LEADERS’ EVENT SPEAKERS REINFORCE END VIOLENCE POLICY PROPOSALS

In July 2021 experts from across the End Violence community came together to develop a prioritised list of six evidence-based policy proposals to accelerate progress to end violence against children - the Together to #ENDviolence policy proposals.

If adopted and implemented, these proposals will strengthen the policy and legislative environment, bolster institutional frameworks and systems, and provide the funding and other resources needed to translate what we know works into sustainable change.

On 14 June 2022, 40 powerful End Violence Advocates - heads of state, children, UN leadership, royalty, CEOs and adult survivors of childhood violence came together in a global moment for children at the Together to #ENDviolence Leaders’ Event. It was a moment to highlight the scale of violence against children, shine a spotlight on the solutions and call for urgent action to accelerate progress through political and financial commitment. 

During the event, global leaders and Together to #ENDviolence Advocates made powerful calls to action that reinforce and build on the six policy objectives and proposals.

BAN ALL FORMS OF VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILDREN BY 2030

Mehnaz Akber Aziz, champion legislator in Pakistan, is calling for Parliamentarians and policymakers to:

  • Put in place legislation to prohibit corporal punishment in all settings – schools, religious seminaries, caregiving institutions, juvenile justice systems, workplaces 
  • Work together to ensure these legislations are passed and ensure proper implementation of passed legislation 

H.E. Mohamed Béavogui, Transitional Prime Minister, Republic of Guinea highlighted the country’s commitments to end violence, including:

  • Implementing legislation relating to physical violence, including the prohibition of corporal punishment 
  • Reducing the rate of child marriages by 20% by 2025
  • Enforcing legal action to address female genital mutilation 

To end childhood sexual violence, the Survivor-led Brave Movement Advocates demands:

  • Justice - there should be no deadline on accountability of perpetrators. Abolish the statute of limitations so that survivors can report and seek justice at any time
  • Safety - all actors need to ensure safety for children as a right, not a privilege
  • Inclusion - survivor voices must be included in policy making and decision-making

 

Equip parents and caregivers to keep children safe at home, online and within the community

Catherine Russell, Executive Director, UNICEF is calling for action to:

  • Make parenting support universally available and for increased investments in parenting

Anne-Birgitte Albrectsen, CEO, LEGO Foundation is
calling for:

  • Parents and caregivers to be equipped and supported to develop core skills that will help them to strengthen relationships by engaging in playful learning activities  
  • Governments and donors to increase investment in early childhood programmes to create safe and nurturing environments

Make the internet safe for children

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission shared the action being applied in the new proposed EU legislation to tackle online child sexual abuse, including:

  • New mandatory rules which make it an obligation for digital platforms to act fast to detect, report and remove illegal material, and impose penalties on those who do not do so
  • Protecting fundamental rights with safeguards. There should be no backdoor for platforms to violate people’s privacy. 
  • A strong enforcement capacity to ensure measures are duly followed. 

Ashton Kutcher, Actor, Producer & Co-founder of Thorn shared that we can’t fight this alone and need:

  • Policymakers who understand the online child sexual abuse and exploitation and have urgency
  • Tech industry to prioritise this issue and put their best and brightest on it
  • All sorts of efforts in victim support and preventative work

Make schools safe, non-violent and inclusive

H.E. Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, Board Chair, Global Partnership for Education is calling on political leadership to:

  • Ensure that ending violence is prioritised in education plans, programmes and policies  
  • Ensure gender-equality to end violence in and through schools
  • Endorse the Safe to Learn Call to Action. 

Catherine Russell, Executive Director, UNICEF is calling for:

  • Teachers, social workers and staff in schools to be trained to recognise signs of violence and abuse 
  • Schools to be equipped to provide psycho-social support to help children overcome trauma

Protect children from violence in humanitarian settings

David Miliband, President & CEO, International Rescue Committee called for urgent action on four fronts:

  • Calling out and tackling impunity in war zones 
  • Funding Prevention - not just response
  • Specialised services combined with mainstreaming – as violence against children is a multifaceted issue affecting community, health and economic outcomes 
  • Multi-year responses, multi-year commitments, and multi-year investments

Children’s panel - Horuna, President of the Parliamentary Group for the Protection of Children’s Rights in Mali is calling for authorities to:

  • Put in place and apply more international conventions and standards aimed at protecting children from armed conflict and its harming consequences

More investment, better spent

Amina J. Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General, United Nations stressed that we need:

  • Political and financial commitment to match the scale of violence faced by children 
  • To place children at the heart of the 2030 Agenda
     

Jeffrey D. Sachs, Director, Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University and President of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network shared that:

  • The world needs to shift at least $1 trillion dollars a year of the Gross World Product (GWP) towards investments in the Sustainable Development Goals in developing countries. This is less than 4% of world saving, most of which currently goes to developed countries.
  • Public development banks and specialised funds play a key role in closing the financing gap 
  • Funding should be identified through multilateral development banks and specialised funds for all stages of children’s lives – from safe pregnancy and childbirth to social support and social protection plans for families 
     

WATCH THE SUMMARY VIDEO      |      WATCH THE EVENT

 

Dr. Najat Maalla M’jid, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General on Violence Against Children calls for:

  • Spending on child and gender-sensitive protection and violence prevention across all services as a key investment with high returns and long-term cost savings.  
  • Investments in child protection and violence prevention to be integral to every government’s economic and development strategy 

Catherine Russell, Executive Director, UNICEF is calling for: 

  • Child protection measures to be at the centre of COVID-19 response plans

The Survivor-led Brave Movement is calling for: 

  • G7 countries to invest billions in prevention, healing and justice programmes in low-income countries 

Lena Hallengren, Minister for Health & Social Affairs, Government of Sweden shared that we need:

  • To show solidarity when it comes to financing interventions that aim to end violence against children.