The Secretariat of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States

The ACP Committee of Ambassadors, meeting on 31 October 2007,

Having been informed of the affair in which some one hundred children were brought together in Abéché (Chad) by the French charity organisation “Zoe’s Ark” to be flown to France, in violation of all of Chad’s laws and international norms in relation to respect for human rights, in general, and children’s rights, in particular;

Strongly condemns this operation which violates the sovereignty of an ACP State and which might be perceived as taking advantage of the difficult situations experienced by human beings who find themselves in conflict zones or are displaced, thereby breaching the basic respect due to any human being, and children in particular;

Expresses support for Chad, in the hope that this painful affair will be resolved through the justice system, in complete transparency.

Appeals to the International Community to increase efforts to prevent and take firm measures against all and any action, whether organised or individual, which is planned or conducted in violation of human rights, as recognized particularly by the national and international legal instruments for the protection of children.  

Brussels, 31 October 2007