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SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2017, para. 76
- Paragraph text
- There has been progress on these issues in Malawi, including the adoption in 2015 of the Marriage, Divorce and Family Relations Act, which increased the minimum age of marriage to 18 years; the Government's commitment, in November 2016, to align the Constitution with that legislation and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child; and the crucial role played by traditional leaders in mobilizing their communities to prevent the early and forced marriage of girls and to ensure their return to school to pursue their education.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Girls
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2017, para. 75
- Paragraph text
- In October 2016, in Malawi, the Special Representative promoted the further implementation of the policy agenda launched during her previous visit undertaken in response to the findings of the 2015 violence against children survey. During the follow-up visit, she paid special attention to the prevention and abandonment of harmful practices, helping to focus national attention on the prevalence of child marriage, abuse associated with sexual initiation ceremonies, attacks against children with albinism and other practices compromising the rights of children, particularly girls.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2017, para. 79
- Paragraph text
- The Special Representative will continue to enhance her collaboration with the African Union and support further efforts to advance the implementation of its Campaign to End Child Marriage. Significant progress has been made in this regard, including the recent adoption by the Government of Burkina Faso of a comprehensive national strategy on ending child marriage 2016-2025, and the joining of the campaign by the Governments of Cameroon, Liberia and Nigeria. Eighteen African countries have launched the Campaign and in November 2016, the Heads of State and Government of francophone countries adopted a resolution reaffirming their commitment to end all forms of violence against children, including such practices as child, early and forced marriages, and to advance the 2030 Agenda.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2016, para. 71
- Paragraph text
- The First African Girls' Summit on Ending Child Marriage in Africa was held in Lusaka in November 2015. Hosted by the African Union and the Government of Zambia, the Summit gathered Heads of State and Government, ministers responsible for gender and children, United Nations entities, development partners, civil society organizations and religious and traditional leaders, as well as young people who have experienced child marriage. The participants took stock of the progress made to end child marriage across the continent, shared evidence and good practices and renewed their commitment to bringing an end to this and other harmful practices in Africa.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Youth
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2016, para. 73
- Paragraph text
- Developed by the Southern African Development Community Parliamentary Forum, the Model Law has the potential to inform action to end child marriage. This is an area where incremental progress is being achieved, for example with recent legislative developments in the Gambia and the United Republic of Tanzania. In 2015, Malawi adopted the Marriage, Divorce and Family Relations Act, which raised the minimum age of marriage to 18 years. The social mobilization around that process and the important partnership developed with traditional leaders helped to raise awareness of the new law and achieve important results, including a landmark initiative led by a female traditional chief that resulted in the initial annulment of 330 child marriages in a single district and since then has broken up 850 child marriages and banned the sexual initiation of girls.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Harmful Practices
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Girls
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2016, para. 36
- Paragraph text
- This is an area where much has already been achieved. In Malawi, for example, the parliament adopted in 2015 the Marriage, Divorce and Family Relations Bill, which raised the minimum age of marriage to 18 years of age. The social mobilization around this process and the important partnership developed with traditional leaders helped to raise awareness of the new law and achieve important results, including a landmark initiative led by a female traditional chief that led to the annulment of 330 child marriages in a single district.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2016, para. 40
- Paragraph text
- The South Asian Initiative to End Violence against Children spearheaded the Regional Action Plan to End Child Marriage in South Asia (2015-2018) and the Kathmandu Call for Action to End Child Marriage in South Asia to accelerate progress in ending this practice, including through the urgent review of relevant legislation to determine its compatibility with human rights standards; the establishment of a minimum legal age of marriage of 18 years of age; and the harmonization of laws prohibiting child marriage with laws that protect children against all forms of violence. In 2016, the Initiative will host a high-level meeting to advance implementation across South Asia of the Sustainable Development Goal targets related to violence against children.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2016, para. 67
- Paragraph text
