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Self Report 2017

The self-report on WHS Commitments below is organized according to the 24 transformations of the Agenda for Humanity. It is based on commitments pledged at the time of report submission. Click on the 'Expand' symbol to expand each section and read the reporting inputs by transformation.

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2A
Respect and protect civilians and civilian objects in the conduct of hostilities

Individual Commitment

  • Commitment
  • Commitment Type
  • Core Responsibility
  • The UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict will continue high-level advocacy efforts and remind parties of their obligations vis-a-vis children and armed conflict under international humanitarian law, international human rights law and refugee law. The UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict will also work to enhance the national and international legal frameworks for child protection, in particular through the "Children, Not Soldiers" campaign (which supports Member States to criminalise recruitment and use of children, build the rule of law, and institutionalise birth registration and age verification) and by continuing to encourage Member States to ratify the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict.
  • Advocacy
  • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity
  • The UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict will strengthen advocacy with parties to conflict to stop the use of explosive weapons in populated areas, which kill and maim children, destroy schools and hospitals and have consequences for the safety of children long after hostilities have ceased. The UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict will also work with parties to conflict to protect educational institutions, in particular through advocating for and supporting the development of operational strategies to reduce the military use of schools in armed conflict.
  • Advocacy
  • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity

Core Commitment

  • Commitment
  • Core Responsibility
  • Commit to promote and enhance the protection of civilians and civilian objects, especially in the conduct of hostilities, for instance by working to prevent civilian harm resulting from the use of wide-area explosive weapons in populated areas, and by sparing civilian infrastructure from military use in the conduct of military operations.
  • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity

  • Achievements at a glance

    Regarding the Children, Not Soldiers campaign, the Government of Afghanistan endorsed age assessment guidelines for recruitment processes. The DRC made progress to address the remaining gaps to prevent the recruitment of children. In Myanmar, 101 young people recruited as children were released from the army in 2016.

    In July in Somalia, the Special Representative assessed the implementation of the action plans to end and prevent the recruitment and use and killing and maiming of children by the SNA.

    In Colombia, the Special Representative’s efforts focused on ensuring the separation and reintegration of all children associated with FARC-EP and to put in place guarantees of non-repetition to prevent re-recruitment by other armed actors.

    In Afghanistan, the Ministry of Education sent directives requesting security forces to stop using schools for military purposes.

    Pakistan ratified the OPAC to the Convention to the Rights of the Child in November.

2B
Ensure full access to and protection of the humanitarian and medical missions

Individual Commitment

  • Commitment
  • Commitment Type
  • Core Responsibility
  • The UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict will place extra emphasis in reports to the Security Council, General Assembly and Human Rights Council on attacks on hospitals and protected personnel in situations of armed conflict. The UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict will engage directly with parties to conflict at every opportunity, including in the context of high-level meetings and peace talks, to end and prevent attacks on healthcare, including advocacy with relevant parties for the signature and implementation of Action Plans.
  • Advocacy
  • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity

Core Commitment

  • Commitment
  • Core Responsibility
  • Commit to ensure all populations in need receive rapid and unimpeded humanitarian assistance.
  • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity
  • Commit to promote and enhance efforts to respect and protect medical personnel, transports and facilities, as well as humanitarian relief personnel and assets against attacks, threats or other violent acts.
  • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity

  • Achievements at a glance

    The Special Representative dedicated a section to attacks on health care and protected personnel in her report to the General Assembly, which was issued in July 2016. Information was also included in her report to the Human Rights Council, which was issued in December 2016.

    The Office of the Special Representative has also supported the development of recommendations on measures to enhance protection of the wounded and sick and of medical personnel and humanitarian personnel exclusively engaged in medical duties, and of their means of transport and equipment and of hospitals and other medical facilities, including through recommendations to parties to conflict, in line with the request made by the Security Council in its resolution 2286 (2016).

    The protection of healthcare was also raised during her country visit to Somalia and in a number of bilateral meetings.

