Silenced and Exposed: Addressing the Realities of Torture Faced by Children

Everyday, far from the public eye, children face torture and other forms of ill-treatment, whether in detention, armed conflicts, in interaction with police or security forces, or other contexts. In detention or police stations, children are often victims of violent beatings, overcrowding, inhuman conditions of detention, detention with adults or sexual abuse, among others. Because they are children, their suffering is particularly invisible, either shut or disregarded, sometimes even tolerated in the name of discipline.

This dark reality is far too invisible to the public, decision makers, or even international actors. Recent armed conflicts have put a focus on the atrocities inflicted on children, and current funding cuts to international aid puts millions of children at renewed risks of violations of their rights. With a specific programme dedicated to the protection of children from torture, the OMCT aims with this discussion at gathering experts and OMCT's network members to shed light on the realities, scope and irremediable physicial and psychological impact of torture of children and reflecting as a network and community on the specific approach and pressing ways forward to follow to address the issue.

Languages spoken: English, Spanish and Arabic
Interpretation available: EN / FR / ES / AR

Please advise: Registrations will close 1 hour before the session begins. Register today with your email and you will recieve an email from Zoom with details how to join. If you face technical issues with Zoom or joining the sessions please contact Nic at nil@omct.org

Speakers

Dr Pau Perez-Sales
Psychiatrist and Director Universidad Complutense de Madrid's Post-Doctoral Degree in Mental Health in Political Violence and Catastrophe
Rowena Legaspi
Excecutive Director Children's Legal Rights and Development Center, Philippines (CLRDC)
Luis Pedernera
Former Member United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child
Laure Elmaleh
Coordinator of the Child Protection against Torture Programme OMCT
Hasna Abdel Rida
Head of Legal Centre Libanais des Droits Humains (CLDH)