crin.org/docs/SRSG_May2007.pdf
Arabic Report: http://www.crin.org/docs/SRSG-May_2007_Arabic.doc
French Report: http://www.crin.org/docs/SRSG_Mai2007_Fr.doc
Spanish Report: http://www.crin.org/docs/SRSG_sp.doc
For more information, contact:
Cristina Barbaglia on: [email protected] or CRIN on [email protected]
Website: http://www.crin.org/violence/adcouncil/index.asp
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VIOLENCE SECRETARIAT: Update on Progress Report [news]
A huge amount of information has been received from various partners including national committees describing a wide range of activities related to the Violence Study and the initial follow up. These inputs will be used for the Independent Expert’s Progress Report which will be presented to the General Assembly the week of 15 October, 2007.
Currently the Progress Report is being drafted and the scheduled meeting of the Inter-Agency Group on Violence against Children has been postponed until a more complete draft can be shared and discussed. The Progress Report must be submitted by 31 July according to the General Assembly schedule to allow for translation of the document. Updates will be provided through the violence study website www.violencestudy.org and through the CRIN website also: www.crin.org.
An SRSG on VAC – to be or not to be?
Recent meetings with Government Missions in New York during the UNICEF Executive Board meeting suggested a more positive mood in terms of the proposal for a Special Representative of the Secretary General (SRSG) on Violence against Children. At the General Assembly in 2006, Governments did not reach agreement, and the subsequent resolution on child rights granted the Independent Expert an additional year to conduct further consultations.
The main barrier to the SRSG proposal has been the UN reform process, however the Independent Expert has argued that the Study process and related proposal for the SRSG reflect the principles of UN reform and can contribute significantly to greater UN coherence. Many of UNICEF's focal points have already been involved in discussions with their Governments to garner support. UNICEF would work very closely with the SRSG if established.
Eighty Study Launches and more than 20 languages so far
Reports so far suggest that approximately 80 national level launches, or related activities to disseminate the Violence Study materials and key messages have been conducted. Most regions have launched the Study, and many countries have reported the value of such events and related follow up - for example, the Independent Expert was able to participate in a lively debate at the launch in Iran, and in Kenya, the Deputy President chaired the proceedings and made several commitments to take action at the Eastern and Southern Africa regional launch.
The various products of the Study, or parts thereof, have already been translated into many languages, or are in process – for example, Amharic, Arabic, Azerbaijan, Bahasa, Bosnian, Chinese, Dutch, Farsi, French, German, Georgian, Italian, Kiswahili, Korean, Mongolian, Myanmar language, Norwegian, Portuguese, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Spanish, Thai, Turkish, and Vietnamese. UNICEF and Save the Children have spearheaded a lot of this work, with the support of the Oak Foundation, and the governments of Germany, Norway, Spain, and Sweden. All partners are encouraged to support further dissemination and translation of the Study materials and please send copies (to [email protected] so that we can avoid duplication, and share the products.
Launch of UNICEF/IPU Handbook for parliamentarians on stopping violence against children
On 2 May, at the 116th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) meeting in Nusa Dua (Indonesia), the UNICEF/IPU Handbook for parliamentarians on stopping violence against children was launched. Already there are plans for national launches for example in South Africa and also for translations, for example into Azerbaijan, Farsi, Korean, Russian and Turkish.
To know more go to the www.violencestudy.org
Download the report: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=13242&flag=report
Update on Independent Expert Activities
During the months of May and June, the Independent Expert has:
- drafted the initial Framework for the Progress Report to the 2007 UN General Assembly
- travelled to Iran for the launch of the Study 14-16 May and to Kenya for the regional launch for Eastern and Southern Africa on 28 May
- discussed the Study at the 9th Ministerial Meeting of the Human Security Network, hosted by Government of Slovenia, Ljubljana 17-18 May, and at a follow up meeting in Geneva 19 June, 2007
- participated in the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Washington DC
- discussed the Study follow up with Government Missions in New York during the week of 4 June
- participated in a meeting hosted by Germany as the incoming President of the EU, which includes discussions of follow up to the Study
The mandate of the Independent Expert is expected to finish in October, 2007. To know more about the Study activities, go to www.violencestudy.org
Contact details for the Secretariat:
Email: [email protected] or Marcelo Daher on [email protected]
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CHILDREN'S COMMISSIONERS: Statement from the Nordic Ombudsmen for children on follow up [news]
Statement from the Ombudsmen for children in Finland, Sweden, Iceland, Norway and Denmark.
