NEW YORK - Child victims of trafficking in conflict situations require urgent and specialised protection measures, a UN expert said today.
"Failure to ensure the rights of children in conflict situations has led to widespread and systematic child trafficking," said Siobhán Mullally, the Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially women and children in a report to the General Assembly.
"Despite consistent and credible evidence of the prevalence of child trafficking and its strategic use in conflict situations, the prevention, protection and impunity gaps persist," Mullally said. "These failures have devastating consequences and result in serious violations of children's rights, including the denial of their rights to a childhood and to life, survival and development, as established in international human rights, humanitarian and criminal law."
During conflict and humanitarian crises, children are trafficked for a wide range of exploitative purposes, including forced labour and servitude, active combat and support roles, forced criminality, forced begging, sexual exploitation, forced marriage and illegal intercountry adoption.
"Children associated with armed groups are often arrested and detained rather than recognised and protected as victims of trafficking, in contravention of the States' obligations under international law and the non-punishment principle," the expert said. "As a result, children are denied the protection they are entitled to."
Mullally said there was a strong correlation between child trafficking and weak child protection systems. "Structural challenges, such as threats to the rule of law and the administration of justice, inadequate disarmament and demobilisation processes, and the proliferation of small arms and light weapons further exacerbate the risks," she said.
The Special Rapporteur said failure to identify child victims of trafficking also leads to risks of refoulement, detention, prosecution, family separation and denial of consular assistance. She called for responses that are tailored to children's gender, race, ethnicity, migration status, disability status and affiliation with Indigenous groups and minorities.
The Special Rapporteur urged States to recognise child victims of trafficking under international law, and to prioritise their recovery, reintegration and rights-based family reunification. She recommended the establishment of child-friendly anti-trafficking measures and comprehensive child justice systems to ensure appropriate assistance and effective access to justice.
"In conflict, transitional and post-conflict settings, the risks of reprisals, intimidation and interference with the administration of justice are high," she warned. "Effective action must be taken to ensure witness protection and to create specialised units within the police, judiciary, the court system and the prosecutor's office to ensure the rights of child victims," the expert said.
She called for early identification of child victims and those at risk of trafficking through robust screening and referral mechanisms. "Protection and assistance must be delivered in a timely manner, with safe and unimpeded humanitarian access, appointment of guardians for separated and unaccompanied children, and effective access to international protection, including asylum," Mullally said.