- A study published by the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children shows that in the United Kingdom, between 15 and 40 per cent of young people are involved in sexting. This includes children younger than 12 years of age, who are often worried, confused and upset by the sexting pressures they face from their peers. The primary technology-related threat is not from strangers but rather from their peers and their social network "friends". Teenagers are aware of how to reduce online risks from strangers, but awareness-raising needs to shift towards reducing the risks from their peers. The role of schools in holding discussions of the sexual pressures that students face and in promoting the support and training of teachers to facilitate these discussions is important.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Youth
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2016, para. 72
- Paragraph text
- The Special Representative will further enhance her collaboration with the African Union, the Special Rapporteur of the African Union on Child Marriage and other partners with a view to the swift implementation of the plan of action for the implementation of the African Common Position on the African Union Campaign to End Child Marriage in Africa, as well as the Model Law to end child marriage in Southern Africa, which will be of crucial importance to advancing implementation of target 5.3.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Harmful Practices
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2016, para. 34
- Paragraph text
- The First African Girls' Summit on Ending Child Marriage was held in Lusaka in November 2015. Hosted by the African Union and the Government of Zambia, the summit gathered Heads of State and Government, ministers responsible for gender and children, United Nations agencies, development partners, civil society organizations and religious and traditional leaders as well as young people who have experienced child marriage. The participants took stock of the progress made to end child marriage across the continent, shared evidence and good practices and renewed their commitment to end child marriage and other harmful practices in Africa.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Youth
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2015, para. 120
- Paragraph text
- In 1995, data from many countries showed that girls experienced discrimination from the earliest stages of life, through their childhood and into adulthood. Owing to violence, sexual abuse and exploitation, harmful attitudes and practices, such as female genital mutilation, son preference and child marriage, many girls do not survive into adulthood. They are neglected and their self-esteem undermined, with the risk of initiating a lifelong downward spiral of deprivation and exclusion.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2015, para. 32
- Paragraph text
- The South Asia Initiative to End Violence against Children spearheaded a regional action plan to end child marriage and the Kathmandu call for action to end child marriage, to accelerate progress in ending the practice, including through the urgent review of the compatibility of relevant legislation with human rights standards; the establishment of a minimum legal age of marriage of 18; and the harmonization of laws prohibiting child marriage with laws protecting children from violence.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2015, para. 33
- Paragraph text
- Cooperation with African nations and institutions has been further pursued, including through the support of the Special Representative for the African Union campaign to combat child marriage. Marking the twenty-fifth anniversary of the adoption of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, the Special Representative joined the African Union, the African Child Policy Forum and UNICEF in the development of the African Report on Violence against Children. The report reviews regional progress on the study on violence against children and recommends an agenda for action to address persisting challenges. It draws on the research initiatives and household surveys undertaken in the region and it will make a significant contribution in to the Conference on the Status of Children's Rights in Africa, and the African Girls' Summit on Ending Child Marriage, both to be held in late 2015.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2015, para. 122
- Paragraph text
- Girls are often exposed to violence and discrimination owing to their gender, young age and powerlessness. They endure the detrimental impact of physical, mental and sexual violence in the home, at school, in the community, in institutional care and in justice institutions. Child trafficking is a crime that is on the rise and the majority of victims are girls. Despite the criminalization of female genital mutilation/cutting in many parts of the world, every year 3 million girls are at risk of enduring that practice and around 14 million girls are forcibly married, often with much older men, and exposed to high risks of sexual abuse and other forms of violence.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2014, para. 41a
- Paragraph text
- [In some countries, important legislative initiatives have addressed violence against children with albinism and those accused of witchcraft, criminalizing harmful practices and issuing protective measures to secure children's safety and protection. Legislation is, however, insufficient to change superstition and deeply rooted beliefs. To ensure the protection of these children, the Special Representative has called for a comprehensive strategy highlighting, the following measures:] Supporting the protective role of the family. Parents and members of the extended family play a central role in the care and protection of children and need to be sensitized and supported in their child-rearing responsibilities. To address the social and economic drivers of violence against children with albinism or accused of witchcraft, it is critical to provide basic social services of quality to families concerned, to promote child development, well-being and effective protection, and to prevent children's exposure to harm.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2014, para. 62
