13 October 2006

Violence Against Children Occurs with Social Approval, U.N. Finds

United States joins U.N. agencies in condemnation, call for action

Washington -- Violence is an everyday reality for far too many children in the world, and that violence often occurs with social approval, according to the findings of a comprehensive global view of violence against children released by the United Nations October 12.

The study – The U.N. Secretary-General’s Study on Violence against Children -- finds that violence against children is unjustifiable, preventable and pervasive.

“In every region, in contradiction to human rights obligations and children’s developmental needs,” according to the report’s introduction, “violence against children is socially approved, and is frequently legal and State-authorized.”

The report was presented to the U.N. General Assembly October 12 by its sponsors, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO).

The Administration for Children and Families, within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, also contributed to the report. Wade Horn, the department’s assistant secretary for children and families participated in its unveiling.

“We ought to be outraged whenever violence is perpetrated against children, and, most especially, by incidences of child rape, child homicide, physical abuse, child sex trafficking and prostitution, female genital mutilation, and other forms of brutality against children,” said Horn. ”We wholeheartedly agree with the report’s opening declaration that ‘no violence against children is justifiable’ and that ‘all violence against children is preventable.’”

Despite the hidden nature of violence against children, the report does offer some estimates on its occurrence:

• Some 53,000 children under 17 died as a result of homicide in 2002;

• Estimates from 2000 suggest approximately 5.7 million children were in forced or bonded labor, 1.8 million in prostitution or pornography, and 1.2 million were victims of trafficking; and

• In a targeted review of 16 developing countries, as many as 65 percent of children reported incidents of verbal or physical bullying in school.

Professor Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro was the independent expert appointed by the secretary-general to lead the study. He laid the responsibility for the prevention of abuse of the most helpless victims on national governments.

“That means prohibiting all kinds of violence against children, wherever it occurs and whoever is the perpetrator, and investing in prevention programs to address the underlying causes,” Pinheiro said. “People must be held accountable for their actions but a strong legal framework is not only about sanctions, it is about sending a robust, unequivocal signal that society just will not accept violence against children.”

For additional information, see the Administration for Children and Families’ clearinghouse for information on child abuse and neglect.

The full text (PDF, 34 pages) of the U.N. report is available on the study’s Web site.

(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)