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It has been almost four years since the publication of the UN Study on Violence Against Children. We should by now be evaluating the end of the first term of the Special Representative on Violence Against Children (SRSG), however, her work has barely begun. Here at CRIN, as we unveil our newly designed website on violence against children, we thought it would be a good time to look back at a process we followed closely, reflect on what has happened since the Study was published, and look at the challenges that lie ahead and what can be done about them collectively. Off the shelf: background to the study In 2003 Professor Paulo Sergio Pinheiro was appointed Independent Expert to lead the Study on behalf of the Secretary-General. This was the first comprehensive global research project by the UN on all forms of violence against children, and combined human rights, public health, and child protection perspectives. The aim of the study was to research, report, and make recommendations on violence against children in five settings: the home and family, schools, care and justice systems, the workplace and the community. What it found was shocking levels of violence affecting the lives of children in all countries. The Violence Study was a collective process that involved consultations in nine regions and dozens of expert meetings, involving thousands of people from governments, children, civil society and a number of UN agencies. The Study was presented at the GA in 2006 and was accompanied by a book World Report on Violence Against Children. The Study provided 12 Recommendations and proposed the establishment of a Special Representative to the UN Secretary General on Violence Against Children (SRSG). Easier said than done The UN General Assembly did not act on the recommendation to establish the SRSG, but instead, requested Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, to submit a report on progress at its next session and "to anticipate the necessary strategy for the implementation of the study." Despite a petition signed by over 1,000 civil society organisations, a second Resolution of the GA and letters to the Secretary-General, it was not until December 2008, as the III World Congress Against Sexual Exploitation was underway in Rio de Janeiro, that rumours circulated about the Secretary-General interviewing candidates for the post. In May 2009, two and half years later, Marta Santos Pais was finally appointed as the SRSG on Violence Against Children – almost three years after the GA first called on the SG to create this post. Ripple effects Despite the stalling in New York, the Study inspired events around the world. The Middle East held its very own launch of the Arabic version of the violence study, while the Council of Europe launched its campaign against corporal punishment aiming to achieve a Europe free from corporal punishment. A first regional conference on sexual abuse of children was held in Africa and a global conference on violence against the girl child was held in the Netherlands. In March 2009, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights confirmed the human rights obligations of Member States of the Organization of American States (OAS) to prohibit and eliminate all corporal punishment of children. Liechtenstein has joined the list of countries which have passed legislation to completely prohibit corporal punishment of children, including by parents in the home. The number of countries worldwide which have achieved full prohibition is now 26, including 21 Council of Europe Member States. In other developments, the advisory Shura Council in Saudi Arabia recently voted to ratify two optional protocols to the CRC, prohibiting the sale of children, child sexual exploitation and the use of children in military conflicts. Across to West Africa, 34 Islamic scholars in Mauritania signed a fatwa in January 2010, or religious opinion, banning the practice of female genital mutilation. The fatwa states that the procedure has been proven to be harmful either at the time or subsequently. A few months later, parliamentarians from all over Africa gathered to push for a continent-wide ban on female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and are calling on the UN to pass a General Assembly resolution appealing for a global FGM/C ban. In November last year, the government of the Philippines signed a landmark piece of legislation that provides the full legal armour against producers, transmitters, sellers and users of child pornography in all forms, as well as against the means of production, dissemination and consumption, in public and private spaces. Neglected issues? Children deprived of liberty In April this year, Defence for Children International (DCI) prepared an "Appeal for Juvenile Justice to be efficient, child-specific, fair and respectful of rights" to be disseminated during the Twelfth United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice which took place in Salvador, Brazil, from April 12-19, 2010. More recently, the US Supreme Court declared sentences of life without parole unconstitutional for non-homicide juvenile offenders. While the decision, Graham v Florida, does not go as far as children's rights advocates had hoped, it does make clear that the notoriously severe prison sentences children face on the federal level and in many of the fifty states have again crossed the boundaries of human decency. In similar developments, the Moldovan Ministry of Justice made a commitment to close solitary confinement cells this May. Moldovan Prosecutor General Valeriu Zubco also agreed to create a special unit to monitor the situation of juveniles left in pre-trial detention for long periods of time. In February this year, President Funes of El Salvador vetoed 15-year sentences for minors. He maintained that the Convention guarantees 'age appropriate' treatment of children and, citing article 37.b of this international instrument, he said that imprisonment must “be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time.” A minimum age Globally, however, there are concerns that an increasing number of States have lowered (or proposed lowering) the