ELSA for Children Legal Research Group

ELSA is proud to cooperate with the Council of Europe on Children's Rights!

Throughout the year 2012 the ELSA for Children Legal Research Group (LRG) will investigate the protection of children against sexual violence in Europe in cooperation with the Council of Europe. The ELSA for Children Legal Research Group supports the aims of the ONE in FIVE campaign to Stop Sexual Violence Against Children of the Council of Europe.

The international community needs more information on Children’s Rights and the protection of children against sexual violence. The ELSA for Children Legal Research Group aims at high quality academic results through legal comparison: This is your chance to contribute to the legal knowledge on Children’s Rights internationally.

Research topic

The ELSA for Children LRG will approach the issue of protection of child victims from sexual violence in the national legal framework. Each national team should first investigate what research is already available and what research is underway  in preparation to pave the way for the ratification of the Lanzarote Convention. This approach would provide information on what kind of measures of protection to child victims and perpetrators are and should be in place and how the legislation should be or has been amended. The research will also investigate what monitoring  and complaints mechanisms are or will be in place. The researchers will be provided with developed Academic Framework guidelines.

The national teams will aim at providing academic research results in the legal field which are comparable on the European level providing more information where each of the countries and Council of Europe member states stand in the process of ratification and implementation of the Lanzarote Convention.

Aims of the Research

The project will be a compilation of national reports, each of which will seek to analyse the relevant national laws regarding Children’s Rights. The ELSA for Children Legal Research Group shall aim to ensure a consistent approach in order to facilitate high quality legal comparison. ELSA believes that the ELSA for Children Legal Research Group will result to systematic collection of information on this topic in countries within our extensive Network. ELSA is particularly well placed to carry out this research task, since we active in 42 countries in Europe.

The results of the ELSA for Children Legal Research Group will be published on the website of the "ONE in FIVE" campaign. Through the ELSA for Children Legal Research Group ELSA can contribute to the legal information on this field, helping students, academics and professionals with an overview of the national legislation of each ELSA country.