A/HRC/36/51 61. A new law in Italy envisages the consolidation of the child’s right to be heard in all matters affecting him or her. In Belgium, a law adopted in 2016 ensures that every accompanied child has the right to be heard, without his or her parent(s) or legal guardians being present, to make sure the child can speak freely. 62. In Serbia, owing to the lack of proper measures by the responsible institutions, the language barrier makes it impossible for migrant children to explain their situation adequately. It also effectively renders them unable to express their own opinions and prevents the authorities from determining whether their choice to migrate was voluntary and which underlying reasons motivated them to migrate. 60 63. In Honduras, there is a programme devoted to underage international migrants, which includes technical teams trained to care for this population. However, there is no national policy that deals with the issue of migrant children and, in the case of returnees, there is only one centre specialized in assisting Honduran migrant children returning from abroad and undocumented foreign-born children.61 64. In Zimbabwe, migration policies take into account protection of the rights of migrants, although the practical implementation of these policies remains a challenge. V. Gender considerations 65. Almost no information is provided by States to explain violations of the human rights of migrant children; this includes information on violations motivated by gender. 66. Few States provide comprehensive responses, which would include provision of separate and safe accommodation for males and females, separate washing facilities and special security measures to enhance women’s safety. In addition, the provision of information on gender-based violence and ways of reporting it is a major weakness in all the Member States covered in the present report. This situation increases non-reporting of abuse and allows abusers to act with impunity. 62 67. International migration has a differential impact by gender in Mexico. For instance, a teenage girl from the Maya Mam ethnic group stated in an interview that her strategy to avoid sexual abuse was to ask a male fellow traveller to introduce her as his girlfriend in front of others, a pretence for which he asked to be paid. 63 Furthermore, heterosexual women are not the only target of gender-based violence, since discrimination against, and persecution of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex children has also been recorded.64 68. Domestic service is a common job for female migrants in Mexico; the vast majority of them are under the age of 18 years. Those coming from Guatemala tend to be of indigenous origin. Furthermore, this vulnerable group has been subjected to labour exploitation and a lack of minimum labour rights, such as a legal contract or legal residence. In this context, it is almost impossible for female child migrants to obtain temporary or permanent residence status, because of the costs involved and the interests of their employers.65. 69. Authorities in Guatemala have recorded that, in many cases, the danger of rape is so high that traffickers themselves, in order to prevent any possible pregnancy, force teenage girls to undergo a contraceptive injection before the journey. 66 In Central America, most of 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 12 Source: Ombudsman of Serbia. Source: Honduras replies to Advisory Committee questionnaire on unaccompanied migrant children and human rights. Source: information provided by the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children to the Advisory Committee, 24 February 2017. Center for Gender & Refugee Studies, Childhood and Migration in Central and North America: Causes, Policies, Practices and Challenges (San Francisco, February 2015), p. 166. Source: General Coordinator of the Mexican Commission for Aid to Refugees. Source: Fray Matías de Córdova Human Rights Centre. Source: Guatemala — SOS Children’s Villages.