ECPAT INTERNATIONAL 2017-2021

ECPAT International (EI) increased its engagement with human rights mechanisms (HRMs) advocating on the issue of SEC (Sexual exploitation of Children) by bringing it to the forefront on legal and political agendas. For this last reporting period, EI submitted 37 alternative reports/additional submissions (compared to 28 in the previous year) to the Human Rights Mechanisms (CRC, OPSC, HRC and ACERWC), and most of them in partnership with their members.  EI provided technical support during the drafting process of the Declaration for the Protection of Children from All Forms of Online Abuse and Exploitation in ASEAN Member States. Its final version was adopted during the reporting period, and is due to be brought forward by the Thai government for endorsement by ASEAN Leaders in November 2019. Even if this declaration is not a legally-binding document, the drafting process with the respective governmental delegates was in itself a learning experience as it created an opportunity for those delegates to sustain substantive technical discussions to clarify key concepts mentioned in the narrative. Engaging with the private sector remains a priority for EI. At the core of the programme on SECTT (sexual exploitation of children in travel and tourism), major bodies and companies linked to the travel and tourism business have now become partners. As a follow up to the International Summit on the Protection of Children in Travel and Tourism (June 2018, Bogotá, Colombia), the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) formally established a Task Force on Human Trafficking. EI initiated discussions with WTTC to engage with this Task Force in order to support this new body with technical advice. The WTTC and Carlson also provided advice to EI on how to best engage with the private sector through active participation in the Independent Experts Group on Child Protection in Travel and Tourism (IEG), which was set up in November 2018. A total of 54 new companies from 22 countries became member of “The Code” during the reporting period, committing to take all six practical steps to protect children within their remit. In addition to the travel and tourism industry, EI also worked closely with the technology sector. This was illustrated by consistent interaction with Facebook and Twitter such as sharing EI’s vision at their Global Safety and Well Being Conference (May 2019, NY), providing feedback on their policy on nudity and sexual content upon their invitation, or requesting them to act as a data source for EI’s Disruptive Harm research project. Key discussion that are ongoing include Facebooks intent to encrypt the content on its website. This will likely lead to a significant reduction on reporting of illegal images of children as it will be difficult to track the sources of who uploads them due to the encryption of data. At a global level, EI interacted and continues to interact with Microsoft, Google and Facebook in the context of the WePROTECT Global Alliance. EI’s involvement with the Working Group on Child Safety Online of the ITU/UNESCO Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development (the Commission) provided a venue to influence the overall focus of the report during the drafting process as well as which issues are identified as relevant or even made visible in the drafts. Its aim was to create an impact on regulators and the mobile sector in general, as well as raise their awareness to the more proactive role they can play in tackling abuse and exploitation of children online and in general.

During this period, ECPAT has made progress toward ensuring that action against SEC is prioritised and advanced within existing and emerging global agendas. In line with its mission, ECPAT strives to achieve the goal of eliminating the SEC by 2030 through the active pursuit of the relevant targets within the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). -A prominent feature of ECPATs advocacy work has long been its engagement with global Human Rights Mechanisms (HRM). At the heart of these efforts is the dual goal of elevating the issue of SEC in the often complex and busy legal and political agendas within these bodies and ensuring that SEC remains a priority issue in their outgoing recommendations and publications. -ECPAT leads the drafting and development of submissions relating to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), the Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography (OPSC) and the Human Rights Council (HRC) on behalf of Network members seeking, wherever practicable, collaborative input and review prior to submission. It should also be noted that at a regional level, ECPAT has been actively engaged in similar actions and submissions to The African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC). - The launch of the Global Boy's Initiative which is funded through additional funds from Sida. A coordinator for the Boys initiative was hired and several research projects were undertaken, resulting in a paper titled Gender, Rights and Responsibilities: The Need for a Global Analysis of the Sexual Exploitation of Boys, and UNICEF publishing global research "Research on the Sexual Exploitation of Boys" in April 2020. -During this funding period, ECPAT sought to strengthen its advocacy efforts with these key HRMs by increasing the number of submissions to a more ambitious ten submissions per year. In 2021, ECPAT coordinated two joint Network submissions, drawing on to HRMs demonstrating a growing capacity and appetite for collaborative advocacy within the Network. These submissions drew up ECPAT-driven research into critical and emerging issues to provide evidence and recommendations regarding childrens rights in relation to the digital environment and the gender dimension of the sale and sexual exploitation of children. These submissions affirm ECPAT as an influential and strategic advocate for systemic change. These submissions, along with investment of expertise and technical support, have served to elevate the position of SEC within the institutional thinking of these HRMs but have also resulted in tangible positive outcomes in terms of political and legal reform. ECPAT recommendations are consistently reflected in recommendations issued by these HRMs and ECPAT has been instrumental in the development of legal instruments and policy tools.