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Resolution 1926 (2013) Final version
Fighting “child sex tourism”
1. Sexual exploitation of children
in travel and tourism, also referred to as “child sex tourism”,
is a violation of children’s fundamental rights and dignity. Despite
a growing awareness, child sex tourism has dramatically increased
in recent years because of a booming travel and tourism industry,
as well as abusive use of new technologies. Europe is concerned
both as a sending and receiving region of “travelling sex offenders”.
2. Council of Europe member States should protect children against
all forms of sexual exploitation, both within their borders and
beyond, and should not turn a blind eye when their nationals commit
crimes and violate the fundamental rights of children, who are among
the most vulnerable in our societies.
3. The Parliamentary Assembly therefore calls for committed legal
action and policies to fight effectively against child sex tourism.
Action taken should focus on prevention measures, prosecution of
perpetrators, protection of victims and development of appropriate
policies and international co-operation (“4 Ps” approach), both
in the country of origin of travelling sex offenders and destination
countries. This action should be co-ordinated and involve public,
private and associative partners.
4. Further signature and ratification of international and regional
standards in the field of protection of children against sexual
exploitation is needed, as well as the strengthening of relevant
national legislation by ensuring compliance with these standards
and their effective implementation. Considering the transborder nature
of child sex tourism, the police and the judiciary must co-operate
closely at international level.
5. With a view to successful co-operation with the private sector,
the tourism industry should be encouraged to adhere to sustainable
and ethical tourism practices.
6. The Assembly therefore calls on the Council of Europe member
States:
6.1. as concerns legal action
to be taken, to:
6.1.1. sign and ratify international and
regional standards in the field of protection of children against
sexual exploitation, and in particular the Council of Europe Convention
on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual
Abuse (Lanzarote Convention, CETS No. 201), if they have not yet
done so;
6.1.2. ensure that their domestic law complies with international
and regional standards in the field of protection of children against
sexual exploitation, in particular by:
6.1.2.1. protecting
children up to the age of 18 from sexual exploitation, irrespective of
the legal age of sexual consent;
6.1.2.2. providing for extraterritorial jurisdiction and abolishing
the dual criminality rule for child sexual exploitation;
6.1.3. develop, implement and monitor mechanisms that will prevent
high-risk sex offenders from travelling abroad;
6.1.4. encourage, at both national and international level, charities,
schools, orphanages and other institutions where the personnel are
required to work with children, to systematically carry out pre-employment
checks, including by requiring applicants to present their national
criminal records;
6.2. as concerns policies to be applied, to:
6.2.1. actively
promote sustainable and ethical tourism, respectful of children’s
rights, and encourage the tourism industry to adhere to sustainable
and ethical tourism practices, by adopting self-regulation measures
such as the Code of Conduct for the Protection of Children from
Sexual Exploitation in Travel and Tourism and by systematic reporting
of sexual exploitation of children;
6.2.2. raise awareness about child sex tourism, in close co-operation
with all stakeholders concerned, namely public authorities, the
private sector and non-governmental organisations, including through
information campaigns to educate the public about the legal and
social consequences of child sex tourism, and to encourage people
to report travelling sex offenders, as well as to choose tourism
professionals who are committed to combating child sex tourism;
6.2.3. increase international co-operation for the prosecution
of travelling sex offenders, including by bilateral and multilateral
agreements and establishing joint investigation teams;
6.2.4. establish a reliable and centralised database system allowing
the exchange of national records on sex offenders and the collection
of data on child sex tourism cases;
6.2.5. take a holistic approach and fight, in parallel, against
all forms of sexual exploitation of children, including by preventing
child abuse images on the Internet, which particularly fosters child
sex tourism;
6.2.6. increase financial, logistic and technical support to
all actors involved in combating child sex tourism in the destination
countries, including by assisting them in raising the awareness
of children and local communities of the issue of sexual exploitation
of children, as well as in developing:
6.2.6.1. education
and alternative employment opportunities for vulnerable children and
child victims of sex tourism;
6.2.6.2. training programmes for all professionals who are likely
to come into contact with or care for child victims of sexual tourism,
with a view to enabling them to identify potential abuse and to
react to it in an appropriate manner.
7. The Assembly also invites national governments and parliaments
and any other public or private organisation concerned to join,
support and contribute to the Council of Europe ONE in FIVE Campaign
to Stop Sexual Violence against Children.