Zambia to Fight Child Exploitation in the Tourism Industry
“THE main problem in terms of sustainable development is not the ever-growing size of the tourism industry, but the greater responsibility that needs to come with the growth. The industry must admit that its infrastructure is being used to commit some of the most hideous crimes, namely child exploitation”.
United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) Secretary General Taleb Rifai did not mince his words when he emphasiased on the need to protect the plight of the children in the tourism industry.
He further praised the work of ECPAT International and partners in producing the Global Study on the Sexual Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism and added that its concrete findings should be instrumental in future awareness-raising actions.
It was on March 10th 2016 in Berlin when the UNWTO Children’s Network held its meeting with a special focus on responsible business strategies and child protection in tourism.
Being what it is and what it entails to human nature, tourism is one sector that embraces all be it young or old, female or male as it provides an ambiance of nature’s beauty and plash resorts much to the cherish of mankind.
The 31st Meeting of the World Tourism Network on Child Protection, held on the occasion of the Internationale Tourismus Borse (ITB) Berlin, focused on the role and initiatives of the private sector to fight Child Exploitation in tourism.
Awareness raising, training of staff and the implementation of measures along the whole value chain of tourism were pointed out as critical.
“We need to unite to fight child exploitation and the commitment of the private sector is key,” said Dr Rifai.
And Carol Bellamy, Chairperson of the Network, recalled the role of the Network as a platform to share research and good practices in the fight against the exploitation of children in tourism.
At the meeting, the Chair of the High Level Global Task Force to End Sexual Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism, Najat Maalla M’jid, shared the first findings of the Global Study carried out by the Task Force.
Ms. Majid says the findings of the study will be published in May 2016 and the occasion will mark the 20th anniversary of the First World Congress against the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children held in 1996 in Stockholm, Sweden.
Lack of reporting, weak legislation and the anonymity of the Internet were pointed out as some of the main challenges in child protection from sexual exploitation in the sector.
The report aims to also address the chronic lack of robust evidence and comparable data on the issue.
However, the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) stressed the importance of providing training to the staff on how to identify possible situations of child exploitation as well as dealing with new emerging trends in the sector such as ‘voluntourism’ while the TUI Group shared their initiative ‘A collective NO to sexual exploitation of children in holiday destinations’ aimed at promoting the inclusion of measures to prevent and fight the exploitation of children within the whole tourism value chain including actions on training and awareness raising among host communities.
Other initiatives presented included a project from the Network of Strategic and International Studies which evaluates best practices from around the world and work of the Airline Ambassadors International which focus on training airline professionals to flight human trafficking.
The World Tourism Network on Child Protection is an open-ended network facilitated by the UNWTO featuring the multi-stakeholder participation of a range of tourism stakeholders - governments, international organisations, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), tourism industry groups and media associations.
Its mandate is to prevent all forms of youth exploitation in the tourism sector such as sexual exploitation, child labour and child trafficking.
The Network's meetings, held annually at the worlds’ foremost Travel and Tourism Fairs, serve as a platform to exchange experiences and best practices, present awareness-raising materials and capacity building tools, and promote the adoption of professional codes of conduct or other responsible practices in line with the UNWTO Global Code of Ethics for Tourism.
Ministry of Tourism and Arts Department of Tourism Director Francesca Chisangano – Zyambo says the Ministry is aware of the concerns as expressed by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation Children’s Network saying it is very cardinal to protect the children against any abuse.
Ms. Zyambo says the ministry does realise that there could be some form of child labour being practiced in the tourism sector and as a result it is taking the matter serious so that wherever it is being entertained, it is quickly addressed and eliminated.
She says government gets concerned with the plight of children and would not like to see the tourism sector and its practitioners who are mainly the private sector fall for it.
“We are working very closely with the stakeholders, the private sector in seeing to it that all forms of child abuse be it child labour are not entertained. In line with the UNWTO Children’s Network and the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, we are working with the private sector,” she said adding “as you know in our country tourism is private driven so we have to work with them and see to it that the stipulated international norms and requirements are adhered to.”
