PROTECTING CHILDREN FROM VIOLENCE IN SPORT
PROTECTING CHILDREN FROMVIOLENCE IN SPORTa review with a focus on industrialized countries
PROTECTING CHILDREN FROMVIOLENCE IN SPORTa review with a focus on industrialized countries
The UNICEF Innocenti Research CentreThe UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre in Florence, Italy, was established in 1988 to strengthen the researchcapability of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and to support its advocacy for children worldwide.The Centre (formally known as the International Child Development Centre) helps to identify and research currentand future areas of UNICEF’s work. Its prime objectives are to improve international understanding of issuesrelating to children’s rights and to help facilitate the full implementation of the Convention on the Rights of theChild in all countries.The Centre’s publications are contributions to a global debate on child rights issues and include a wide range ofopinions. For that reason, the Centre may produce publications that do not necessarily reflect UNICEF policiesor approaches on some topics. The views expressed are those of the authors and are published by the Centre inorder to stimulate further dialogue on child rights.The Centre collaborates with its host institution in Florence, the Istituto degli Innocenti, in selected areas ofwork. Core funding for the Centre and its research is provided by the Government of Italy. Financial support forspecific projects is also provided by other governments, international institutions and private sources, includingUNICEF National Committees.Requests for permission to reproduce or translate UNICEF IRC publications should be addressed to:Communications Unit, UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre, florence@unicef.org.To access the most up-to-date publications files, please go to the publications pages on our website, atwww.unicef-irc.org/publications/.Front cover photo: Sven Hoppe / iStockphotoDesign and layout: Auxiliary Creatives, Hornbæk, DenmarkPrinted by: ABC Tipografia srl, Florence, Italy United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)July 2010ISBN: 978-88-89129-96-8ISSN: 1028-3528Correspondence should be addressed to:UNICEF Innocenti Research CentrePiazza SS. Annunziata, 1250122 Florence, ItalyTel: (39) 055 20 330Fax: (39) 055 2033 220florence@unicef.orgwww.unicef-irc.org
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSThis study was supported by the Governments of Italy, Norway and Sweden, as well as the Swiss Committeefor UNICEF.The report was prepared under the direction of the UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre (IRC) Implementationof International Standards Unit. Susan Bissell oversaw the study, with support from Lena Karlsson. Overallguidance was provided by Marta Santos Pais, the former IRC Director, and the study was brought to completionby the IRC Child Protection Unit and David Parker. Research assistance was provided by Ines Cerović, whileNeil Howard and Ann Linnarsson carried out fact-checking. The study was edited by Catharine Way and copyedited by Catherine Rutgers. The IRC Communications Unit managed the production process.UNICEF IRC would like to thank the authors of the report:Celia Brackenridge, Brunel University, United KingdomKari Fasting, Norwegian School of Sport SciencesSandra Kirby, University of Winnipeg, CanadaTrisha Leahy, Hong Kong Sports Institute.The study was developed through a consultative process and benefited from the expertise of participants intwo meetings organized by UNICEF IRC in Florence during May and November 2007. Contributions werealso provided by members of the UNICEF working group on sport, especially Lorraine Radford and Anne Tiivasof the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) in the United Kingdom of Great Britainand Northern Ireland, Petra Moget of the Netherlands Olympic Committee/Netherlands Sport Federation,Debbie Simms of the Australian Sports Commission and Dr. Margo Mountjoy. Sylvie Parent and Trond Svela Sandconducted research that underpins this report. Special thanks go to Paulo David of the Office of theUnited Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights for his pioneering work on this subject, published inthe 2005 book Human Rights in Youth Sport: A critical review of children’s rights in competitive sports, fromwhich material was drawn extensively during the research process. For their valuable comments and feedback,IRC wishes to acknowledge Liza Barrie and Amy Farkas of UNICEF’s Civil Society Partnerships Section.The report draws together a rich set of material on violence in sport and related issues. Research was completedat the end of 2007; therefore, more recent developments on the issue of violence against children in sport havenot been included. As explored in further detail in the Annex, a significant number of materials from diversesources were gathered and analysed in the production of this report. Nevertheless, one of the study’slimitations is that it draws primarily on English-language references. In addition, the search strategy yielded apreponderance of published materials from industrialized Western countries. As stated in the study, there are largegaps in the knowledge base on violence against children in sport in Africa (North and sub-Saharan Africa), Asia,Central and Eastern Europe, and Latin America and the Caribbean. These gaps, and others mentioned in thereport, must be addressed so that we may have a more complete understanding of the full dimensions of theissue and can thus better protect children in sport.iii
CONTENTSExecutive summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1Why sport matters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1Defining violence against children in sport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3Age and gender distinctions in competitive sport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Human rights and protecting children from violence in sport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Boxes:1.1 What children like about sport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.2 Landmarks in the history of sport for development, 2000-2008 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21.3 Definition of violence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31.4 Definition of sport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31.5 The child’s right to play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52. Evidence of violence against children in sport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7Where are the children? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7Estimating the prevalence of violence against children in sport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7Bullying and hazing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Physical maltreatment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Physical norms and risk of injury . