Standardized tools for criminal justice officials
In recent decades, Southeast Asia can count many successes in combating child sexual exploitation, but a rapidly changing world has created new threats and new opportunities for action to protect those affected by this crime. As 25 years have passed since the development of the Convention of the Rights of the Child, there is a need to more proactively address the this serious crime against children in Southeast Asia. Child sex offenders are taking advantage of the increased mobility associated with regional integration, as well as gaps in the international and domestic capacities.
UNODC assists governments with developing law and justice frameworks, attitudinal orientation, and understanding of the true purport of the laws dealing with child sexual exploitation. The responsibilities of criminal justice systems do not lie exclusively in punishing offenders but should concentrate on respecting and restoring the human rights and needs of child victims of sexual abuse and exploitation.
Under its global mandate, UNODC has developed standardized reference and training tools and deployed them to official training institutes in Southeast Asia. These practical tools help to combat this serious crime against children and are made available through UNODC in local languages.
Overview
Southeast Asia's rapid development and commitment to further integration is placing increased demands on social and state capacities. UNODC's experience in analysing and responding to regional threats suggests a need to prepare for a new era of safeguarding human security, migration and trade - in this case, the safety and wellbeing of children. New forms of commitment are required to secure the basic rights and freedoms that all people should enjoy, especially children. The documents below outline UNODC's program to combat child sex offending and examine the threat posed by offenders engaging in the sexual exploitation of children, as well as avenues for improving responses.
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Protecting the Future:
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Strengthening Legal Frameworks
Legal challenges in responding to child sexual exploitation include problems related to insufficient legal coverage and consistency, and problems related to implementation. Projects such as UN-ACT (formerly UNIAP) have made great strides in improving harmonisation and legal cooperation between countries, but there is still much more work that needs to be done. Analyses of domestic legal frameworks with particular focus on child sexual exploitation in travel and tourism has been undertaken in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Vietnam, with UNODC's support. The reports compared domestic laws with international standards relating to child sexual abuse, identified legal gaps and provided concrete recommendations on how to strengthen the legislative framework for the protection of children. The recommendations in the analytical report are being used by the four countries as a basis for legal reform. It is of particular importance that penalties are commensurate with the offences and that all forms of child sexual exploitation are criminalised, including newer forms of abuse that are committed online.
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Child Sexual Exploitation in Travel and Tourism:
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Child Sexual Exploitation in Travel and Tourism:
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Child Sexual Exploitation in Travel and Tourism:
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Child Sexual Exploitation in Travel and Tourism:
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The following paper highlights the work of UNODC and the Government of Thailand in developing and implementing legal measures to protect children from sexual crimes. The report will be used as a basis to inform stakeholders of the need to continue providing support to Member States in the Southeast Asia region and to strengthen collaboration with donors, government counterparts and organisations with a longstanding history of work in the protection of children.
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Training Criminal Justice Officials
Capable and committed police will be at the heart of any effective response to child sexual exploitation. With this in mind, UNODC has developed two training programmes to support capacity building of law enforcement officials. These are introductory training curricula for frontline officers and specialist investigators and include gender issues police encounter when dealing with child sexual exploitation cases. The curricula are restricted to police and are available in five languages: English, Khmer, Lao, Thai and Vietnamese.
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Investigating Sexual Exploitation of Children
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Investigating Sexual Exploitation of Children
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Investigating Sexual Exploitation of Children
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Investigating Sexual Exploitation of Children
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Investigating Sexual Exploitation of Children
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Investigating Sexual Exploitation of Children
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Investigating Sexual Exploitation of Children
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Investigating Sexual Exploitation of Children
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Investigating Sexual Exploitation of Children
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Investigating Sexual Exploitation of Children
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Investigating Sexual Exploitation of Children
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Judges and prosecutors have a tremendous responsibility to ensure that the legal system protects victims by judging cases fairly and with due regard for the severity of certain crimes. Judicial support is required across the region, and should include prosecutor and judge training on interpretation of laws and case law, collection and storage of evidence, and supporting and protecting victims in legal proceedings. A complete package of assistance can help the members of the judiciary ensure fair proceedings and deliver sound judgments. UNODC is developing training curricula for prosecutors and judges for dealing with child sexual exploitation cases. The curricula are restricted to justice officials and will be available in five languages: English, Khmer, Lao, Thai and Vietnamese.
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Prosecuting Sexual Exploitation of Children
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Prosecuting Sexual Exploitation of Children
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Prosecuting Sexual Exploitation of Children
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Prosecuting Sexual Exploitation of Children
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