A/68/274 implementation of these treaties constitute a crucial step towards promoting prevention and elimination of violence and protecting children from violence. 13. The United Nations campaign for the universal ratification of the Optional Protocols is a major initiative in this area. Launched in May 2010 by the SecretaryGeneral, the campaign is supported by the Special Representative, together with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. 14. The goal of universal ratification has been widely endorsed by Member States, national institutions and civil society partners, as well as regional organizations. For example, the Council of Europe launched a campaign to stop sexual violence against children, featuring the ratification of the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography 5 as a core component. 15. Since the launch of the campaign, the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography5 received 26 additional ratifications and is currently in force in 163 countries. Of the 30 States that are not yet parties to the Protocol, the majority made formal commitments to ratification in the framework of the universal periodic review process of the Human Rights Council, the Committee on the Rights of the Child or other human rights mechanisms; and the large majority have ratified the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, supplementary to the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, 6 and Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182), 7 of the International Labour Organization, which address similar areas of concern. 16. The campaign will continue to build on the momentum created to reach universal ratification. The 2013 United Nations Treaty Event, organized in conjunction with the high-level segment of the General Assembly, marks a critical stage in this process, with its prominent attention to the rights of the child. 17. The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on a communications procedure 8 is another important legal instrument promoted by the Special Representative. The Protocol was adopted by the General Assembly on 19 December 2011 and as of 26 July 2013, it had been ratified by 6 States and signed by 37. 18. The Protocol recognizes children’s legal standing with respect to seeking redress for the violation of their rights — either directly or through a representative. To promote its implementation, domestic remedies and child-sensitive procedures and mechanisms need to be in place, including ombuds for children or similar national independent human rights institutions. Similarly, child-sensitive procedures and legal safeguards need to be established to ensure respect for the best interests and the views of the child, to protect children’s privacy and prevent the risk of illtreatment or intimidation. __________________ 5 6 7 8 13-41970 Ibid., vol. 2171, No. 27531. Ibid., vol. 2237, No. 39574. Adopted by the General Assembly in its resolution 55/25. Ibid., vol. 2133, No. 37245. General Assembly resolution 66/138, annex. 5/26