2C
Speak out on violations

Individual Commitment

  • Commitment
  • Commitment Type
  • Core Responsibility
  • The UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict will use all appropriate fora to speak out and systematically condemn serious violation of international humanitarian and human rights law, and will advocate directly with relevant parties to conflict, and those who have influence on them, to make concrete commitments to stop and end grave violations against children. The UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict will also advocate for and provide strong support to national and international accountability efforts.
  • Advocacy
  • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity

Core Commitment

  • Commitment
  • Core Responsibility
  • Commit to speak out and systematically condemn serious violations of international humanitarian law and serious violations and abuses of international human rights law and to take concrete steps to ensure accountability of perpetrators when these acts amount to crimes under international law.
  • Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity

  • Achievements at a glance

    Reports on the impact of conflict on children were issued on Somalia and Colombia, as well as thematic reports to the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council.

    An action plan was signed in Geneva in November by the Sudan People's Liberation Movement – North to end and prevent the recruitment and use of children.

    In Sudan, following the Special Representative’s visit and extensive efforts by many entities, 21 boys detained for their alleged association with a non-State armed group were released and pardoned by the President on 8 September 2016.

    In Somalia, also following the Special Representative’s visit and wide-ranging advocacy efforts, 26 children aged between 12 and 14 who had been detained by authorities in Puntland for association with a non-State armed group were released.

    The Office supported the development of a policy paper on children by the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court.

  • Other related Agenda for Humanity transformations

    ☑3F - Enable adolescents and young people to be agents of positive transformation

3A
Reduce and address displacement

Individual Commitment

  • Commitment
  • Commitment Type
  • Core Responsibility
  • The UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict will use high-level advocacy to emphasize that internally displaced and refugee children must be granted safety and security, protected against violations and abuse and taken into account in efforts to implement Goal 4 of the Sustainable Development Goals.
  • Advocacy
  • Leave No One Behind

Core Commitment

  • Commitment
  • Core Responsibility
  • Commit to a new approach to addressing forced displacement that not only meets immediate humanitarian needs but reduces vulnerability and improves the resilience, self-reliance and protection of refugees and IDPs. Commit to implementing this new approach through coherent international, regional and national efforts that recognize both the humanitarian and development challenges of displacement. Commit to take the necessary political, policy, legal and financial steps required to address these challenges for the specific context.
  • Leave No One Behind
  • Commit to promote and support safe, dignified and durable solutions for internally displaced persons and refugees. Commit to do so in a coherent and measurable manner through international, regional and national programs and by taking the necessary policy, legal and financial steps required for the specific contexts and in order to work towards a target of 50 percent reduction in internal displacement by 2030.
  • Leave No One Behind
  • Acknowledge the global public good provided by countries and communities which are hosting large numbers of refugees. Commit to providing communities with large numbers of displaced population or receiving large numbers of returnees with the necessary political, policy and financial, support to address the humanitarian and socio-economic impact. To this end, commit to strengthen multilateral financing instruments. Commit to foster host communities' self-reliance and resilience, as part of the comprehensive and integrated approach outlined in core commitment 1.
  • Leave No One Behind
  • Commit to collectively work towards a Global Compact on responsibility-sharing for refugees to safeguard the rights of refugees, while also effectively and predictably supporting States affected by such movements.
  • Leave No One Behind
  • Commit to actively work to uphold the institution of asylum and the principle of non-refoulement. Commit to support further accession to and strengthened implementation of national, regional and international laws and policy frameworks that ensure and improve the protection of refugees and IDPs, such as the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol or the AU Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (Kampala convention) or the Guiding Principles on internal displacement.
  • Leave No One Behind

  • Achievements at a glance

    The Special Representative dedicated a section to displacement of children as a result of armed conflict in her report to the General Assembly, which was issued in July 2016. Information was also included in her report to the Human Rights Council, which was issued in December 2016. Speeches to these bodies also featured appeals on the importance of protecting children displaced by conflict.