Osnutek Govora O Socialnem Razvoju Na 3

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Madam Chairperson,

Slovenia would like to align with the EU statement which was delivered earlier today and make some additional remarks in its national capacity.

While approaching the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the Convention onthe Rights of the Child it is high time to recall the aim of the Convention, which is to empower children as rights holders and not just objects of protection. With this in mind we would like to stress the need to listen to children and to include them in decisions on matters affecting them and sharesome Slovenian initiatives in this regard.

To contribute to the 25th anniversary of the Convention,the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovenia and a Slovene NGO "the Association of the Friends of Youth" organiseda round table discussion with children and adolescents in April this year. The aim of the round table, where also the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General on Violence against Children took part, was to identify most pertinent violations of the Convention as seen by children and adolescents, and to propose possible solutions. In the discussion children expressed concerns over a number of Convention violations, ranging from sexual abuse of children, poverty, elimination of discrimination, promotion of equality, respect for diversity, to food security, the right to education, the right to participation as well as children's' right to privacy in the internet era.You can find recommendations from this round table also at the Missions webpage.

The round table took place in the margins of the 24th National Children's Parliament. This form of civic education for children has been taking place in the National Assembly since the beginning of the 1990s and is a very good example of cooperation between government and civil society in Slovenia. For this year's discussion children choose the issue of the state of the society, with particular focus on the elimination of discrimination and promotion of equality, possibilities on how to achieve the goals, poverty and youth unemployment and the influence of media. Children also had a chance to exchange views and ask questions to the Prime minister and some members of the Government and the National Assembly.

Another good example of participation of children in Slovenia is in the area of school and peer mediation that is taking place in our kindergartens, primary and secondary schools, and is contributing to the reduction of violence and to respect for human rights and diversity. Since we consider that fostering nonviolent behaviour among children and empowering them to respond to violations of their rights, is very important, allow me to mention the project "Our Rights" on human rights education of school children that has been carried out for almost a decade. The project has been translated into 21 languages and has involved more than 175 000 children in a number of countries around the world, most recently in Jordan and Brazil.

Children are among the most vulnerable members of society. Media play an important role in protecting and promoting the rights of the child. Unfortunately, sometimes in their eagerness to report on events in detail they forget to take in consideration the impact they may have on children.That is why Guidelines for media coverage of children were issued recently on the initiative of the Slovene NGOs' Coalition in the field of children's rights, the Human Rights Ombudsman and the Society of Journalists of Slovenia, which are aimed to prevent victimisation of children in media.

In the beginning of 2014 a two-yearslong project VESNA was started aimed to improve the understanding and respect for gender equality and human rights. The projectaddresses unwelcome violent attitudes and behavior against women of different age groups, including teenagers.

Madam Chairperson,

Slovenia would like to congratulate the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize Winners Malala Yousafzai and Kailash Satyarthi. The award to these two remarkable defenders of children's rights this year pays a special tribute to the Convention of the Rights of the Child on its 25th anniversary.

In conclusion, allow me to highlight the important contribution of all stakeholders in promoting the children's rights in the last 25 years since the adoption of the Convention, including UN special procedures. Let me use this opportunity to congratulate on the appointment of Ms. Maud De Boer-Buquicchioas the Special Rapporteur on Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography and also to express our strong support to the mandates and work of Special Representatives of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children and for Children and Armed Conflict.

I thank you.