The United Nations points out that the worsening of the climate crisis and the proliferation of conflicts around the world highlight the need to protect especially vulnerable groups such as women and children in those contexts.
In addition, the UN recognizes that children, especially girls, are at increased risk of forced sexual relations or being victims of sexual exploitation, abuse and violence, both online and offline.
The situation is more common during armed conflicts and in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. Disasters, the lack of action or measures to address the root causes, such as increasing inequalities, the escalation of poverty and structural discrimination for interrelated reasons, further aggravate the situations that expose children to these scourges.
Child victims and survivors of these crimes may suffer long-lasting harmful effects on their physical, mental and sexual health, as well as their development, the UN warns regarding the date.
These traumas at an early age can even amount to torture and other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment.
For many victims and survivors, childhood abuse affects their physical and mental health and well-being with lifelong consequences.
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development recognizes the need to preserve the dignity of children and their right to live free of violence.
This is a priority of the international path that seeks to end exploitation, abuse, trafficking, torture and all forms of violence against children, as well as the elimination of all harmful practices, such as early and forced child marriage and female genital mutilation.
The UN estimates that some 120 million women under the age of 20 have suffered various forms of non-consensual sexual relations.
Although global estimates of sexual violence against children are not available, data from 24 predominantly high- and middle-income countries indicate that prevalence ranges from 8 to 31 percent among girls and from 3 to 17 percent among boys under 18 years of age.
At the same time, one in four children under five years of age lives with a mother who is a victim of gender violence at the hands of her partner.
For this reason, on this International Day, the UN has reaffirmed since 2022 the need to eliminate and prevent all forms of sexual exploitation, abuse and violence against minors, as well as promote their dignity and rights.
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