Recommendations for Action on the Violence Study

Summary: Signatories to the letter include: Defence for Children International, Global Initiative to End All Corporal Punishment Against Children, Human Rights Watch, International Federation of Social Workers, International Save the Children Alliance, International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect, International School Psychology Association, OMCT/World Organization Against Torture, World Vision International.

Français / Español

September 21, 2006

Ambassadors and Permanent Representatives to the United Nations

Re: Secretary-General’s Study on Violence against Children

Your Excellency:

In just a few weeks, on October 11, the Secretary-General’s independent expert, Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro, will present the findings of a comprehensive and ground-breaking global study of violence against children. As members of an international NGO advisory panel for the study, we take this opportunity to share our recommendations for action and our hope that your government will take leadership to address the devastating and pervasive violence documented by this report. In particular, we urge you to support the appointment of a Special Representative to the Secretary General on violence against children to ensure effective follow-up to the study, maintain high-level visibility to these crucial issues, and guarantee that the momentum created by the study is not lost.

The Pinheiro study finds that shocking levels of violence affect the lives of children on all parts of the globe. Among the report’s findings:

· Between 20 and 65 percent of school-age children report having been verbally or physically bullied in the past 30 days. Corporal punishment such as beating and caning is standard practice in schools in a large number of countries, and is often responsible for school drop-out;

· 126 million children are involved in hazardous work, often enduring beatings, humiliation and sexual violence by their employers;

· Institutionalized children—whether in orphanages or detention facilities—are at particular risk of violence from the staff responsible for their care, including torture, beatings, isolation, restraints, rape, and harassment;

· As many as 150 million girls and 73 million boys worldwide are raped or subject to sexual violence each year, usually by someone in their family circle. Between 133 and 275 million children annually are estimated to witness domestic violence;

· Violence in the family in the form of harsh punishment is common in both industrialized and developing countries. Children in all regions have reported the physical and psychological hurt they suffer at the hands of their parents and caregivers;

· Over 50,000 children a year die as a result of homicide; 1-2 million are treated in hospitals for violence-related injuries;

· The majority of violent acts against children are perpetrated by people who are part of their lives: parents, teachers, schoolmates, employers, and caregivers. In only sixteen States has all violence against children been prohibited, leaving the vast majority of the world’s child population without adequate legal protections from violence;

· Violence against children exacts extraordinary costs to society, and is linked to lifelong social and health problems, including post-traumatic stress disorder; depression; antisocial and aggressive behaviors; substance abuse; lung, heart, and liver disease; impaired academic and work performance; problematic peer relations; and greater involvement with the criminal justice system.

The Pinheiro study was conducted through an intensive consultation process including nine regional consultations involving governments, civil society, and children; thematic consultations with relevant experts; field visits; questionnaire responses by 133 governments; and submissions from hundreds of organizations around the world. Our organizations—humanitarian, human rights, and professional associations— were extensively involved in the study as part of an international NGO Advisory Panel of experts (including children and youth) which provided input and consulted regularly with the independent expert throughout the process. One of the unique strengths of the study was the unprecedented and substantive participation of children in all regions, providing their views on violence, its impact on their lives, and developing their recommendations for international action.

As your government reviews the report, we urge the following action:

I: Strong endorsement and follow-up:

The Rights of the Child resolution to be adopted by the General Assembly at its 61st session should welcome the Pinheiro study and strongly endorse its recommendations. In particular, the resolution should urge all states to take effective steps to implement fully the study’s recommendations, including by:
· Prohibiting all forms of violence, including all corporal punishment, harmful traditional practices and sexual violence against children in all settings by 2009;
· Developing a multifaceted, coordinated and integrated national plan of action to respond to violence against children by 2007;
· Involving children and young people in the follow-up to the Study;
· Strengthening national efforts to prevent violence against children through child-friendly policies and services, public information campaigns, and the provision of training for all persons working with children;
· Ensuring that children have access to quality health, social and legal services to provide assistance in cases of violence, as well as accessible and safe complaints mechanisms;
· Ensuring that perpetrators of violence against children are held accountable and brought to justice;
· Developing effective data collection and information systems to track progress and inform policy and programming at all levels.

