A/HRC/15/29 treatment.27 Yet, the vulnerability of migrant children is compounded when they are denied access to the courts in order to seek justice and remedies.28 35. Children and their families can be subject to xenophobia, racism, hate crimes and hate speech in host and transit countries, often bolstered by official policies which marginalize and exclude migrants and their communities and impede integration. The participation of children is particularly crucial in the design and implementation of effective integration policies in countries of destination, including programmes and campaigns against xenophobia and racism. 36. Human rights treaty bodies have on a number of occasions recommended that States should closely monitor and combat racism and xenophobia, and promote intercultural understanding and tolerance among all groups in society.29 A. Separated and unaccompanied children 37. Many separated and unaccompanied children have experienced significant trauma and violence in the course of their journey, some will have fallen into the hands of traffickers and some will be in need of humanitarian assistance owing to the conditions of their movement. Yet, many children who migrate on their own are denied access to legal and practical assistance and detained unlawfully. Unaccompanied children can be wrongly determined to be adult irregular migrants, and deported without the effective opportunity to seek asylum and in the absence of due process, and without regard for the rights of the child. 38. General comment No. 6 of the Committee on the Rights of the Child provides comprehensive guidance to States and other stakeholders on the protection of unaccompanied and separated children.30 This includes inter alia that all such children should be identified and registered as soon as possible following their entry into the host country, and a competent guardian or legal representative should be appointed, taking into consideration the views of the child. Those assigned legal guardianship duties, as well as any other person/s in charge of safeguarding the child’s best interests, should be provided 27 28 29 30 10 Such a prohibition is reinforced by article 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, article 7 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the Convention against Torture. In a conclusion that applies equally to the situation of many migrant children, the Committee on the Rights of the Child has expressed its concern at the “ill-treatment, corporal punishment, torture and sexual abuse of children in detention facilities, and alleged instances of killings of children living and/or working on the streets by law enforcement officials” (CRC/C/15/Add.115, paras. 38-39). Article 19 of the related Convention, in addition, establishes a duty on States to protect children from violence and exploitation perpetrated by parents, guardians and other persons who are in a careproviding role (such as employers). The Inter-American Court has observed that “[at] times, undocumented migrant workers cannot even resort to the courts of justice to claim their rights owing to their irregular situation”(“Juridical Condition and Rights of Undocumented Migrants”, Advisory Opinion OC-18/03, 17 September 2003). See, for example, Committee on the Rights of the Child, concluding observations on Sweden (CRC/C/15/Add.248, para. 19); Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, concluding observations on Denmark (E/C.12/1/Add.102, para. 24), and Spain (E/C.12/1/Add.99, para. 25). Additional guidance is provided, inter alia, in the Inter-Agency Guiding Principles on Unaccompanied and Separated Children; Guidelines on Policies and Procedures in Dealing with Unaccompanied Children Seeking Asylum of UNHCR; Guidelines on Human Rights and Human Trafficking recommended by OHCHR; Guidelines for Children’s Asylum Claims of UNHCR; and the Separated Children in Europe Programme Statement of Good Practice (SCEP).