- Paragraph text
- Over the past year, cooperation with the African Union Labour and Social Affairs Commission and the African Committee on the Rights and Welfare of the Child gained a renewed relevance with the launch, in May 2014, of the Campaign and Call to Action to End Child Marriage in Africa. The Campaign and the national launches anticipated in 10 countries provide a sound basis for this important collaboration and for enhancing regional initiatives in support of the abandonment of harmful practices against children.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Harmful Practices
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2014, para. 43
- Paragraph text
- This is an area where the international community can capitalize on the important efforts promoted within and beyond the United Nations system, including quantitative and qualitative monitoring tools developed by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the World Health Organization, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and others that play a role in child protection. There is in fact a sound foundation to build upon, including data on child and maternal mortality, on homicides, on sexual violence, female genital mutilation and child and forced marriage, on birth registration and on violent child disciplinary practices, as well as on attitudes towards violence, confidence in justice and security institutions, and on willingness to report incidents of violence.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2014, para. 41f
- Paragraph text
- [In some countries, important legislative initiatives have addressed violence against children with albinism and those accused of witchcraft, criminalizing harmful practices and issuing protective measures to secure children's safety and protection. Legislation is, however, insufficient to change superstition and deeply rooted beliefs. To ensure the protection of these children, the Special Representative has called for a comprehensive strategy highlighting, the following measures:] There is a need to ensure the recovery and reintegration of child victims. This is critical and should be promoted in a nurturing environment that fosters children's health, self-respect and dignity, and supports the development of their full potential in life.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2014, para. 82
- Paragraph text
- Differently from previous generations, today's children tend to shift easily between "real" and "virtual" worlds and regard the online/offline distinction as ever less relevant. At the same time, ICTs are contributing to the deconstruction of traditional boundaries of privacy, creating situations in which children engage in "chat" or "conversation" in apparently private settings while in fact potentially exposing themselves to a wide and unknown audience. Sharing personal information, and failing to identify online dangers or warning signals that can serve to protect children in the physical world - including physical and behavioural cues, and the appraisal of friends, parents or caregivers which are largely absent online - may lead to multiple risks to children's protection. The consequences of online and offline abuse can be devastating and they are also similar. In both cases they lead to depression, fear, eating and sleeping disorders, aggression, anxiety, low self-esteem, and a sense of shame and guilt.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2014, para. 41g
- Paragraph text
- [In some countries, important legislative initiatives have addressed violence against children with albinism and those accused of witchcraft, criminalizing harmful practices and issuing protective measures to secure children's safety and protection. Legislation is, however, insufficient to change superstition and deeply rooted beliefs. To ensure the protection of these children, the Special Representative has called for a comprehensive strategy highlighting, the following measures:] There is a need to consolidate data and research. Doing so is indispensable to break the invisibility and secrecy of these practices, to inform the development of laws, policies and interventions, and very especially to protect children at risk.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2014, para. 39
- Paragraph text
- In many communities, children with disabilities and with albinism, children without parental care and specially gifted children are the target of witchcraft accusations. Surrounded by social exclusion, stigma, fear, deep isolation and ostracism, they are branded as witches, in itself a form of psychological violence, and exposed to physical attacks and other manifestations of violence, including starvation, abandonment, amputation of body parts, and death. This phenomenon cuts across all social lines and is being reported across regions.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2014, para. 97
- Paragraph text
- Inappropriate contact and online grooming. The anonymity of much online interaction, combined with the lack of social cues that condition face-to-face interaction, facilitates inappropriate advances on the part of adults towards children online. Grooming takes place when online contact with children involves premeditated behaviour intended to secure their trust and cooperation with the intention of engaging in sexual conduct.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Harmful Practices
