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STORY: UN / VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILDREN
TRT: 04:49
SOURCE: UN NEWS
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 08 OCTOBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY / FILE
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
1. Close up, UN flag
08 OCTOBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Najat Maalla M’jid, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, United Nations:
“The number of 300 million, you know, of children-victims of sexual exploitation online is not reflecting the truth because the problem is also reporting, and we have not all the data. Why we arrive at this stage? Because you have more and more children connected, and more and more children younger, more and more younger children are connected. The other point that it's important that you have also more and more predators and sexual offenders who are connected.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
3. Close up, UN flag
08 OCTOBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Najat Maalla M’jid, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, United Nations:
“The issue is really big. It's why really, we are pushing within the Global Digital Compact and I just came back also from the Global Cybersecurity Forum, to make sure that child protection online is duly embedded.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
5. Close up, UN flag
08 OCTOBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Najat Maalla M’jid, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, United Nations:
“It is not an easy task to resolve because you have three pieces that you need to take into account. The children who is victim, the children who is bullying, and the bystander.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
7. Close up, UN flag
08 OCTOBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Najat Maalla M’jid, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, United Nations:
“First, child labor is considered as a violence against children because normally children have to be in school, or in another way, but not working. The problem is currently is this number is high because of what is going worldwide. Because of all this crisis, you know, forced displacement, food insecurity, poverty, social disparities, you know, conflict, climate crisis. The number of children who are enrolled in child labor and in many cases in the worst forms of child labor, really is increasing. And many children are victims of violence at the place of their work. But many children who are victim of child labor are also victim of trafficking. Are victims of smuggling, are victims of sexual exploitation.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
9. Close up, UN flag
08 OCTOBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Najat Maalla M’jid, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, United Nations:
“It is why I insist on the fact that violence is a resultant of many factors. If we are not dealing with all the key drivers, we are not going to end it or to prevent it.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
11. Close up, UN flag
08 OCTOBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
12. SOUNDBITE (English) Najat Maalla M’jid, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, United Nations:
“What we are seeing in many countries currently is the drug abuse inside and around school. And you have more and more also armed groups and who are really also surrounding school. You have shooting in schools. And I just want to highlight also, if you are speaking about violence, we need to not forget the war because bombs are also attacking school, but we are seeing also many shooting done by police in some places to fight insecurity and they are shooting schools also.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
13. Close up, UN flag
08 OCTOBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
14. SOUNDBITE (English) Najat Maalla M’jid, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, United Nations:
“So the problem currently there is no country is, no country is immune, no child is immune or in all countries we are finding, you know, many, many forms of violence. And just to not one thing you can have the same child who is victims of various forms online in various setting, and it could be online and offline, starting online, continuing offline and coming back to online. So, it's not an easy task currently."
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
15. Close up, UN flag
08 OCTOBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Najat Maalla M’jid, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, United Nations:
“The problem is you could have wonderful example here, you know, regarding preventing. You have another wonderful example regarding responding. You have wonderful legislation, wonderful policies. The problem is the lack of implementation of all these.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
16. Close up, UN flag
08 OCTOBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
17. SOUNDBITE (English) Najat Maalla M’jid, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, United Nations:
“If we have not to, to make sure that it's at the high level of the political agenda and to make sure that it's embedded in the National Development Plan and the localized plan is not going to work. So, this is really very important.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
18. Close up, UN flag
08 OCTOBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
19. SOUNDBITE (English) Najat Maalla M’jid, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, United Nations:
“The impact is long lasting. And I want to add another impact – is the economic impact. And because we did, you know, an assessment about the costs, direct and indirect costs of violence against children. And it's almost, it's varying for countries. But it can be up to eleven percent of the national GDP. It's huge. And in some countries, you know, the cost of violence per year is six times, you know, the annual budget of the Ministry of Health.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
20. Close up, UN flag
08 OCTOBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
21. SOUNDBITE (English) Najat Maalla M’jid, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, United Nations:
“And really, it's really switching from words to acts and to act quickly for and which children and most importantly, seeing children, you know, as part of the solution.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
22. Close up, UN flag
08 OCTOBER 2024, NEW YORK CITY
23. SOUNDBITE (English) Najat Maalla M’jid, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, United Nations:
“Children are not a problem to resolve. They are an asset to invest on. And I think really if we are not changing our mindsets, we are not going to achieve our promise. So, I hope we do.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
24. Close up, UN flag
The alarming rise in violence against children, encompassing online sexual exploitation, child labor, and school-based violence, requires immediate, coordinated action at national and international levels, according to Najat Maalla M’jid, UN Special Representative on Violence Against Children. In an interview, M’jid highlighted both the complexity of these issues and the urgent need for improved protections worldwide.
New data indicates that an estimated 300 million children have been affected by online sexual exploitation in the past year. M’jid stressed that this figure likely underestimates the scope of the problem. She said, “the number of 300 million, you know, of children; victims of sexual exploitation online is not reflecting the truth because the problem is also reporting, and we have not all the data,” attributing the rise to increased internet connectivity among younger children and growing numbers of predators online.
The UN official underscored the necessity of proactive online safety measures. “The issue is really big. It’s why we are pushing within the global digital compact ... to make sure that child protection online is duly embedded,” M’jid added.
M’jid also linked the rise in child labor to various global crises, including forced displacement, food insecurity, and climate change. “First, child labor is considered as a violence against children ... this number is high because of what is going on worldwide,” she noted. M’jid explained that children in the workforce are often exposed to further dangers, such as trafficking, smuggling, and sexual exploitation.
In addition to child labor, M’jid cited increasing violence in and around schools, driven by factors such as drug abuse and armed group activity. "What we are seeing in many countries currently is the drug abuse inside and around school," she said, adding that violence in these settings can take many forms, from bullying to police shootings during security crackdowns.
The scope of the problem is daunting, with no nation immune from the prevalence of violence against children. M’jid noted the importance of addressing the “key drivers” of violence, emphasizing that without addressing root causes, efforts to end such violence will fall short.
Despite some positive developments in child protection legislation and policies, M’jid warned that a lack of implementation has hampered progress. “The problem is the lack of implementation of all these [policies],” she said, stressing that without embedding child protection within national development agendas, sustainable change will remain elusive.
Highlighting the economic costs, M’jid reported that violence against children can drain up to eleven per cent of a country’s GDP. “It’s huge,” she emphasized, adding that in some cases, the annual cost is multiple times the budget for health services.
She concluded by urging global leaders to shift from mere promises to tangible action. M’jid said, "children are not a problem to resolve; they are an asset to invest on.”
With the first Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children scheduled for early November, M’jid expressed hope for a renewed commitment from the international community. She said, “it’s really switching from words to acts and to act quickly for and with children,” underlining that the solutions must be shaped with children’s input and prioritized at the highest levels of government.
Briefing reporters in New York today (10 Oct), a UN Spokesperson said that earlier this morning the Secretary-General’s Special Representatives were holding mandates related to the protection of children presented their annual reports to the General Assembly.
Spokesperson Farhan Haq reiterated, that in her report, Najat Maalla M’jid said that levels of violence against boys and girls across the world are unprecedented and increasing.
The spokesperson said, “the report she presented this morning says that every year, at least 1 billion children experience violence. That is about half of the world’s children. The report also assesses the progress made since the establishment of her office in 2009, and includes recommendations for concrete, proven, and cost-effective solutions that, if implemented, could bring about positive change for children.
The report is available online.
