Search Tips
sorted by
30 shown of 185 entities
Embrace diversity and energize humanity 2017, para. 21
- Paragraph text
- In his first report, the Independent Expert underlined the relationship between sexual orientation and gender identity and other issues, including racism, poverty, migration, disability and other factors. A particular concern to be highlighted here is the plight of children and youth from the perspective of gender diversity. Thus, on the International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia, 17 May 2017, the Independent Expert and a range of United Nations human rights treaty bodies and special procedures, as well as regional mechanisms, issued a joint statement calling for protection of transgender and gender diverse children and adolescents. The following excerpt epitomizes the universal message: We call on States to adopt and implement effective measures prohibiting violence, anti-discrimination laws covering gender identity and expression — real or perceived — as well as sexual orientation as prohibited grounds for discrimination, to develop inclusive curriculums and learning materials, training for and support to teachers and other school staff, education and support programmes for parents, safe and non-discriminatory access to bathrooms, and awareness-raising programmes nurturing respect and understanding for gender diversity. On another front, the mere existence of laws or by-laws criminalizing gender expression including through offences of “cross dressing” or “imitating the opposite sex” and other such discriminatory regulations impact on the liberty and security of these young people, tend to foster a climate where hate speech, violence and discrimination are condoned and perpetrated with impunity. Criminalization and pervasive discrimination in such context lead to the denial of health care, including safe gender affirming procedures, and to the lack of access to information and related services. Pathologizing trans and gender diverse people — branding them as ill based on their gender identity and expression — has historically been, and continues to be, one of the root causes behind the human rights violations against them. We reiterate our call for States to decriminalize and depathologize trans and gender diverse identities and expressions, including for young transgender people, prohibit “conversion therapies” and refrain from adopting new criminalizing laws and pathologizing medical classifications, including in the context of the upcoming review of the International Classification of Diseases. We also call on States to provide equal access to health care and access to gender affirming treatment to those who seek it.
- Body
- Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- LGBTQI+
- Youth
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Servile marriage 2012, para. 36
- Paragraph text
- In its general comment No. 4, the Committee on the Rights of the Child strongly urges States parties to develop and implement legislation aimed at changing prevailing attitudes, and address gender roles and stereotypes that contribute to harmful traditional practices. It also calls upon States parties to protect adolescents from all harmful traditional practices, such as early marriage, and recommends that they review and, where necessary, reform their legislation and practice to increase the minimum age for marriage with and without parental consent to 18 years, for both girls and boys.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Harmful Practices
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Boys
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Human rights of internally displaced persons in the context of the Post-2015 development agenda 2015, para. 39
- Paragraph text
- The synthesis report recognizes increasingly negative displacement trends. In the section on "dignity" it states that no society can reach its full potential if whole segments of that society are excluded from participating in, contributing to, and benefiting from development. It notes that the agenda "must not exclude migrants, refugees, displaced persons, or persons affected by conflict and occupation". The chapter entitled "A synthesis" states that particular attention should be given to countries in situations of fragility and conflict and the specific conditions of each country should be addressed. There is a consistent call to "leave no one behind" and ensure equality, non-discrimination, equity and inclusion. The report states: "We must pay special attention to the people, groups and countries most in need. We need to include the poor, children, adolescents, youth and the aged, as well as the unemployed, rural populations, slum dwellers, persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples, migrants, refugees and displaced persons, vulnerable groups and minorities. These also include those affected by climate change."
