7.

Calls on the European Union, in the context of its foreign and development cooperation policies, to offer a strategic pact to its partners, and, to that end, to require that: (a) all its partner countries prohibit child, early and forced marriages, eliminating any legal loopholes and that they enforce legislation in line with international human rights standards, including the removal of any provisions that could allow, justify or give rise to child, early or forced marriages, including those that enable the perpetrators of rape, sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, abduction, people trafficking or modern forms of slavery to escape prosecution and punishment if they marry their victims, specifically by repealing or amending those laws; (b) this prohibition is respected and enforced in practice at all levels once the law has entered into force, and that comprehensive and holistic strategies and programmes that include measurable progressive targets are put in place to prevent and eradicate child, early and forced marriages, and that they be adequately funded and evaluated, notably through ensuring access to justice and accountability mechanisms and remedies; (c) partner governments show sustained leadership and political will to end child marriage and develop comprehensive legal frameworks and action plans with clear milestones and timelines integrating child marriage prevention measures across different sectors, and calling for political, economic, social, cultural and civil environments that protect and empower women and girls and support gender equality; (d) the resources needed to achieve this objective are mobilised, taking care to open this cooperation up to all institutional actors such as the judiciary, educational and health professionals, law enforcement, and community and religious leaders as well as civil society in the area of tackling child, early and forced marriages; (e) the level of public development aid allocation to government authorities is made dependent on the recipient country’s commitment to complying, in particular, with the requirements on human rights, including in the fight against child, early and forced marriages; (f) the UNFPA and UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) programme is implemented in triangular cooperation involving these organisations, the European Union, its Member States and their civil society organisations working in this field and the partner countries in combating child, early and forced marriages through the implementation of budgeted national action plans, prioritising programmes and methods likely to go beyond so-called cultural, religious or tribal practices that, in reality, constitute the worst violations of the rights of children and the dignity of children; calls for this cooperation also to address the associated issues of honour-based violence; (g) the implementation of these programmes build on the relevant conventions and texts, as well as the specific goals and targets adopted by the UN General Assembly Resolution of 25 September 2015 in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in particular Goal 3 (‘Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages’), Goal 4 (‘Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all’), Goal 16 (‘Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels’), especially ‘end abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence against and torture of children’; (h) the implementation of these programmes should also build on Goal 5 of the SDGs (‘Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls’), including access to family planning and the full range of public and universal sexual and reproductive health rights, in particular modern contraception and safe and legal abortion for girls; calls on the Commission and Member States, in this context, to support the SheDecides movement and pledge additional funding to international aid for sexual and reproductive health services, including safe abortions and information about abortions, thereby countering the Global Gag Rule which was reinstated by the United States government in early 2017; (i) issues relating to child, early, and forced marriages are raised in the ongoing dialogue between EU Special Representative for Human Rights, Stavros Lambrinidis and third countries; encourages the Commission and the Member States to integrate a gender perspective into peacebuilding and post-conflict reconstruction programmes, to develop economic livelihood and education programmes for girls and women who are the victims of child, early and forced marriages, and to facilitate their access to health and reproductive services in conflict-affected areas;