Say no to child sexual exploitation!

This morning, the conference began with “The new dimensions of the child sexual exploitation for commercial aims”. Najat M' jid, the special envoy to the UN, spoke about the sale of children, child prostitution and the infantile pornography:
- The importance of the universal ratification of the Protocol on the sale of children, infantile prostitution and pornography;
- No criminalisation of the child victims of prostitution;
- Change the actual tendency and protect the child victim, who is the centre of problem. It is necessary to stop speaking about the problems of sexual exploitation and focus on
issues such as “the family, the community or poverty as reasons of problem”;
- An emergency of a draft for the right of birth registration;
- There are several programs pertaining to the problems of sexual exploitation, but it is necessary to deal with the gravest issues first;
- The countries in which legislation is not strict, easily facilitates criminals of sexual exploitation.

Internet: the good, but also the bad
Even though the opening ceremony of the Congress began with a big delay, the audience was full of emotion and enthusiasm. More than 2500 people where there to listen to the speeches of the representatives of international organizations, such as UNICEF and Ecpat, as well as the stories of two teenagers. There were even speeches from Queen Silvia of Sweden and the Brazilian president, Lula! Both were filled with such energy, passion and emotion.The president recalled that the sexual exploitation of children and teenagers is a reality in all countries of the world and that it touches not only the children of the poorest countries, but it also exists in all social classes. “Animals” and “animal behaviours”, were terms that Lula used for persons who commit crimes against children. Minutes before, it was underlined that there exists a law against the criminals of pedophilia on the internet.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008
We begin our second day in Rio de Janeiro with the following workshops. It is possible to view the conference by link below:

http://www.promenino.org.br/Ferramentas/Conteudo/tabid/77/ConteudoId/e5823be2-6305-4347-8947-4875a5521683/Default.aspx

Itinerary of the conference:
26/11/08
9 h - Topic 1: The new dimensions of the sexual working of the children for commercial aims
14 h 30 - Topic 2: Legal framework and application of laws

27/11/2008
9 h - Topic 3: Integrated intersectional Policies;
14 h 30 - Topic 4: Role of the private area and social responsibility of firms

28/11/2008
9 h - Topic 5: Strategies of international collaboration
15 h - Fence of the Congress and signature of the final document.

Recognition of the ground
We arrived at "Rio Centro" at 15 h 30 to confirm our registration and take our badges. Then, we went to the stand “Convention relating to the Rights of the Child”, a project that of Bice. There was enough space on the stand to put our display information: brochures of Bice and our delegations, all representing the various projects developed by Bice in collaboration with our partner organisations. During the first few hours at the "Rio Centro", we made the acquaintance of other NGOs which work for the rights of the children. Several other organisations will arrive this evening for the opening ceremony. The Congress has prepared a concert for this evening, at 20 h, with several Brazilian musicians: a variety of sounds and colours, rhythms and types, for everyone to enjoy.

Preparation
After breakfast, we met to prepare the finalised works of the workshops. There is a lot of work to be done before the official opening of the Congress, which takes place at 19 h, in the audience of "Rio Centro". In the afternoon, we waited for the NGOs, groups of children and adolescents, as well as politicians. Among them, there was the Brazilian president, Luis Inácio Lula da Silva, and the first lady, Marisa Letícia. Bice is loaded with the animation of four working workshops (please use the link for further information on the workshops) and you will know about it more as they come true. The program is on an interesting theme: against children's sexual exploitation.

The first day in Rio
Until now everything is going as planned before leaving for Rio de Janeiro. After the long journey of 25 hours, Vannak Pav finally arrived from Cambodia. Alessandra Aula, the permanent representative of Bice in Geneva, waited for Carmen Serrano, delegated for Latin America, and for Adriano Leite, the communication officer in Brussels. During the day, we waited for the arrival of the other members of delegations of Bice in Rio: Héctor Rojo, from Chile, María Elena Iglesias, from Peru, Heidi Siegfried, consultant of Bice, and Luis Cesari, both from Uruguay.

Let’s go !
Welcome in this trip to Rio de Janiero, in Brazil. During 4 days we will discover the Congress centre “Rio Centre”, where the Thrid World Congress against Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents is held. We have the pleasure to share with you this experience and you are our guest for this international event. Every day you will have access to the activities of the Bice in Rio; a summary of the day, pictures and interviews, as well as articles from the members of the Bice delegation conveying their point of view on issues affecting nearly a million children in the world.

Thanks for being part of this noble cause!