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Monitoring The UN > The UN and Children's Rights Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Assault Every year, an estimated one million children, mostly girls, are forced
to become part of a multi-billion dollar sex trade. The rights of children
to be protected from sexual exploitation and sexual assault are left
unprotected in millions of cases around the world. Every year approximately
two million girls in over 28 countries undergo the psychologically and
physically scarring procedure known as female genital mutilation (FGM).
While progress is continually being made, the commercial sex trade,
rapes that go unpunished, FGM, and poor reproductive health services
pose serious obstacles for the protection of children's rights. Sexual Assault and Sexual Exploitation: There are many
different reasons why female children become part of the commercial
sex trade. In some cases, females have sex in exchange for food, protection,
safe passage through a conflict-ridden area, and/or documents (such
as birth certificates.) Alternatively, children are sometimes persuaded
to enter the sex trade by promises of an education, a good job, and
eventual successful independence. In far too many cases, children are raped or are forced into prostitution.
The situation can be particularly dangerous and threatening for war-affected
children who live in societies where "the general disruption of social
boundaries and the license granted to soldiers and militias" may eliminate
social restrictions on rape and prostitution. Military forces sometimes
use rape as a tactical weapon with the goal of demoralizing opponents
and forcing civilians to flee a region. In Angola, Sierra Leone, and
Ugunda, female child soldiers are sometimes claimed by rebel leaders
as "wives"; interviews by Human
Rights Watch revealed the stories of girls who, impregnated
by commanders of rebel forces in Northern Uganda, were forced to strap
their babies to their backs and continue fighting against Ugandan military
forces. The sexual assault and exploitation experienced by children
in many of the world's countries, whether by military personnel or unrelated
to any conflict, are horrendous barriers to the objective of securing
children's rights around the world. Fighting Against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Assault:
Some of the most important methods for fighting the many abuses of children's
rights described above revolve around education and awareness. If young
children (again focusing on females) can be educated and prepared for
a successful career, they are much less likely to be drawn to the commercial
sex trade by desperation and by promises of a good education and job.
Training health workers and midwives to better deal with reproductive
and sexual health issues would also protect the health of female children
in developing nations: every year, approximately 600,000 girls (mostly
teenagers) die from pregnancy- or birth-related complications. A number of recent international events and conventions have been extremely decisive in the battle against sexual assault and sexual exploitation. In 1999, the International Labour Organization unanimously adopted the Convention Concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour (C-182), which advocates, among other things, the "prohibition and elimination of … the use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution, for the production of pornography or for pornographic purposes." In December of 2001, the Second World Congress against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children was held in Yokohama, Japan. One month later (18 January 2002), the Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography to the Convention on the Rights of the Child became a legally binding treaty, following its tenth ratification by Romania in October of 2001. While these treaties are powerful in their message and in action, more is needed before the rights of children can be said to be universally protected: greater public awareness around the world of the relevant issues, improved education, stricter penalties for transgressors of laws, better health care facilities, and improved training for health personnel are important steps in the right direction. UNICEF Press Release: UNICEF Hails Entry Into Force of Optional Protocol
on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution, and Child Pornography:
http://www.unicef.org/newsline/01pr81.htm/
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