All governments should also commit to implementing the study’s more detailed recommendations addressing violence against children in specific settings, including the home, schools, care and justice systems, the workplace, and the community.

II. Request the appointment of a Special Representative to the Secretary-General on Violence against Children:

The widespread and devastating impact of violence against children revealed by the Pinheiro report demands leadership and attention at the highest level. A high level mechanism to ensure high-level visibility to the situation and follow-up to the report’s recommendations is essential.

Ten years ago, the similar Graça Machel study on the impact of armed conflict on children established a clear need for continued attention to that issue through the office of a Special Representative to the Secretary-General. This office has been key to maintaining visibility for the children and armed conflict agenda, conducting high-level advocacy with both governments and non-state actors, coordinating comprehensive reports on progress and obstacles to child protection, and achieving significant progress on the issues through a series of Security Council debates and resolutions.

Today, the Pinheiro study demonstrates the need for a similar office to focus and coordinate the challenge of addressing violence against children in all other settings. Our organizations strongly support the Pinheiro report’s recommendation for the establishment of a Special Representative to the Secretary-General on violence against children. Because violence against children relates to the mandates of multiple UN bodies and agencies, a high-level post is critical to ensure strong leadership on the issue and facilitate effective cooperation within the UN system and across all regions. Without this focus and leadership, we fear that the substantial momentum that has been generated during the study process to address violence against children may well be lost.

Within the UN system, there are substantial areas of violence against children—including aspects of violence in the home, in schools, and in care and justice systems—that are not covered by existing special procedures or mechanisms, and remain unaddressed. A Special Representative would be able to address comprehensively all aspects of violence against children in all settings.

Key elements of the Special Representative’s mandate could include:
· Acting as a high profile advocate to promote prevention and elimination of all violence against children;
· Working with UN agencies to ensure systematic monitoring of the study’s recommendations, with regular reporting to the General Assembly and Human Rights Council;
· Assessing progress achieved and difficulties encountered in protecting children from all forms of violence, including through country visits;
· Raising awareness and promoting systematic collection and dissemination of information about violence against children and its effective elimination.
· Ensure that children’s participation in the prevention and elimination of violence against them is supported and their views heard and respected.

Children and youth who have participated in the study process have expressed a particular desire for a Special Representative to provide a focal point within the UN system for continued engagement by children and children’s organizations in the follow-up to the study.

A UN inter-agency working group, including OHCHR, UNICEF, WHO, and other agencies involved in the study on violence against children, supports the proposal for a Special Representative to the Secretary General to enhance their respective roles in addressing violence against children.

A Special Representative is preferable to the creation of a new Special Rapporteur within the human rights mechanisms in order to effectively relate to all agencies that have violence against children as part of their mandates, including those that do not relate directly to the Human Rights Council. The office of the Special Representative should be funded with voluntary contributions and be based in New York, with a small staffed office.

The Study on Violence against Children has brought to light the unconscionable violence that affects boys and girls of all ages, regardless of nationality, education, class, religion or ethnic origin. We urge your government to show leadership on this important issue by strongly supporting the Study’s recommendations at this General Assembly and ensuring high-level follow-up through the establishment of a Special Representative to the Secretary-General. We must not fail the children of the world who have great expectations from this study.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely yours,

Defence for Children International
Global Initiative to End All Corporal Punishment Against Children
Human Rights Watch
International Federation of Social Workers
International Save the Children Alliance
International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect
International School Psychology Association
OMCT/World Organization Against Torture
World Vision International

Further information

• CRIN has updated the regional pages of the children and violence website with information about regional activities for the launch of the report. If there are any other activities your organisation would like to add, please contact CRIN at: [email protected]