sTRASBOURG, fRANCE

Governments and sports organisations must redouble their efforts to break the silence surrounding sexual abuse of children in sports, prevent it and fight impunity, stressed the Secretary General of the Council of Europe ahead of the European Day on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse marked on 18 November.

“Sporting environments often involve unequal power relationships in a male-dominated atmosphere where vulnerability is seen as a weakness. This puts children at a particular risk of sexual abuse,”

said Thorbjørn Jagland, Secretary General of the Council of Europe.

“Safeguarding children from sexual abuse in sport is a major challenge. All of those involved – parents, coaches, athletes and governing bodies – must be alert to the dangers and help to protect children in sport.”

The Council of Europe has been contributing to achieving this. The Start to Talk initiative launched in April this year involves well-known athletes, coaches, clubs and federations, who act as “silence breakers” drawing attention to the problem of sexual abuse of children in sports. Children themselves find it hard to speak up: about one third of child victims never tell anybody.

The Memorandum of Understanding signed in October this year between the Council of Europe and FIFA joining forces to address the issue of sexual violence against children in football, using Council of Europe standards, namely its Convention on the protection of children against sexual exploitation and sexual abuse, known as “Lanzarote Convention”, ratified by 44 Council of Europe’s member States and open to access to any country in the world.

The European Day for the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse (18 November) was established in 2015 by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe to prevent the crimes, prosecute the perpetrators and protect the victims. It aims at raising public awareness of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of children, and the need to prevent such acts; opening discussion on the protection of children and helping prevent and eliminate the stigmatisation of victims; encouraging the ratification and implementation of the Lanzarote Convention - a unique legally-binding document that obliges State Parties to criminalise all forms of sexual abuse of children and spells out the ways to fight it.