The Nordic Ombudsmen for children hereby call on the governments in Finland, Sweden, Iceland, Norway and Denmark to actively work for the UN General assembly to appoint a Special Representative to the Secretary-General (SRSG) on violence against children at its 62nd session in 2007.
The UN Secretary General’s Study on Violence Against Children, submitted to the General Assembly in 2006, documents the extent of violence against children and shows the destructive effect that this violence has on children, their families and society in general. The brutality and the violence against children undermines the rule of law in societies where this is allowed to develop.
Violence is a reality for millions of children around the world. This affects boys and girls, of all ages, all social settings and all nationalities. They face violence at school, in their local communities, in institutions, in their place of work – and in their families. Children are beaten, are subject to sexual abuse, are tortured and are even murdered. The abusers are often the very persons who are supposed to protect the children – parents, guardians, teachers, employers and the police. The UN Violence Study shows the need for immediate action in order to react to, and put an end to all forms for violence against children on a global level. So far, only 18 states in the world have explicit laws prohibiting all forms of violence against children.
The main aspects of the Violence Study are:
- No form of violence against children can be justified
- All violence against children can, and should be ended
- All states have a responsibility to ensure this
Based on the findings of the Study, the Nordic Ombudsmen for children hereby call on the governments of Finland, Sweden, Iceland, Norway and Denmark to actively work for the UN General Assembly to call for the appointment of a Special Representative to the Secretary General on violence against children. The Ombudsmen also call on the Nordic governments to take the initiative to allocate the funding necessary to initiate this office, and to ensure such funding is maintained in the future.
The SRSG should cooperate with the UN bodies, member states, civil society, children and young people, and be a high profile spokesperson who can monitor the implementation of the recommendations of the Violence Study and ensure concrete action worldwide so that violence against children can end.
Our Nordic countries have a long tradition of promoting children’s rights and a long commitment to prevent and abolish all forms of violence against children. It is consistent with this commitment that we lead the way in establishing a Special Representative so that this work can be strengthened worldwide.
The mandate for the Special Representative should be:
1. To highlight and focus on all forms of violence against children and to mobilise all forces that can end this violence
2. To support and monitor the implementation of the recommendations of the Violence Study
3. To identify examples of best practice to fight all forms for violence against children
4. To coordinate and communicate with all key actors in this work.
Signed
Lena Nyberg, Sweden, Ingibjorg Rafnar, Iceland, Maria Kaisa Aula, Finland,
Charlotte Guldberg, Denmark, Reidar Hjermann, Norway
Further information:
For more information, contact:
Ombudsman for Children - Norway
Postbox 8889 Youngstorget
0028 Oslo
Tel: + 47 22993950; Fax: + 47 22993970
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.barneombudet.no
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=13687
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COMING UP: Launch of Arabic Violence Study [event]
Date: 25 - 27 June 2007
Location: Cairo, Egypt
This event will take place under the auspices and with the presence of H. E. Mrs. Suzanne Mubarak, the First Lady of Egypt and Chair of the Technical Advisory Committee of The National Council for Childhood and Motherhood (NCCM) in Egypt.
NCCM is organising the launch of the Arabic version of the Study in collaboration with the League of Arab States (LAS), UNICEF, the World Health Organization (WHO), the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the Arab Council for Childhood and development (ACCD) and Save the Children (Sweden).
The event will be hosted by Ambassador Moushira Khattab Secretary General of the NCCM and Chair of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Regional Steering Committee. NCCM has committed itself to translate the Study into Arabic in order to assist the MENA region countries in their endeavours to implement the recommendations of the Study, and raise the awareness of key stakeholders in the region on the issues related to violence against children.
This regional event will include representatives of governments, civil society, UN agencies, international human rights organisations, regional organisations, the private sector as well as children.
For more information, contact:
Ms. Noha el Labban, Child Right Programme Coordinator
International Cooperation Unit
The National Council for Childhood & Motherhood (NCCM)
Cairo -Egypt
Tel: +20 2 5240277; Fax: +20 2 5240701
Email: [email protected]
Visit: http://www.crin.org/violence/search/closeup.asp?infoID=13108
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This Update is an electronic mailing list of the Child Rights Information Network (CRIN), in collaboration with the co-chairs of the NGO Advisory Council, the NGO Subgroup on Children and Violence and the Secretariat of the Violence Study. CRIN does not accredit, validate or substantiate any information posted by members to this Update. The validity and accuracy of any information is the responsibility of the originator.
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