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Humanitarian
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Persons on the move
- Youth
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Internally displaced women: progress, challenges and the way ahead 2013, para. 51
- Paragraph text
- Despite attempts to mainstream attention to gender, age and other elements of diversity, room remains for stronger links between gender and generation-sensitive analyses and interventions in support of IDPs. This is especially the case for adolescent girls, young and older IDW. The ageing of the global population points towards the need to integrate gender and generation-sensitive approaches to internal displacement more systematically, given the growing proportion of elderly displaced women, including widows, with particular capacities and protection and assistance concerns. These concerns may be particularly pronounced when older IDW take on the role of caregivers to children whose parents have died or moved elsewhere. Similarly, displaced girls are burdened with heavy household responsibilities, including domestic chores, such as fetching water and firewood and caring for younger siblings. This often results in young girls missing out on schooling and exposes them to increased protection risks. There is also a need for more concerted attention to the particular risks and challenges faced by IDW and girls with disabilities, including ensuring full access to and inclusion in humanitarian programmes and recognizing their skills and capacities.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Humanitarian
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Girls
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Youth
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Human rights of migrants in the post-2015 development agenda 2014, para. 28
- Paragraph text
- Development targets that pay no attention to which groups are being left behind can be met without having any real impact on ensuring a more equal and just world. The focus should not be on simply reducing the cost and increasing the flow of remittances, but rather on the human cost of migration. In many countries, the most marginalized and exploited migrants are those who are in an irregular situation, have a precarious labour contract, are low-skilled, are children or adolescents, are women, in particular in domestic work, or are working in the construction, hospitality, extraction, fishing and agricultural sectors. Such migrants experience multiple forms of discrimination, on the basis of nationality, legal status, sector of work, sex, age and ethnic, linguistic or religious identity.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Different levels and types of services and the human rights to water and sanitation 2015, para. 20
- Paragraph text
- Certain human rights obligations related to hygiene can be inferred from the rights to water and sanitation, as well as the right to health, the right to food, the right to privacy, human dignity and other human rights. This report focuses on the human rights obligations related to hand-washing at appropriate times, menstrual hygiene, management of child faeces and domestic food hygiene. A working group created under WHO and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation explained that "… various components are considered essential to menstrual hygiene management. The first is that women and adolescent girls use clean materials to absorb or collect menstrual blood, and are able to change them in privacy as often as necessary for the duration of their menstrual period. It also involves using soap and water for washing the body as required, and having access to safe and convenient facilities to dispose of used menstrual management materials. Further, women and girls need access to basic information about the menstrual cycle and how to manage it with dignity and without discomfort or fear."
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Integrating non-discrimination and equality into the post-2015 development agenda for water, sanitation and hygiene 2012, para. 74
- Paragraph text
- Because menstrual hygiene management has such a strong impact on gender equality, it could be used as a proxy for information about discrimination against women and girls in sanitation and hygiene. Targets and indicators should be crafted to capture the ability of all women and adolescent girls to manage menstruation hygienically and with dignity, supported by amending the relevant household surveys explicitly asking about adequate menstrual hygiene management.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Integrating non-discrimination and equality into the post-2015 development agenda for water, sanitation and hygiene 2012, para. 76c (vii)
- Paragraph text
- [Against this background, the Special Rapporteur recommends the following:] Recommendations regarding data sources and methodology: Targets and indicators should be crafted to ensure that women and adolescent girls can manage menstruation hygienically and with dignity, including by specific questions in relevant household surveys about adequate menstrual hygiene management.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
The right to freedom of opinion and expression exercised through the Internet 2011, para. 40
- Paragraph text
- In other cases, intermediary liability is imposed through privacy and data protection laws. For example, a court in Italy convicted three Google executives for violating the Italian data protection code after a video depicting cruelty to a disabled teenager was posted by a user on the Google video service. Even though the video was taken down within hours of notification by Italian law enforcers, the judge found the Google executives guilty. The Government of China requires ISPs and web platforms to conduct surveillance on their users, and they are also held directly responsible for content posted by users. Companies that fail to comply with this obligation risk losing their business licences. Holding intermediaries liable for the content disseminated or created by their users severely undermines the enjoyment of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, because it leads to self-protective and over-broad private censorship, often without transparency and the due process of the law.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
The right of the child to freedom of expression 2014, para. 60
- Paragraph text
- In India, members of the Adolescent Girls' Clubs against Child Marriage network help to persuade families not to marry their daughters off at a young age by educating people about the harmful consequences of early marriage. They offer a lifeline not only to girls who want to resist family pressure, but also to parents afraid that going against gender-based expectations will leave their daughters ostracized.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Harmful Practices
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Families
- Girls
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
The right of the child to freedom of expression 2014, para. 40
- Paragraph text
- Student-run publications are another important means by which students can express their views. They provide a source of support because they contain reports on topics that are of concern to young people and that adults may not feel comfortable discussing. Students' writing has, however, been censored for covering issues such as teenage pregnancy and the effects of parental divorce. Increasingly, students' posts on social media are also under scrutiny and, in some cases, children have been expelled for posting criticism of their school.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Youth
