Submitted by crinadmin on
Summary: This session was organised by UNICEF to
explain to children what their opportunities
will be in ifluencing the outcome of the
regional consulation.
Children and Young People’s Forum: Information session on opportunities
for children to influence, 18 May 2005
What will be children’s role when the actual consultation starts?
Children will be part of government delegations, in the same way as
government representatives and NGOs, they will be sitting with people
from their own countries. Children are there to represent children from
their countries, and should get their voices heard. If adults speak too fast
or about issues that are complex, they should say so. Each country will be
looking at the situation in their countries, what are the main issues
affecting children in terms of violence, what systems are in place to
prevent violence, and what still needs to be done.
What will happen at the meetings and what will we talk about?
After each country has presented their situation, the whole group will be
divided into the three thematic areas that will be the focus for this region’s
consultation. These being:
- gender-based violence, so violence that girls or boys face
because of their gender
- Child sexual abuse
- Physical and psychological punishment
Each group will then be divided into a further five groups, according to the
settings of the Study, settings being, where violence occurs, hence:
- in schools or within education
- in the family
- in the community
- in institutions
- in work
Each of these groups will look at the current situation, then elaborate
some recommendations. There should be at least one child in each group
to ensure that their voices are heard.
What will be the outcome of the consultation?
All the groups will then come together and draw some conclusions and
general recommendations for eliminating violence against children. The
final report, also referred to as the ‘outcome document’, will be sent to the
UN to become part of the Global Study on Violence Against Children. This
report will also be used for the region itself. Here again, children can use
this report to request their governments to transfer these
recommendations into concrete actions for each country.