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Second Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child
From Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth
Published on
Last updated on
Second Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography
The Second Optional Protocol protects child victims of the sale of children, the exploitation of children in prostitution, and child sexual abuse material. It creates obligations on governments to criminalise and punish activities related to these offences. It requires punishment not only for those offering such services, but also for anyone accepting the activities covered, and sets out the specific measures we should take to ensure children are safe, and that crimes of this nature are dealt with.
Ireland signed the Second Optional Protocol in 2000, and the Government is committed to taking the further step of ratifying it as soon as possible. Ratifying the Protocol will mean that Ireland is officially bound by its terms under international law. In Irish treaty practice, the State must be in a position to meet the obligations it assumes under the terms of an international agreement from the moment it enters into force. Often it will not be possible for the State to meet these obligations without first taking steps required by domestic law, or otherwise, enabling it to do so. A number of significant pieces of legislation had to be passed to ensure that Ireland can fulfil its obligations under the Optional Protocol.
The Criminal Law (Human Trafficking) Act 2008 and the respective Amendment Act of 2013 contain specific provisions to combat the exploitation, including sexual exploitation, of trafficked children. The Criminal Justice (Withholding of Information on Offences Against Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act 2012, which makes it an offence to withhold information relating to the commission of certain arrestable offences (including certain sexual offences) against children, also forms part of the legislative protections for children. Other relevant legislation in the area of reporting is the Protections for Persons Reporting Child Abuse Act 1998 and the Children First Act 2015.
The Second Optional Protocol obliges states which have ratified the treaty to criminalise and punish activities relating to serious child abuse and exploitation, including their sale and supply, and to participate in the extradition of individuals in relation to these crimes. Importantly, it also protects the rights and interests of child victims. It obliges governments to consider their views in decisions that affect them, support them through the legal process, protect their privacy, and provide for their safety.
While extensive provisions to protect children exist in Irish law already and Ireland is largely compliant with the Second Optional Protocol, ratification will mean that Ireland is officially bound by its terms under international law. It will also mean that children or their representatives can file a complaint to the Committee on the Rights of the Child in the case of a violation of any of the rights set forth in the Second Optional Protocol. This is facilitated by the Third Optional Protocol on a Communications Procedure, which Ireland has signed.
Ireland is almost ready to ratify this Optional Protocol. The Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Human Trafficking) Act 2024, recently passed by both Houses of the Oireachtas and signed into law by the President, should clear the final obstacles to ratification of the Protocol. Among other measures, it will amend the Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Act 2008 by the insertion of the Second Optional Protocol to the list of international agreements to which the 2008 Act applies. This amendment will allow for mutual assistance to be provided to other Convention states in accordance with Article 10 of the Protocol.