She says Zambia being a member of the world tourism sector, its adheres to the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism which is like the bible that encompasses the norms on how best to harness the tourism sector in line with the international agreements.
Some of the international agreements or instruments that all member countries are required to adhere to are, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 10 December 1948, International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of 16 December 1966, Convention on Customs Facilities for Tourism of 4 July 1954 and related Protocols.
Others instruments are Convention on the Rights of the Child of 20 November 1989, the Stockholm Declaration of 28 August 1996 against the commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children.
The Code of Ethics further states that conventions and recommendations adopted by the International Labour Organisation in the area of collective conventions, prohibition of forced labour and child labour, defence of the rights of indigenous peoples and equal treatment and non-discrimination in the work place, affirm the right to tourism and the freedom of tourist movement.
It also states to promote an equitable, responsible and sustainable world tourism order, whose benefits will be shared by all sectors of society in the context of an open and liberalized international economy, and solemnly adopt to these ends the principles of the Global Ethics for Tourism.
“So as you can see from the outlined guidelines, tourism development and all its operations is guided by the Global Code of Ethics and the protection of the young ones against any form of abuse is taken very serious,” she emphasised.
As the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism stipulates in its December 21st 2001, under Article 2 which looks at Tourism as a Vehicle for Individual and Collective Fulfillment, Part Two stipulates that tourism activities should respect the equality of men and women, promote human rights and, more particularly, the individual rights of the most vulnerable groups, notably children, the elderly, the handicapped, ethnic minorities and indigenous peoples.
In part three, it is very categorical as it states that the exploitation of human beings in any form, particularly sexual, especially when applied to children, conflicts with the fundamental aims of tourism and its negation of tourism.
As such, in accordance with international law, it should be energetically combated with the cooperation of all the States concerned and penalized without concession by the national legislation of both the countries visited and the countries of the perpetrators of these acts, even when they are carried out abroad.
It further states that travel for purposes of religion, health, education and cultural or linguistic exchanges are particularly beneficial forms of tourism, which deserve encouragement.
In a nutshell, it is an agreed norm and standing in society that children are the future leaders hence the need to safeguard them through the enactment of measures both international and local that guard against any form of child exploitation.
United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) Secretary General Taleb Rifai did not mince his words when he emphasiased on the need to protect the plight of the children in the tourism industry.
He further praised the work of ECPAT International and partners in producing the Global Study on the Sexual Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism and added that its concrete findings should be instrumental in future awareness-raising actions.
It was on March 10th 2016 in Berlin when the UNWTO Children’s Network held its meeting with a special focus on responsible business strategies and child protection in tourism.
Being what it is and what it entails to human nature, tourism is one sector that embraces all be it young or old, female or male as it provides an ambiance of nature’s beauty and plash resorts much to the cherish of mankind.
The 31st Meeting of the World Tourism Network on Child Protection, held on the occasion of the Internationale Tourismus Borse (ITB) Berlin, focused on the role and initiatives of the private sector to fight Child Exploitation in tourism.
Awareness raising, training of staff and the implementation of measures along the whole value chain of tourism were pointed out as critical.
“We need to unite to fight child exploitation and the commitment of the private sector is key,” said Dr Rifai.
And Carol Bellamy, Chairperson of the Network, recalled the role of the Network as a platform to share research and good practices in the fight against the exploitation of children in tourism.
At the meeting, the Chair of the High Level Global Task Force to End Sexual Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism, Najat Maalla M’jid, shared the first findings of the Global Study carried out by the Task Force.
Ms. Majid says the findings of the study will be published in May 2016 and the occasion will mark the 20th anniversary of the First World Congress against the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children held in 1996 in Stockholm, Sweden.
Lack of reporting, weak legislation and the anonymity of the Internet were pointed out as some of the main challenges in child protection from sexual exploitation in the sector.
The report aims to also address the chronic lack of robust evidence and comparable data on the issue.
