Our website uses Cookies - by using this site or closing this message you're agreeing to our Terms & Conditions, Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy
xUNICEF release global statistical report on violence against children
Date: 13th September 2014
Category:
Special protection measures
'Hidden in Plain Sight: A statistical analysis of violence against children' is a new report representing the largest-ever compilation of data on the subject of violence against children.
Hidden in Plain Sight sheds light on the prevalence of different forms of violence against children, with global figures and data from 190 countries. Where relevant, data are disaggregated by age and sex, to provide insights into risk and protective factors.
The report begins with an overview which highlights that the protection of children from all forms of violence is a fundamental right guaranteed by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) (Article 19) and other international human rights treaties and standards.
The report includes the following statement from the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child General Comment 13 to the UNCRC:
"All forms of violence against children, however light, are unacceptable. [...] Frequency, severity of harm and intent to harm are not prerequisites for the definitions of violence. States parties may refer to such factors in intervention strategies in order to allow proportional responses in the best interests of the child, but definitions must in no way erode the child's absolute right to human dignity and physical and psychological integrity by describing some forms of violence as legally and/or socially acceptable."
This groundbreaking report concludes that interpersonal violence - in all its forms - has a grave effect on children: violence undermines their future potential; damages their physical, psychological and emotional wellbeing; and in many cases ends their lives.