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Summary: Report on the Caribbean Regional
Consultation of the UN Secretary General's
Study on Violence against Children, which met
in Trinidad and Tobago in March 2005.
In 2001 the United Nations General Assembly requested that the
Secretary General conduct a comprehensive, global study on Violence
Against Children (VAC). This study, to be completed by 2006, will explore
forms, causes and consequences of violence against children and
adolescents (those persons under 18 years old). Moreover the study
seeks to expand dynamic key networks and processes to support and
partner with member States to respond to the situation of violence against
children. It is intended that the study on violence against children will be a
collaborative effort amongst UN agencies, governments, non-governmental
organizations (NGOs), academic institutions, the public at large and most
critically – children and young people.
UNICEF aims to meaningfully engage children and young people in the
discussion and towards this end, UNICEF held a Youth Forum on violence
on March 09 ; a Regional Consultation for the Caribbean on the UN
Secretary-General’s Study on Violence from March 10-11 , and an Xchange
Youth Leadership workshop from March 14 -18 all in Port-of-Spain,
Trinidad.
These various forums gave young people present – who represented the
countries of Belize, Barbados, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, Haiti
and Grenada the opportunity to self-inform, articulate and debate issues
relating to violence that impact and affect them. One of the outcomes was
the declaration on violence produced by the young people who
participated (Appendix One). More importantly the discussions generated
at all three events will inform the Study on Violence against Children.
This document reports on the discussions generated at the Regional
Consultation on Violence for the Caribbean, the Youth Forum and the
Xchange Youth Leadership Workshop. The latter was aimed at building the
capacity of young leaders to be agents for change in their communities as
they seek to play their role in building violence free communities. The
report presents the views and recommendations articulated by Caribbean
young people on the topics of:
- Violence in Schools
- Legal Frameworks and Implications of Violence
- Violence in the Home and Family
- Violence in Communities
- Violence in Institutions
- Violence in Work Situations
Owner: UNICEF