A/HRC/4/72
page 10
to meet until the end of the year to consider the country reports of Nepal and Sri Lanka. The
Secretary-General has submitted to the Working Group the first country-specific report on
children and armed conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (S/2006/389). In
September 2006, the Working Group issued recommendations to the Security Council on the
basis of the report of the Secretary-General, and it also considered the report of the SecretaryGeneral on children and armed conflict in the Sudan (S/2006/662). The situations of Burundi and
Côte d’Ivoire were considered during the Working Group’s meeting in November. In addition to
theses country-specific reports of the Secretary-General, the United Nations Secretariat also
submits for consideration of the Working Group at its bimonthly meetings a horizontal reporting
note that highlights relevant development in all situations of concern for children. The horizontal
reporting note represents a vital tool to flag critical emerging situations and update developments
in other situations of concern.
35. As part of the implementation process, the Office of the Special Representative convened the
Task Force on Children and Armed Conflict to brief the group on Security Council
resolution 1612 (2005) and to agree on the steps necessary for the implementation of the MRM.
The Steering Committee on Monitoring and Reporting, co-chaired by the Office of the Special
Representative and UNICEF, met to discuss briefing notes to the field on the interpretation of
Security Council resolution 1612 (2005) and the implementation of the MRM. These documents
were sent to the United Nations Country teams, UNICEF representatives, OHCHR field offices
and Special Representatives of the Secretary-General in memoranda co-signed by the Special
Representative, the UNICEF Executive Director, the Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping
Operations, Department of Peacekeeping Operations and the Administrator of UNDP. Steering
Committee members are drafting additional documents to facilitate the implementation of the
MRM in the field. The first monitoring report was received from the Democratic Republic of
Congo in from the field were received by the Office of the Special Representative in June 2006.
36. The Office also advocated that Member States include a condemnation and call to justice for
those who abduct children in situations of armed conflict. The Office continues to monitor
recent reports of cross-border abductions of children for use by Government-allied militias in
Côte d’Ivoire and reports of abduction and movement of children in the Great Lakes and the
Horn regions of Africa.
V. INFORMATION PROVIDED BY THE OFFICE OF THE
UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR
REFUGEES
37. In a communication to OHCHR dated 26 January 2007, UNHCR re-iterated that the issue of
the abduction of refugee, internally displaced and other children of concern to UNHCR remains
of concern to the office. The abduction of children is one example of threats to the safety and
security of refugees, in addition to falling victim to other criminal acts, conflicts within the
refugee or host community, sexual and gender-based violence, trafficking, torture, war crimes
and other serious violations of human rights and humanitarian law.
38. UNHCR therefore maintains that measures to address the challenge of abduction of children
must take into account and address the broader security context. Protection measures against
abduction must be integrated into wider efforts to enhance security and protection of refugees
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