15 Years of the United Nations Rapporteur on Violence against Women, Its Causes and Consequences (pdf)

This report reviews the status of violence against women as researched in 14 annual reports, 32 country mission reports, and 11 communication reports published as recently as December 2008. The report focuses on reproductive health and rights, poverty, migration, internally displaced persons (IDPs), women refugees, trafficking, aging, and adolescent girls. It also highlights how the mandate on violence against women has changed, what has been learned, and problems still to be addressed.

A Family Resource Guide on International Parental Kidnapping (pdf)

Presents practical and detailed advice about preventing international kidnapping and increasing the chance that children who are kidnapped or wrongfully retained will be returned. It provides descriptions and realistic assessments of the civil and criminal remedies available in international parental kidnapping cases, explains applicable laws and identifies both the public and private resources that may be called upon when an international abduction occurs or is threatened, and prepares parents for the legal and emotional difficulties they may experience.

A Global Report on Trafficking in Persons (pdf)

"A new report on human trafficking that provides a global overview on legislation, the criminal justice response, trafficking patterns, intra-and-international flows, and monitoring. The UNODC also highlights the situation of a variety of countries from all regions of the world."

A Handbook on Planning Projects to Prevent Child Trafficking

This handbook highlights improvements in child trafficking prevention strategies, and drawing on from some of the lessons which have already been learnt by many different organizations.

Addressing Gender-based Violence: UNFPA Strategy and Framework for Action (pdf)

"This report identifies the particular areas where action is most urgently needed and proposes general policy frameworks for combating gender-based violence. The proposals, which focus on reducing gender inequality and discrimination, are aimed at UNFPA's overarching goal of eliminating violence against women and girls. The report critically examines existing policy frameworks, and suggests where future efforts need to be concentrated. "

Child Protection Information Sheets (pdf)

"This booklet comprises 14 information sheets which highlight how child protection is crucial to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. Covering different forms of abuse, these sheets also outline how to build a protective environment for children and what UNICEF is doing on the ground to protect children."

Child Trafficking for Sexual Purposes Report (pdf)

End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes (ECPAT International) released a report in November 2008 on the global problem of child sex trafficking. The report sums up progress countries have made since passing laws to combat child sex trafficking. Finally, the report highlights key lessons learned and discusses six recommendations to improve strategies and policies.

Child Trafficking in the EU - Challenges, perspectives and good practices

A report on the spread of child trafficking in the EU member states. Few of several findings of the report include: children who disappear from shelters are more likely to fall victim to child trafficking, low number of convictions for child trafficking, and one of the factors leading to low convictions is that many victims of trafficking are not accurately identified as such. The report concludes with a recommendation that victims of trafficking should not be treated as criminals and charged with crimes and instead putting an end to these practices and protect victims.

Eliminating Violence against Children (pdf)

"Jointly produced by UNICEF and the Inter-Parliamentary Union, this handbook describes measures parliamentarians can take to end violence against children: they can legislate, oversee government activities, allocate financial resources and, as leaders in their nations and communities, raise awareness of issues."

Facts About Child Sex Tourism (pdf)

This provides a brief overview of the sexual exploitation of children worldwide. This fact sheet includes a definition of child sex tourism, both the global and U.S. response, and suggestions for what governments, citizens and business can do to combat child sex tourism.

Guatemala’s Femicide Law: Progress Against Impunity? (pdf)

This report places femicide within a particular historical, cultural and socio-political context describing the 36-year internal conflict that resulted in rape, torture and murder of tens of thousands of Guatemalan women and girls. Although the government has made some progress in implementing some aspects of the Law Against Femicide, the report also points out that the lack of understanding of the law, continued social unrest, poor media portrayal, and inadequate efforts to implement the law stand in the way of serious progress. The report concludes with recommendations for the government including improving investigation and prosecution of crimes of violence against women, and protection of the victims of violence and their children.

Human Trafficking of Children in the United States: A Fact Sheet for Schools

"This fact sheet was developed for those working in school settings and provides an overview of human trafficking, how it affects schools, tips for identifying victims, and steps for reporting human trafficking."

Human Trafficking Service Provider Manual for Certified Domestic Violence Centers (pdf)

This is a manual designed to assist domestic violence advocates in working with victims of trafficking. The manual details considerations and recommendations for service provision, benefits available to victims of trafficking, legal issues, criminal prosecution of traffickers, working with the media, potential funding sources, and additional anti-trafficking resources.

International Trafficking in Women to the United States: A Contemporary Manifestation of Slavery and Organized Crime (pdf)

A Nov. 1999 Intelligence Monograph. This article finds that the trafficking of women and children "for the sex industry and for labor" is prevalent in all regions in the U.S. Victims have traditionally come from Southeast Asia and Latin America, but now victims are coming from Central and Eastern Europe as well.

Profiting from abuse: An investigation into the sexual exploitation of children (pdf)

"Highlights ways children are sexually exploited around the world, factors contributing to this exploitation, and responses various states, communities, organizations, and individuals have taken to respond to/prevent/decrease child sexual exploitation."