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Peer aggression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Parental maltreatment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Drug and alcohol abuse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Emotional and psychological abuse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11Neglect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Child labour and trafficking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Violence against children with disabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Sexual violence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Discrimination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14Discrimination based on sexual orientation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14Knowledge about perpetrators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Boxes:2.1 Media reports of harmful practices in children’s sport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82.2 What athletes say about abuse committed by their coaches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112.3 What child athletes say about sexual violence committed by their coaches and peers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142.4 Harassment based on perceived sexual orientation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15iv
3. Protecting children from violence in sport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17The child athlete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17Families and peers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17Parents and caregivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17Peers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17Sport authority figures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Physical education teachers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Coaches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Medical and scientific staff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Managers, referees and officials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Sport community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19International organizations and sport for development organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19National and local organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20Sport-specific organizations and clubs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20Addressing violence in sport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20Monitoring and evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20Boxes:3.1 Violence prevention initiatives aimed to reach parents and caregivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183.2 Violence prevention initiatives aimed to reach coaches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193.3 Violence prevention initiatives aimed to reach sport organizations and clubs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214. Conclusions and recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23Knowledge and data collection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23Knowledge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23Data disaggregation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25Monitoring and evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25Research partnerships and networks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25Structures and systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25Education, awareness-raising and training . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25Birth registration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26Ethical guidelines and codes of conduct . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26International sport for development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27Boxes:4.1 What children say about sport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244.2 Educational resources for violence prevention in sport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254.3 Codes of ethics, conduct and practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26Acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28Annex: Research methodology .notes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30v
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARYUNI
strong advocate of children’s right to leisure and play and to have their voices heard in the planning and delivery of the sport activities in which they are involved. During recent years, however, it has become evident that sport is not always a safe space for children, and that the same types of violence and
The Effects of Domestic Violence on Children Domestic violence affects every member of the family, including the children. Family violence creates a home environment where children live in constant fear. Children who witness family violence are affected in ways simila
increase public awareness about, and primary and secondary prevention of family violence, domestic violence, and dating violence; and 2) assist tribes in efforts to provide immediate shelter and supportive services for victims of family violence, domestic violence, or dating violence, and their dependents (42 U.S.C. § 10401(b)(1)-(2)).
3.2. Tanzania's policies and legal framework on violence against school children 13 3.3. Nature, prevalence and magnitude of violence against school children 14 3.4. Perpetrators of violence against school children 15 . UNESCO - United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation UNICEF - United Nations Children's Fund .
2. Children Living with Domestic Violence Abuse of children Children may be intentionally or unintentionally hurt by the perpetrator of domestic violence. Some children are physically injured when they are being held by or standing next to the adult victim. There is a 30% to 60% co-occurrence of domestic violence and child abuse in the
Impact of domestic violence on children's lives and relationships 39 Relationship with fathers or father figures 39 Effect of violence on children's relationship with their mother 43 The 'madness' of it all 44 Crisis, chaos and change in children's lives as direct impacts of violence 46
were victims of physical violence, and 78% were victims of emotional violence. The study also highlights the very high number of victims of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (65% in Cairo, 39% in . perpetrator is a parent, teacher or anyone else who should be protecting them. . Box 11 The impact of violence on children
Gender-based violence – including physical, sexual, emotional and economic violence and abuse – is widespread globally. The most pervasive form of gender-based violence is intimate partner violence (IPV), also known as domestic violence or partner
Handout: ‘Relationship Violence No Way’ Program – Relationship violence prevention Myths and realities about relationship violence Myth Domestic violence doesn't happen very often. Reality As many as one in three women in Australia