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Contemporary challenges to freedom of expression 2016, para. 43
- Paragraph text
- Article 20 (2) provides for restrictions with respect to hateful advocacy that amounts to incitement to hostility, discrimination or violence; it does not permit restrictions merely on the basis of "incompatibility" with a particular faith's values, nor does it (or article 19) permit restrictions that amount to blasphemy as such. Nonetheless, Maldives enacted a law in 2016 that criminalizes speech not expressed in accordance with social norms, national security and Islam. Singapore noted that a teenager was convicted under national legislation "for posting a video containing remarks against Christianity with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings of Christians". While "wounding religious feelings" may involve real emotional costs, such charges have no basis under international human rights law and limit without justification the sharing of information and ideas pertaining to religion and belief.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
The right of the child to freedom of expression 2014, para. 12
- Paragraph text
- There is no reference in article 13 to the child's evolving capacities, nor is a minimum age or a certain degree of maturity for the exercise of the right to freedom of expression fixed. In this sense, freedom of expression has been regarded as having a developmental aspect, since its aim is to enable children to develop their minds and themselves in society with others and grow into citizens participating in public life. Children's freedom of expression does not - and cannot - start when children become capable of expressing their views autonomously or become teenagers; they cannot be expected to develop as autonomous beings and participants in society at the magical age of 18 years without having had the opportunity beforehand.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
The right of the child to freedom of expression 2014, para. 76
- Paragraph text
- Empowering children must include training parents and professionals who work with children to support them in using the Internet, keeping in mind their evolving capacities. A positive way to introduce online safety and information beneficial to the development of children is through school curricula, including by involving children in the development of school policies on information and communications technologies. Non-governmental organizations and public communications such as radio messages can provide similar support to children who are not in school. Some examples of child safety initiatives are SaferNet Brasil, the Slovak Safer Internet Centre and Manos por la Niñez y Adolescencia (Hands for Children and Adolescents) in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 21
- Paragraph text
- In particular, adolescents' leading role in using and shaping new communications technologies places them in a position to build and utilize networks to promote their right to health, for example through information dissemination, data gathering, health campaign design, health education, peer-to-peer education and counselling and conflict mediation. A number of e-health and web-based interventions and mobile applications can provide information, increase access to care, engage adolescents in treatment and initiate aftercare. These skills and capacities mean that adolescents are uniquely positioned to contribute to the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals, in particular Goal 3, as well as to monitoring and holding Governments to account on the commitments made (General Assembly resolution 70/1).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 24
- Paragraph text
- The right to health of adolescents is closely related to other human rights included in these treaties, such as the rights of the child to healthy development, education, play and recreation, social security and privacy, and to being free from torture, all forms of violence and economic, sexual and other forms of exploitation. The right to health is also inextricably linked to non-discrimination and equality, participation and accountability. Adolescent health and development need to be promoted in the context of a holistic and comprehensive approach to the wider determinants affecting the opportunities, choices and consequent development of adolescents.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 25
- Paragraph text
- The right to health provides a valuable normative framework grounded in a commitment to promote the best interests of adolescents while acknowledging their evolving capacities to take increasing levels of responsibility for their own health care. It also places a legal obligation on States to progressively realize the highest attainable standard of health of adolescents; eliminate discrimination and inequalities that obstruct equitable enjoyment of the right to health; ensure the participation of adolescents in relevant efforts; devote maximum available resources to the right to health of children; develop suitable laws and policies, including a comprehensive national health plan that addresses adolescents' right to health; and ensure accountability, including effective remedies.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 19
- Paragraph text
- Adolescents are actors for social change, and are able to bring dynamism, flexibility, creativity and energy towards the realization of their own and others' rights to health. States should adopt a human rights framework for adolescent health guided by the recognition of their strengths, capacities and contributions, while also addressing the impact of social determinants of health. Respecting and engaging with adolescents and treating them as a resource contributes to building foundations for emotional security, health, education and the skills needed for the full and effective realization of the right to health.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 84
- Paragraph text
- Many adolescents, in particular girls and those identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, are deterred from approaching health professionals in anticipation of a judgemental attitude that results from social norms or laws that stigmatize or criminalize their sexual behaviour. Rights to sexual and reproductive health for many adolescents are further compromised by violence, including sexual and institutional violence, coercion into unwanted sex or marriage, and patriarchal and heteronormative practices and values. This reinforces harmful gender stereotypes and unequal power relations that make it difficult for many adolescent girls to refuse sex or insist on safe and responsible sex practices.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 65
- Paragraph text
- To achieve this, all relevant policies should be devised, and periodically reviewed, on the basis of a transparent process and with the participation of adolescents, and should include right to health indicators and benchmarks. Indicators should be disaggregated on suitable grounds, including those identified in the Sustainable Development Goals, namely age, income, gender, race, ethnicity, migratory status, disability and geographic location, in order to monitor the health status of marginalized groups and sectors of adolescents (see target 17.18). Adolescents and other relevant civil society actors should also be actively involved in review processes.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 86
- Paragraph text
