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[RIO DE JANEIRO, 25 November 2008] - In addressing the Opening Ceremony of the World Congress III on the Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, NGO Group President Lennart Reinius called on all those present to take advantage of the opportunity presented by the event to join with children and adolescents as equals in confronting the challenges of sexual exploitation. The NGO Group for the Convention on the Rights of the Child is a global network of national and international civil society organisations engaging with and for children to enjoy all their rights, including their right to protection against all forms of abuse and exploitation. ¨Children are not just the victims of sexual exploitation,¨ Mr Reinius said, ¨or the topic of our discussions this week. Rather, they are here to contribute to the solution by sharing their views and expertise on sexual exploitation – in the family, the school, institutions, the community and the workplace¨. He called on Congress participants to act upon the recommendations formulated by children in their meeting preparing for the Congress . Mr Reinius also emphasised that NGOs have traditionally, more than any other group, worked with children and their families at grassroots level. Many of the NGO Group´s members and partners work close to the problems and the solutions, to make sure that children’s best interests are always taken into account. Since the 2nd World Congress in Yokohama in 2001, there have been a number of important new international laws, but the NGO Group expressed concern that the world is still failing the millions of children who are victims of exploitation around the world, because international standards are not consistently translated into national law and national laws are not fully implemented. Governments must be held to account for their obligations. Mr Reinius welcomed the momentum created by the United Nations Secretary-General´s Study on Violence against Children that was presented to the UN General Assembly in October 2006. He expressed regret, however, that the Special Representative agreed to by the UN General Assembly following the Study has still not been appointed. ¨Children urgently need this person,¨ he said, ¨to be their global advocate on issues such as sexual violence, to coordinate systematic monitoring of progress, share experiences and lessons, and hold everyone accountable to children¨. The NGO Group also underlined the importance of addressing the root causes of sexual abuse and exploitation of children, including poverty and discrimination, and of addressing the perceptions and attitudes that treat children as possessions of objects. ¨We must address the demand for children as sexual commodities,¨ Mr Reinius said. ¨There can be no excuses for not immediately ensuring children´s right to protection from all forms of sexual exploitation and abuse, wherever and whenever it occurs.¨