Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography

Background to the mandate

On 20 November 1989, the United Nations General Assembly in New York adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child. This international instrument recognizes "that in all countries in the world, there are children living in exceptionally difficult conditions, and that such children need special consideration". By 2000, over ten years after its adoption, almost every country in the world has signed and agreed to be bound by the provisions of the Convention.

By 1990, international awareness of the commercial sexual exploitation and the sale of children had grown to such a level that the United Nations Commission on Human Rights created the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. The mandate-holder is required to investigate the exploitation of children around the world and to submit reports on the findings to the General Assembly and the Commission on Human Rights, making recommendations for the protection of the rights of the children concerned. These recommendations are targeted primarily at Governments, other United Nations bodies and non-governmental organizations.

In its resolution 1990/68 entitled "Rights of the child", the Commission on Human Rights decided to appoint for a period of one year a Special Rapporteur to consider matters relating to the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. The appointment has been regularly renewed, most recently in 2001, when the Commission on Human Rights in its resolution 2001/75 on the "Rights of the child" decided to renew the Special Rapporteur's mandate for a further three years. Mr. Juan Miguel Petit (Uruguay) was appointed Special Rapporteur in July 2001.

There are now over 40 thematic mandates of the Commission on Human Rights. In pursuance of these mandates, each special rapporteur, special representative and independent expert, deal with major problems related to human rights violations (such as, violence against women, torture, extra-judicial executions, racism, and failure to respect several rights and freedoms). There are also approximately 15 special rapporteurs who investigate a whole range of human rights issues within a single country. All these experts are unpaid and generally employed in the legal profession, the academic world or or other related fields. (For full details of their role, see Fact Sheet on Special Rapporteurs).

Mr. Petit, a graduate in law and social sciences, has worked for many years as a journalist and social scientist. He was a member of the Board of the National Child Institute of Uruguay (1985-1990) and has been involved in a variety of NGO programmes for children, including assistance to street children and fostering conditions that encourage children to continue living at home. Mr. Petit also participated in the preparatory process for submission of a new national law on children's rights to the Uruguayan Parliament.

During the military dictatorship in Uruguay (1973-1985), he worked as a journalist and editor of opposition publications. More recently he edited a monthly news magazine. Mr. Petit currently works as technical coordinator of the National Rehabilitation Centre, a recent initiative aimed at the education and social reintegration of young detainees, which gives them access to study or work opportunities outside of prison while they are serving their sentences.

He also writes about social issues for the Uruguayan newspaper El País.

Previous mandate-holders include Ms. Ofelia Calcetas-Santos (1994-2001) and Mr. Vitit Muntarbhorn (1991-1994).

Issues in focus

• HIV/AIDS