However, the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) stressed the importance of providing training to the staff on how to identify possible situations of child exploitation as well as dealing with new emerging trends in the sector such as ‘voluntourism’ while the TUI Group shared their initiative ‘A collective NO to sexual exploitation of children in holiday destinations’ aimed at promoting the inclusion of measures to prevent and fight the exploitation of children within the whole tourism value chain including actions on training and awareness raising among host communities.
Other initiatives presented included a project from the Network of Strategic and International Studies which evaluates best practices from around the world and work of the Airline Ambassadors International which focus on training airline professionals to flight human trafficking.
The World Tourism Network on Child Protection is an open-ended network facilitated by the UNWTO featuring the multi-stakeholder participation of a range of tourism stakeholders - governments, international organisations, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), tourism industry groups and media associations.
Its mandate is to prevent all forms of youth exploitation in the tourism sector such as sexual exploitation, child labour and child trafficking.
The Network's meetings, held annually at the worlds’ foremost Travel and Tourism Fairs, serve as a platform to exchange experiences and best practices, present awareness-raising materials and capacity building tools, and promote the adoption of professional codes of conduct or other responsible practices in line with the UNWTO Global Code of Ethics for Tourism.
Ministry of Tourism and Arts Department of Tourism Director Francesca Chisangano – Zyambo says the Ministry is aware of the concerns as expressed by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation Children’s Network saying it is very cardinal to protect the children against any abuse.
Ms. Zyambo says the ministry does realise that there could be some form of child labour being practiced in the tourism sector and as a result it is taking the matter serious so that wherever it is being entertained, it is quickly addressed and eliminated.
She says government gets concerned with the plight of children and would not like to see the tourism sector and its practitioners who are mainly the private sector fall for it.
“We are working very closely with the stakeholders, the private sector in seeing to it that all forms of child abuse be it child labour are not entertained. In line with the UNWTO Children’s Network and the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, we are working with the private sector,” she said adding “as you know in our country tourism is private driven so we have to work with them and see to it that the stipulated international norms and requirements are adhered to.”
She says Zambia being a member of the world tourism sector, its adheres to the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism which is like the bible that encompasses the norms on how best to harness the tourism sector in line with the international agreements.
Some of the international agreements or instruments that all member countries are required to adhere to are, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 10 December 1948, International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of 16 December 1966, Convention on Customs Facilities for Tourism of 4 July 1954 and related Protocols.
Others instruments are Convention on the Rights of the Child of 20 November 1989, the Stockholm Declaration of 28 August 1996 against the commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children.
The Code of Ethics further states that conventions and recommendations adopted by the International Labour Organisation in the area of collective conventions, prohibition of forced labour and child labour, defence of the rights of indigenous peoples and equal treatment and non-discrimination in the work place, affirm the right to tourism and the freedom of tourist movement.
It also states to promote an equitable, responsible and sustainable world tourism order, whose benefits will be shared by all sectors of society in the context of an open and liberalized international economy, and solemnly adopt to these ends the principles of the Global Ethics for Tourism.
“So as you can see from the outlined guidelines, tourism development and all its operations is guided by the Global Code of Ethics and the protection of the young ones against any form of abuse is taken very serious,” she emphasised.
As the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism stipulates in its December 21st 2001, under Article 2 which looks at Tourism as a Vehicle for Individual and Collective Fulfillment, Part Two stipulates that tourism activities should respect the equality of men and women, promote human rights and, more particularly, the individual rights of the most vulnerable groups, notably children, the elderly, the handicapped, ethnic minorities and indigenous peoples.
In part three, it is very categorical as it states that the exploitation of human beings in any form, particularly sexual, especially when applied to children, conflicts with the fundamental aims of tourism and its negation of tourism.
As such, in accordance with international law, it should be energetically combated with the cooperation of all the States concerned and penalized without concession by the national legislation of both the countries visited and the countries of the perpetrators of these acts, even when they are carried out abroad.
It further states that travel for purposes of religion, health, education and cultural or linguistic exchanges are particularly beneficial forms of tourism, which deserve encouragement.
In a nutshell, it is an agreed norm and standing in society that children are the future leaders hence the need to safeguard them through the enactment of measures both international and local that guard against any form of child exploitation.