Office of the United Nations High Commissioner
for Human Rights (OHCHR)
Regional Office for the Pacific - Suva, Fiji   

Pacific Consultation on Addressing Violence against Children,
26-28 September 2005, Suva, Fiji

Statement by Paulo David
Chief, Regional Office for the Pacific

Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen
Dear Young Participants

It is an honour for me to participate to this very important Pacific consultation on addressing violence against children and, on behalf of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights which recently opened a regional office in Suva, I wish to warmly thank the organizers - the Government of Fiji, UNICEF, the Fiji Women's Crisis Centre and Save the Children - for having kindly invited me as well as for joining their forces to organize this event.

This consultation coincides with the 15th anniversary of the entry into force of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, one of the seven core international human rights treaties. It is remarkable to note that every single State of the Pacific region has ratified this treaty during the nineties committing themselves to promote and protect the rights of all children within their country.
Addressing violence against children requires us to recognize children as full-fledged rights holders. As provided by the Convention on the Rights of the Child children have to be fully guaranteed their right to physical, mental and sexual integrity as well as their dignity. Children have the right to be protected from all acts of violence the same way adults are; in view of their relative vulnerability they are also recognized special protection measures under the Convention. Any form of violence - even light - can not be justified under the Convention, including as a form of discipline.

The work of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, the United Nations body of experts established in 1991 to periodically monitor the implementation of the Convention by States parties, shows that violence against children remains a universal scourge. All countries and regions of the world, irrespective of their level of development, their social, religious, customary and cultural practices and beliefs and their political systems, struggle to protect children from being victims of violence in their homes, schools and in other institutions, in their communities and within the context of "law and order".

The jurisprudence of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child with regard to violence against children is since over a decade extremely clear and consistent. It is based on fundamental human rights principles, such as State accountability, non-discrimination, fight against impunity, participation. First, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child recommends that State parties take legislative measures in order to prohibit explicitly all forms of violence, including corporal punishment, maltreatment and sexual abuse. In parallel, the Committee requires States parties to raise awareness and provide training among all stakeholders, including parents, teachers, professional groups, about the extremely negative and counter-productive consequences of violence, including as a form of discipline.  Effective reporting, referral and monitoring mechanisms also need to be established or reinforced. Cases of violence need to be independently, expeditiously and fairly investigated with due respect to the rights of the young victim during that process. Authors of violence related crimes have to be prosecuted and sanctioned appropriately. Finally, the young victims need to be given proper attention in order for them to benefit from psychological and physical recovery services. These recommendations of the Committee represent a significant challenge for Governments worldwide and clearly need strong political commitment and proper human and financial resources.
The monitoring work of the Committee, as well as the current work undertaken by Professor Pinheiro under the UN Study on Violence Against Children, also reveals the very large variety of forms of violence that victimize children worldwide: from corporal to capital punishment, from harmful traditional practices to State violence, from domestic abuse to trafficking, children are not sparred from the most inhuman forms of abuse and exploitation. For this reason, this consultation is focusing on five thematic areas of similar importance: violence in the home, in the schools, in the community, in the context of sexual abuse and exploitation, and in the field of law and justice.

Ladies and Gentlemen
One of the most challenging aspects in all regions of the world, including the Pacific, remains the prevention of violence within the home.

Most importantly, the Convention on the Rights of the Child requires us, adults, to have our vision of the status and role of the child in society evolve progressively. This is not the least of challenge and obviously can not be undertaken overnight! The Convention does not only provide for protection rights, but also strongly emphasize participation ones for children. Its article 12 is crucial in this regard. It affirms: "States Parties shall assure to the child who is capable of forming his or her own views the right to express those views freely in all matters affecting the child, the views of the child being given due weight in accordance with the age and maturity of the child". This provision means that children, according to their age and maturity, should be involved in decision making and be consistently given an opportunity to express their views. When asked, through various surveys, about their opinion on the effectiveness of the use of corporal punishment as a form of discipline, children unanimously state that they have generally no problem recognizing their wrong-doings and the need to be non-violently disciplined and guided by adults, but they affirm that being hit is counter-productive, hurts inside and outside the body and challenges their trust in adults.
The Convention also recognizes parents rights and responsibilities for bringing-up their children in its article 5 that affirms: "States Parties shall respect the responsibilities, rights and duties of parents or, where applicable, the members of the extended family or community as provided for by local custom, legal guardians or other persons legally responsible for the child, to provide, in a manner consistent with the evolving capacities of the child, appropriate direction and guidance in the exercise by the child of the rights recognized in the present Convention". Therefore parents and others in the community, with the support of public authorities, have a crucial role to play in offering a non-violent environment to their children.

Ladies and Gentlemen

I am convinced that this consultation will be productive and useful for all participants in providing tools to improve the prevention and protection of children from all forms of violence. I also wish to seize this opportunity to warmly thank the Governments of the Marshall Islands, of Kiribati and Samoa for having recently submitted their reports to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child which will review them next year in Geneva and provide, were appropriate, advice for positive change in all fields of children's rights. At the same time, I wish to encourage the five remaining Governments of the Pacific region which have never reported to the UN Committee to do their outmost to rapidly do so in order to fulfill their reporting obligation under the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Thank you for your attention and I wish you a very fruitful meeting.