Progress of South Asian Women 2005 (pdf)

"The document presents a snapshot of women's situation in South Asia, an overview of the processes at work promoting the advancement of women, and identifies gaps during the period 2000–2005. Some of the challenges noted are disproportionate returns to contributions, the added "burden of care," a declining sex ratio, increased gender-based violence, trafficking of women and girls, and the spread of HIV/AIDS."

Rape for Profit: Trafficking of Nepali Girls and Women to India's Brothels

June 1995. This report focuses on the trafficking of girls and women from Nepal to brothels in Bombay, where nongovernmental organizations say they comprise up to half of the city's estimated 100,000 brothel workers. Twenty percent of Bombay's brothel population is thought to be girls under the age of eighteen, and half of that population may be infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

Report of the Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants

The author points out that female children are extremely vulnerable to gender-based violence during migration. Migration is often difficult and dangerous for female children due to “additional restrictions on travel” girls may face due to “male guardianships.” Female children are also vulnerable to human trafficking for sexual exploitation or forced labor during migration. The report concludes with recommendations for policy improvements on migration legislation.

Report on Research on Rape and Violence (pdf)

"This report is a compendium of research on issues related to rape, sexual assault, and violence. While efforts have been made to include research from as many sources as possible, it is inevitable that other valuable sources of research may contain information no included in this report."

Shan women and girls and the sex industry in Southeast Asia; political causes and human rights implications

"The long-standing civil conflict in the Shan States of Burma is investigated as a contributing cause to the trafficking of ethnic Shan women and girls into the Southeast Asian sex industry, and to the subsequent high rates of HIV infection found among these women. The context of chronic human rights abuses in the Shan states is explored, as well as the effects of recent forced population transfers on the part of the Burmese Military Regime."

Shattered Hearts: The Commercial Sexual Exploitation of American Indian Women and Girls in Minnesota (pdf)

A groundbreaking report released by the Minnesota Indian Women’s Resource Center (MIWRC) highlights the alarming and pervasive sex trafficking of American Indian women and girls in Minnesota. The first comprehensive report of its kind, it highlights risk factors for victims that include poverty, a disproportionate number of American Indian homeless, high incidences of overall sexual assault, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) and pervasive multi-generational trauma.

The Facts About Child Sex Tourism (pdf)

"This fact sheet includes a definition of child sex tourism, both the global and U.S. response, and suggestions for what governments, citizens and business can do to combat child sex tourism."

The Hofstede Committee Report: Juvenile Prostitution in Minnesota (pdf)

This report provides an overview of juvenile prostitution, the sex industry in Minnesota, and efforts to end juvenile prostitution. This report also recommends tougher penalties for people who exploit children and teenagers.

The National Report on Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking: America’s Prostituted Children (pdf)

"The report reveals findings of three years of intensive research on the issue of child sex trafficking in America from ten locations across the U.S. The study found that at least 100,000 children are used in prostitution every year in the United States and that the average age of entry into prostitution is 13 years old. Also, prostituted girls are often controlled by a pimp who recruits them into sex trafficking by posing as a boyfriend, caretaker, and protector."

The Sex Trade Industry's Worldwide Exploitation of Children

"This study examines the current state of international trafficking of children and other child sexual exploitation."

Trafficking for Sexual Exploitation (pdf)

"This fact sheet provides a brief overview of sex trafficking of women and children in the Americas and explores the life-threatening health consequences of this type of human trafficking."

UN study on Violence Against Children

"A press release on a new effort to provide a detailed global picture of the nature, extent and causes of violence against children, and propose clear recommendations for action to prevent and reduce such violence. The study focuses on violence against children in five settings: the home and family, schools and educational settings, other institutional settings (orphanages, children in conflict with the law), the community and on the streets, and work situations. "

UNICRI - Trafficking in Minors

This website, put together by the United Nations Interregional Crime and Research Institute, contains information pertaining to the trafficking of minors for sexual purposes. In particular, it contains an International Repository of Institutions against Sexual Exploitation of Minors (IRISEM): a database containing relevant institutions and organizations active in the fields of contrast, reduction and prevention of sexual exploitation and trafficking in children around the world.

United Nations Report on Violence Against Children

The report describes the scope and nature of violence against children and its impact, approaching its subject from the perspectives of human rights, child protection, and public health. The report is available in 8 languages.

Violence against Women – Facts and Figures (pdf)

"This article provides facts and figures on violence against women to illustrate the devastating toll on women’s lives, on their families, and on society as a whole."

World Report on Violence against Children

"This book addresses all violence against children within the family, schools, alternative care institutions and detention facilities, places where children work and communities. It lists the relevant international and national legal instruments and standards. It also describes the nature and impact of all forms of violence, indicating possible risk and causal factors. Finally, and most important, based on existing evidence and concrete examples, it provides detailed recommendation on measures to be taken to enhance the protection of children from violence."

Young People’s Voices on Child Trafficking: Experiences from South Eastern Europe (pdf)

"The UNICEF Innocenti Centre (formally known as the International Child Development Centre) based in Florence, Italy, released a report in December 2008 on child trafficking. The report is based on interviews with 31 individuals in Albania, Kosovo, Republic of Moldova and Romania who had been trafficked when under the age of 18. It details children’s experiences with trafficking and support services. "