Over 2 millions children exploited in sex industry around the world, conference
Regional, Culture, 12/16/2004

More than 2 million children, mostly girls, are exploited in the sex industry around the world and an estimated 1.2 million children are victims of traffic, it was revealed, here Tuesday, at the opening of an Arab-African conference on children exploitation.

To face this problem, Thomas Mc Dermott, UNICEF regional manager for the Middle East and North Africa who was quoting a recent report of UNICEF on the situation of the children in the world, suggested that each country of the area will have to ratify all the significant international treaties, to adapt the national legislations to these conventions, to adopt a national Action Plan which defines clear objectives, with a calendar of implementation and a system of high level coordination, and to install mechanisms which make it possible for the victims to report their problems.

As far as Morocco is concerned, Mc Dermott praised the country's promotion of the children' rights and described as a "model" the efforts made by the Kingdom to protect children against sexual abuse, exploitation and violence.

Organized under the topic "protection against exploitation, violence and sexual abuse of children," with the support of the international network of organizations striving to eradicate the children prostitution, pornography, and traffic (ECPAT) and the Grouping of ONG for the Convention of the Rights of the Children, this conference aims at assessing the progress achieved since the 2001 Conference held in Yokohama (Japan).

Addressing participants, Yasmina Baddou, Moroccan Secretary of State in charge of Family, Childhood and Handicapped, said that Morocco's efforts against all forms of sexual exploitation and abuse of children will be crowned soon by the adoption of the National Action Plan for 2005-2015.

She added that her department is working with the Justice Ministry for the creation of a cell that will examine legal tools for the protection of the children, and the installation of regional centers to monitor and listen to abused children.

She said this conference, like those held in the past, aim to break silence and the taboos in connection with the children sexual abuse and raise awareness on the need for fighting this phenomenon.

On her part, director of International network ECPAT, Tabataba• Zohreh explained that out of the 55 African countries having ratified the protocol on the protection of the children, only five have developed national Action Plans, in spite of the precarious conditions of children in the continent, mainly because of wars, absolute poverty which concern more than half of the population and the pandemic of the AIDS disease which records the highest rates in Africa.

Previous Stories:
  Calls for 'adequate measures' to protect children from sexual exploitation   (12/14/2004)
  Vatican calls on Muslims and Catholics to protect children   (11/6/2004)
  Calls for global policy to fight children abuse   (7/21/2004)
  Launch of campaign to protect children   (12/16/2003)

Please add a link on your webiste pointing to ArabicNews.com and bookmark ArabicNews.com & subscribe to our daily email news bulletin.

Search