- Health
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2014, para. 36
- Paragraph text
- Children with albinism are exposed to severe incidents of violence, mutilation and murder. At times they become the target of witchcraft accusations, leading to the use of their body parts for ritual purposes. Children who survive such attacks, are left with serious and long-lasting health and psychological consequences, and the development of their full potential is compromised for life.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Health
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2014, para. 40
- Paragraph text
- Misfortune and unexpected bad luck, sudden and incurable disease, or death often fuel the belief in witchcraft and the stigmatization of marginalized children. Traditional healers and local leaders may condone witchcraft accusations; and uninformed families may seek assistance to exorcise the child's "evil" spirits. Rituals are surrounded by secrecy and, by fear and superstition, remain hidden and concealed.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2014, para. 41b
- Paragraph text
- [In some countries, important legislative initiatives have addressed violence against children with albinism and those accused of witchcraft, criminalizing harmful practices and issuing protective measures to secure children's safety and protection. Legislation is, however, insufficient to change superstition and deeply rooted beliefs. To ensure the protection of these children, the Special Representative has called for a comprehensive strategy highlighting, the following measures:] Empowering children to prevent and address violence. Marginalized children need to be supported as influential actors in the process of social change aimed at the abandonment of negative attitudes and behaviour against them. Education, information and awareness-raising are indispensable to provide children with the knowledge, skills, and self-confidence necessary to counter violence and discrimination.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2013, para. 70
- Paragraph text
- Another significant gap revealed by the survey is the dearth of data on laws, policies and advocacy on the gender dimensions of violence and the legal protection of girls: 40 per cent of the respondents provide no information on this question and less than 30 per cent mention positive initiatives. Legislation in the area remains a challenge, with less than half of Governments indicating the enactment of a legal ban on harmful practices, which may fully or only partially cover female genital mutilation/cutting, child or forced marriage, witchcraft rituals, honour killings and other practices.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2013, para. 23
- Paragraph text
- Around the world, countless numbers of girls and boys fall victim to harmful practices. Often violent in nature, these practices compromise the development and education of the child, have serious and long-lasting health and psychological consequences, and may result in disability or death. At the same time, positive experiences have led to the successful abandonment of these practices and a lasting commitment by concerned communities to prevent their occurrence and safeguard the protection of children's rights.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Harmful Practices
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2013, para. 39
- Paragraph text
- The study on harmful practices was released to mark the first anniversary of the International Day of the Girl Child, observed on 11 October 2012. Jointly developed with Plan International, in cooperation with the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child and the African Union, it served as a reference with a sound perspective during the 2013 celebration of the Day of the African Child, devoted to the theme: "Eliminating harmful social and cultural practices affecting children: our collective responsibility". The study will frame additional regional initiatives to support the abandonment of harmful practices, including the consultation organized with the South Asia Initiative to End Violence against Children (SAIEVAC) (an apex body of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC)) in September 2013 in Bhutan.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2013, para. 26c
- Paragraph text
- [The consultation highlighted the following issues:] The need to invest in prevention and implementation efforts, including the development of a universal vital registration system, and the promotion of awareness-raising, education, training and mobilization of communities, including religious and local leaders and children. This involves promoting dialogue, enhancing understanding of the detrimental impact of harmful practices on children and supporting commitment by those concerned to the lasting abandonment of harmful attitudes and behaviour;
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
SRSG on violence against children: Annual report 2013, para. 26d
- Paragraph text
- [The consultation highlighted the following issues:] The importance of sound data and research, and the sharing of cross-country experiences and good practices in legislation and implementation to address the complex dimensions of social conventions, beliefs and practices, and inform legislative, administrative, educational, social and other measures to promote the prevention and sustained abandonment of harmful practices against children.
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph