Director-General/Executive Director
Honourable Members of Parliament,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
I am honoured to join you today to underline the need to protect children from all forms of violence.
I would like to express my appreciation for the European Parliament, and particularly for this Intergroup and its mission to protect children across political divides.
I am pleased to hear all speakers sharing the same concerns, confirming the same data, and warning against the same risks. But we need to go beyond words and start taking action.
Parliaments matter everywhere.
As Parliamentarians, you have an essential role in promoting peace, security and the rule of law, as well as responding to societal concerns and raising awareness.
You set legislation and legal norms that guide actors on the ground, and you influence the allocation of funds.
That is why I was eager to be here with you today, and it is why the UN Office on Drugs and Crime was keen to highlight the importance of working closely with parliaments in our corporate strategy.
I also want to commend the Universities Network for Children in Armed Conflict for co-organizing this event, reminding us of the crucial role of Academia and young people in speaking up for children in peril.
This event is a valuable opportunity to discuss how the world can do better in safeguarding children, in a time of global turmoil.
Excellencies,
Today, armed conflicts are at their highest since the Second World War.
The impact on children is direct and tragic.
It is estimated that more than 460 million children were living in contexts of conflict in 2022, and the global trajectory suggests that this number is growing.
Many of those children are destined to lose their lives.
Others are often forced from their homes, leaving them vulnerable and exposed.
In the Middle East, where I come from, UNICEF recently declared that Gaza was the most dangerous place in the world to be a child.
It is reported that more than 10,000 children have been killed in the conflict so far, while several children remain hostages.
In Europe, your home continent, more than 570 children have lost their lives due to the war in Ukraine, as verified by the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights.
In Africa, Sudan has become the largest child displacement crisis in the world, according to UNICEF, with a recorded 3 million children fleeing since the outbreak of the conflict, and the Democratic Republic of Congo is sadly not far behind, with an estimated 2.8 million children displaced.
These are just some examples, but there are many more that can be cited in Syria, Yemen, Myanmar, and other places where instability reigns and children suffer.
As they flee their homes, children become vulnerable to trafficking and exploitation.
Armed and terrorist groups often recruit and exploit children, using some as combatants, and others for sexual exploitation and forced marriages.
Even when they are not in conflict zones anymore, children on the move become easy targets for human traffickers and may risk their lives in the hands of smugglers.
UNODC’s most recent Global Report on Trafficking in Persons found that when they are trafficked, children are almost twice as likely as adults to face extreme levels of violence.
Conflicts also undermine the mechanisms that provide children with their rights.
According to UNICEF, children in conflict settings are more than twice as likely to be undernourished and without clean water, twice as likely to die before age 5, and more than three times as likely to be out of school.
We see this vividly in Afghanistan, for example, where children bear the legacy of decades of conflict, with around one in three children experiencing crisis levels of hunger according to Save the Children.
Everywhere, heart-breaking stories and images of children affected by conflict have become a mainstay in our news.
We must not become de-sensitized to these images, or let their suffering be normalized.
The international community needs to urgently protect all children in settings of insecurity, by calling for the full application of international humanitarian law, ending the hate that de-humanizes people, and supporting every child affected.
And in the long-term, we need to work towards societies and institutions capable of ensuring the wellbeing of children and their rights, in all settings and in all places.
Excellencies,
To ensure the safety and security of children, it is necessary to create a protective environment that places their needs and rights at the centre.
This means strengthening systems capable of preventing and responding to violence against children, helping and protecting victims, and promoting rehabilitation and reintegration.
It means holding every perpetrator of crimes against children accountable.
It means investing heavily in prevention, including by empowering children and young people to be agents in their own protection.
And it means strengthening caregiving skills and paying attention to children’s mental health, including in settings of insecurity.
Distinguished participants,
In November of 2023, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime launched a Strategy to End Violence against Children, together with the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary General on Violence against Children, and we have brought copies of it for you.
The Strategy prioritizes children in contexts affected by conflict, terrorism and organized crime, while also recognizing settings in which violence can be more silent, but no less dangerous.
This effort builds on our extensive experience working on protecting children and promoting the rule of law.
Since 2015, UNODC’s Global Programme to End violence Against Children has provided assistance to 66 Member States, helped produce 33 national policy and guidance documents, and engaged directly with children and communities in different parts of the world.
UNODC also reached millions of families in conflict-affected settings with caregiving advice.
Furthermore, our Office is also supporting many countries to address child trafficking, including trafficking caused by armed conflict, as well as the online distribution of child sexual abuse material.
The European Union has been a valuable partner on this journey, with its EU Strategy on the Rights of the Child providing an important benchmark for action.
With the engagement of the European parliament, I see opportunities to expand our cooperation.
At UNODC, we have been expanding our cooperation with parliaments, including through stronger partnerships with the International Parliamentary Union, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean, and the Arab Parliament.
Working hand in hand with the European Parliament and other parliaments, as well as governments and civil society, we can step up efforts to better reach and protect children, especially in settings of conflict and insecurity.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Violence is not an event but a cycle.
Our best hope to end that cycle is to protect our children, and to empower them to create a more peaceful world than the one we have managed.
The children of the world need peace now.
Thank you.