Human Rights and Democracy - Official Documents

withdrawal is for a limited period until the principles of good governance have been
restored and elections held in the Islands.
Pitcairn Islands
The UK Government has introduced a series of measures to improve child
safeguarding and offender monitoring on the Pitcairn Islands since Operation
Unique, the police investigation into allegations of child abuse that concluded in 2006
with the conviction of nine men on child sex abuse charges. Members of the Pitcairn
community have engaged constructively in improving child safety on the island. The
2010 Pitcairn constitution contains a specific provision on children’s rights. A
Pitcairn Sex Offenders Register was also established in 2010. In the same year, the
FCO and DFID funded a New Zealand NGO, the Institute for Child Protection, to
provide training for key child safeguarding workers on the Pitcairn Islands. Child
safeguarding training was also provided to off-island professionals, such as doctors
and policemen, before they visited Pitcairn.
A Pitcairn Child Safety Review, commissioned by the FCO and DFID and completed
by independent experts in June 2009, made a number of recommendations to
improve child safety. A follow-up review is planned for 2011 to provide an up-to-date
assessment of the child safety risk; the current safeguarding measures in place; and,
where appropriate, additional recommendations for future risk management.
Supporting the Extension of the International Human Rights
Conventions to the Overseas Territories
Most of the Overseas Territories face resource and capacity constraints that affect
their ability to consider or implement treaties. Within this context, we continue to
encourage all Territories to agree to the extension of the UN human rights
conventions that the UK has ratified.
115