To mark the Day for the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse the Council of Europe organised a roundtable discussion gathering 30 national and international partners, experts, and practitioners.

Launched in 2015 as a follow-up to the Council of Europe’s ONE in FIVE campaign, this Day serves as a reminder of a grave reality: about 1 in 5 children in Europe falls victim to violence including sexual abuse. This year’s theme, “Strengthening the protection of children against sexual exploitation and sexual abuse through evidence-based policy making,” highlights the importance of reliable and comprehensive data in shaping effective child protection policies and practices. These collective efforts are guided by the Council of Europe’s Lanzarote Convention – the main international legally binding instrument dedicated to preventing and combating sexual violence against children – which Armenia has ratified together with all other 46 member States.

Children remain the primary beneficiaries of the policies designed to protect them, and their perspectives provide crucial insight into the risks they face, the realities of their daily lives, and the effectiveness of existing measures.

The roundtable provided an opportunity to reflect on lessons learned from the Council of Europe’s standards, including those reaffirmed by the European Court of Human Rights in the case of A.P. v. Armenia, which addressed the inadequate protection of a child with a disability who was subjected to sexual abuse.

In addition, as part of the event, the Project celebrated the achievements of the first cohort of professionals working for and with children, including civil servants, law enforcement officials, and lawyers, among others.

The roundtable was organised under the Council of Europe’s project "Protecting the Rights of Armenian Children in Post-Conflict Context", within the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan 2023-2026 for Armenia.

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*Background information: The European Programme for Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals (HELP) supports the Council of Europe member states in implementing the European Convention on Human Right. Its main objective is to enhance the capacity of judges, lawyers and prosecutors, in all 46 Council of Europe member states and beyond, to apply the European human rights standards in their daily work.