- Adolescents with disabilities are frequently subjected to forced medical treatment, including sterilization, abortion and contraception, which can constitute torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. Girls with disabilities in particular experience alarmingly disproportionate levels of physical and sexual violence, frequently without any means of redress or access to justice. Many health-care providers hold inaccurate, stereotypical views about individuals with disabilities, including assumptions that they are asexual, which serves to deny them access to sexual and reproductive health information, services and goods, as well as comprehensive sexuality education.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Girls
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 87
- Paragraph text
- AIDS is the second most common cause of death among adolescents globally. Worldwide, adolescents in key population groups, including gay and bisexual boys, transgender adolescents, adolescents who exchange sex for money, goods or favours and adolescents who inject drugs, are also at a higher risk of HIV infection. Adolescent girls in high-HIV burden countries are particularly vulnerable, making up 75 per cent of new infections in Africa in 2013, with gender inequality, harmful traditional practices and punitive age of consent laws identified as drivers of the epidemic. These sectors and groups face a disproportionately high risk of experiencing stigma, discrimination, violence, rejection by families, criminalization and other human rights violations when seeking sexual and reproductive health services, including denial of access to health-care services, such as HIV testing, counselling and treatment.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Boys
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 3
- Paragraph text
- The population of adolescents globally is estimated to be over 1.2 billion, 88 per cent of whom live in developing countries. Adolescents represent 18 per cent of the world's population. Although adolescence is inherently characterized by relatively low mortality compared to other age groups, it is associated with emerging and complex risk factors, resulting in patterns of behaviour that affect long-term morbidity and mortality. Likewise, adolescents are one of the groups that existing health services serve least well.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 10
- Paragraph text
- Adolescent health is the result of interactions between early childhood development and the specific biological and social role changes that accompany puberty, shaped by social determinants and by risk and protective factors that affect the uptake of health-related behaviours. While adolescents themselves have the capacity to contribute to their own health and well-being, they can only achieve this goal if States respect and protect their rights and provide them with access to the necessary conditions, services and information.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 27
- Paragraph text
- States must ensure that health systems, including health-care services, in cooperation with other relevant services, such as social, child protection and education services, are responsive to the right to health of adolescents. They should address the full spectrum of adolescent health and development, including health promotion, sexual and reproductive health, mental health, palliative care, unintentional and intentional injuries, violence, and health-compromising behaviours that may begin during adolescence.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 15
- Paragraph text
- States policies towards adolescents are too often characterized by targeted or punitive interventions aimed at addressing problems such as juvenile delinquency and violence, as well as perceived challenges, including substance use and sexual activity; too little attention is typically paid to building positive environments in which adolescents can thrive. Punitive and excessively biomedical interventions ignore the powerful social and economic determinants influencing adolescent behaviour, opportunities and well-being. Stigmatizing, demonizing and discriminating against adolescents by, for example, criminalizing or pathologizing their behaviours and diversities, negatively affects their socially perceived roles, self-esteem, well-being and sense of empowerment. These approaches fail adolescents, their holistic development and their right to health.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 16
- Paragraph text
- One-size-fits-all policies designed for children or youth often fail to address adolescents, particularly 10-14 year-olds. Lack of awareness or understanding of their unique health needs can render adolescents invisible. Adolescents face multiple barriers to health services, including the following: restrictive laws and policies; unavailability of contraception or safe abortions; inaccessible services owing to lack of information, distance or cost; failure to ensure privacy and confidentiality; parental consent or notification requirements; provision of services in a manner that is disrespectful, hostile, judgemental or lacking sympathy; and discrimination against particular groups of adolescents, including those with disabilities, those living and working on the streets or in the sex trade and those from historically marginalized groups. States have positive human rights obligations to guarantee adolescents' rights and meaningfully engage with them in identifying their needs and priorities.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Youth
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 17
- Paragraph text
- Rapid globalization and associated social and cultural changes, reinforced by the digital world, mean that many adolescents inhabit a world very different from that of the adults around them in relation to information, the speed of change, social norms, risks, aspirations and opportunities. While these rapidly changing environments offer important opportunities for adolescents, they can also pose significant challenges to their rights, for example to privacy, informed consent and freedom from exploitation, with significant implications, in particular for their mental health and well-being. Furthermore, the speed of change can inhibit intergenerational understanding, challenging the capacity of parents and other caregivers to provide the guidance necessary to protect and promote adolescents' right to health.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Families
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 28
- Paragraph text
- Rather than only setting up separate interventions and facilities for adolescents, efforts should be made to ensure that adolescents receive adequate attention in all policies, strategies and programmes that are relevant to them. Health systems should be designed and services should be delivered in a way that respects the right to health and other related rights of adolescents, in accordance with their evolving capacities. This can only be achieved by guaranteeing the right of adolescents to be heard and to contribute to the planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of services.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 79
- Paragraph text
- States should invest in programmes to challenge outdated beliefs and negative attitudes about mental conditions through the dissemination of information. Adolescents of different ages and representing different perspectives should be consulted in the design, development, implementation and monitoring of mental health services. Investments must be made to address gender discrimination in mental health and to reach out to marginalized communities, which are disproportionately vulnerable to mental health problems and experience greater barriers in accessing services.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph