The Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse

Opening speech by Carlo Chiaromonte, Head of the Criminal Law Division of the Council of Europe

We are constantly confronted with news of children being abused in different ways - physically, psychologically, and above all, sexually abused.

Here in Poland, an incredible case of a father imprisoning his daughter for many years and having incestuous relations with her, resulting in the birth of children, - the so-called “Polish Frizl” case - shocked Europe all over again.

Children are the most vulnerable members of our society. It is easy for adults to abuse children. Research shows that sexual abuse is far more widespread than is realised. A very recent study in the United Kingdom estimates that 15% of girls and 5% of boys experience sexual abuse in childhood, including rape.

The suffering this causes, the consequences often lasting a lifetime, and the serious human rights violations involved in these crimes has led the Council of Europe to react firmly. We now have the Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse, which proposes concrete solutions. This is the most modern and up to date international treaty so far to combat sexual violence against children. It is the reason why we are all here today.

It is often said that children are the future. This is not entirely true, because children are also the present. It is time to stop those who harm children. It is time to do something really effective to prevent sexual exploitation and abuse of children, to protect children, and to prosecute the perpetrators. But we cannot do this without you, the member states of the Council of Europe.

The Council of Europe has focused much attention on the rights of children and the protection of children from various forms of violence. As a “standard-setting” organisation, the Council of Europe has contributed to the global effort to combat sexual exploitation of children by establishing an effective legal framework and promoting international cooperation.

The entry into force in February this year of the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings will help to address effectively the issue of child victims of trafficking.

The wide ratification – including outside the Council of Europe borders – of our Convention against Cybercrime will be essential to combat pedopornography on the Internet.

With the adoption of the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse in 2007, the Council of Europe has enlarged its arsenal of legal texts which aim to eradicate various forms of sexual violence against children. Once this latest treaty enters into force, it will change the legal framework in Europe in preventing sexual abuse, protecting children, and in bringing offenders to justice.

In the drafting of this Convention, all the other existing instruments were studied and taken into account. The gaps in defining crimes of child sexual exploitation and abuse as well as in investigating and prosecuting these types of offences were identified. These gaps were then filled.

Every single article was carefully considered by experts from each of the 47 member states of the Council of Europe as well as by experts from the observer states – Canada, the Holy See, Japan, Mexico, and the United States – and by many participating governmental and non-governmental organisations. Every provision was intended not to duplicate existing norms, but to make a real difference, to add value, to improve the legislation around the globe relating to the protection of children.

Yet, despite these achievements, we are still far from having met all our objectives. Many states have started to move in the same direction, but we are not there yet. There is never a shortage of good intentions when it comes to protecting the rights of children, but they have not always been followed in practice.

The Council of Europe took an active part in the World Congress III against sexual exploitation of children and adolescents, which took place in Rio de Janeiro at the end of November, following on from the World Congresses in Stockholm and Yokohama. We hope that this meeting, which brought together 3500 people from around the world devoted to the elimination of sexual crimes against children, will revive the determination of states to fight the sexual exploitation and abuse of the world’s children.

At this Congress, the Council of Europe’s new convention was described as “ground-breaking”. It was widely recognised as a useful tool, introducing new offences corresponding to modern circumstances, such as the criminalisation of “grooming”, and providing a model for national legislation in all countries and a framework for international cooperation in law enforcement.

So far 32 European states have signed the convention, including our host country, Poland. This indicates a sincere commitment to the aims and goals of the convention. But it is not enough. States must demonstrate that they are not only willing in principle to put a stop to sexual exploitation and abuse of children by signing the convention, but they must also take the necessary steps concretely to be able to prevent such abuse, to protect victims and to prosecute the perpetrators.

We still have 15 Council of Europe member states to sign the convention. With all the recent publicity focused on sexual abuse of children, such as the high profile “Frizl” case in Austria earlier this year – why is more not being done to stop this?

The purpose of this Regional Conference is to emphasise the importance of all the states present to ratify the convention. Only through ratification and implementation will children in Europe and around the world have a chance to be properly protected from the devastating sexual crimes which continue to take place today, and which destroy children’s lives.