age of criminal responsibility, as the Committee on the Rights of the Child issues a General Comment on the question of juvenile justice. They include: Georgia, Spain, Argentina, Philippines, Korea and Brazil. Professor Pinheiro voiced concerns at a recent meeting saying that “We have to stop criminalising children, because it is a form of violence in itself and wholly counter-productive. … It is in all our interests to stop making children criminals. We should therefore treat them as children while they are still children and save the criminal justice system for adults”, he said. The UN's top investigator on torture called recently for a new UN convention to protect the rights of detainees, saying many are held for years and sometimes for a lifetime in inhuman and degrading conditions. Meanwhile, Iran continues to kill its children. With an estimated 346 executions last year Iran is the world’s second most frequent user of the death penalty overall after China. Amnesty International says Iran executes more juvenile offenders than any other nation. The not so good news The Catholic Church has come under increased pressure to act on the recent revelations about the widespread and systemic abuse of children within its institutions. A Danish children's rights group has called for a review of the country's church secrecy rules to ensure that alleged cases of child abuse are investigated. Meanwhile, prominent British atheists endorse efforts to seek the Pope's arrest when he visits the United Kingdom in September 2010 on the premise that the Holy See “can no longer ignore international law. The Catholic Church's cover-up of cases of abuse in Ireland, for example amounts to the criminal offence of aiding and abetting sex with minors." Elsewhere, experts in Asia warn that the recent economic downturn is set to drive more vulnerable children and young people to be exploited by the global sex trade. According to a recent report by ECPAT, increasing poverty, reduced budgets for social services, and restrictive immigration laws in "destination countries" (which encourage children to avoid detection) are among the factors heightening children's vulnerability. Bullying, sexual violence and corporal punishment are still rife in West and Central African schools, according to an 18 May report which calls on governments to harmonise laws on child protection and education, and impose stricter standards on schools to reduce violence. In March this year, the annual debate on the rights of the child at the Human Rights Council (HRC) focused on sexual violence. Read CRIN's coverage. In early April, the HRC gave the go-ahead to begin drafting a communications procedure under the UN CRC - the only Convention that does not have such a mechanism. This comes after two years of campaigning by NGOs around the world. States will be meeting in December to discuss a possible draft for the procedure. The Council of Europe recently brought together a number of children's rights experts to share experiences and challenges in developing national strategies to combat violence against children in line with the Study's recommendations. Furthermore, A new Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse will also come into force in Europe on 1 July. The UN campaign for Universal Ratification of UN Optional Protocols (OP) on children's rights was launched on 25 May 2010. This is a two-year campaign to achieve universal ratification of the OP on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography (OPSC) and the OP on the involvement of children in armed conflict (OPAC). A new Convention of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) on the protection of domestic workers is to be discussed this month in the Netherlands. Human Rights Watch, Anti Slavery International and Save the Children called on civil society organisations to sign on to a letter calling on members of the ILO to give special consideration to the vulnerability of child domestic workers around the world. Across in Asia, the South Asia Forum for Ending Violence Against Children (SAF) is organising the 3rd Minister's Meeting in Kathmandu to discuss future plans for collaboration with SAARC and a five year workplan to end violence against children. What now? Now that we have an SRSG (who will soon have an office!), regional human rights bodies that have demonstrated their willingness to push the issue of violence onto the agenda, and a number of States that have made progressive changes, perhaps it is time for a new momentum. Most States have missed the timebound recommendations set out by the Study, but what needs to be done is clear. We should expect more from them and hold them to account for their promises. At CRIN, we will continue to monitor developments and will count on partners around the globe to keep us up to date on what they are doing – and achieving. We will also continue to work closely with the SRSG in disseminating information about her work and progress achieved. In September, we will be launching a new campaign aiming to end inhuman sentencing of children globally. This includes an end to executions, corporal punishment and life with or without the possibility of parole. Watch this space! LINK: http://www.crin.org/violence_2010/campaigns/index.asp Get involved
In September last year, more than 30 parliamentarians from 14 Latin American countries gathered in San Jose, Costa Rica, to discuss the role of parliaments in combating one of the region’s most serious social problems – violence against children.
Slowly, but surely? Beyond conferences and promises
Since the Study was presented, nine countries have banned corporal punishment in all settings: Costa Rica, Spain, Venezuela, Uruguay, Portugal, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Luxemburg and Moldova. Which region will be the first truly child friendly region?
The African Committee on the Rights and Welfare of the Child held a Special session on violence against children in March this year. Speaking at the conference, the SRSG said that cooperation with regional mechanisms and organisations was a key part of her strategy and welcomed the fact that addressing violence against children was high on the region's agenda.