Violence against children happens everywhere in the world and comes in many ways; sexual exploitation of children is one of them, and the most outrageous.
In fulfilling our responsibilities and ethical commitment, we engage in the protection of fundamental human rights and fully condemn the sexual exploitation of children and adolescents in travel and tourism. Thus, we have adhered to the Code of Conduct for the Protection from Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents in Travel and Tourism, to contribute concretely to the prevention of this crime.
Our actions in this regard include both the creation of our own policy of prevention, and the development of related procedures including:
- Adequate training for all staff Yacutinga Lodge.
- The provision of information to travelers.
- The mechanisms to report possible cases that may occur in our environment to the competent authorities, including national and international ONGs.
We believe that our Policy Statement document will guide the procedure of company personnel in situations of child protection in emergencies, having these in force since 1 July 2014.
In turn, we strongly wish that every company either client or service provider joins to our struggle for the prevention of sexual exploitation of children in tourism.
Policies:
- Yacutinga Lodge, as tourism benchmark in corporate responsibility, is deeply committed to supporting the protection of children and adolescents from sexual exploitation, in line with its mission statement of responsible tourism and environmental protection.
- In this context, our Company reaffirms its commitment by signing the Code of Conduct for the Protection from Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents in Travel and Tourism, which sets out the principles of an active policy against child sexual exploitation in the sector hospitality.
Procedure prevention and control:
- All guests staying at the lodge with a minor (under 18) must submit one of the following documents to determine the age of the child and their relationship: Document ID, passport or birth certificate.
- Not submitting any of the above documents will not allow the child’s income to any room, or outdoor facilities of the lodge.
- In the case that adults decide not to stay in our Lodge and get support to make a reservation at another hotel, we will refuse to do so.
- In the event that a registered guest is presented together with a minor that has not been previously registered, the staff may request identification of the child.
- In case problems arise in the implementation of this procedure, the staff member should seek help from their superiors.
- In the event that the circumstances confirm that there is a child abuse case, should alert the General Manager and Responsible institutional issues to denounce the case in the minimum time to the appropriate authorities.
- In the event that any member of the service staff of the Lodge or any other staff member observe anything suspicious under the same circumstances, you must follow steps 5 and / or 6.
- In the event that a staff member has questions about the policies and procedures, the staff member may request assistance to senior staff.
Clause in contracts with suppliers
Prevention of child exploitation: All service providers has signed the Code of Conduct to protect children and adolescents from sexual exploitation in travel and tourism, and Yacutinga Lodge expects all its co-contractors refuse to engage, either directly or indirectly on the commercial sexual exploitation of children and adolescents, according to the following minimum standards:
- Compliance with applicable regulations in general: The Provider expects its co-contractors to comply with all rules and regulations at international, national and local minimum standards of the tourism industry level.
- The Supplier shall not allow or tolerate child labor before, during or after the provision of its services related to Yacutinga Lodge.
- To denounce to the authorities when suspicious behavior of customers, tourists, employees, staff providers or any other person on the premises of the Supplier or for the provision of services.
- For the purpose of this clause child means a person under 18 (eighteen) years of age, according to the Convention on the Rights of the Child UN.
- The Code of Conduct signed by the Provider involves engage to their co-contractors, direct or indirect, with the search for an ethical business performance, environmental quality and social responsibility, both in-house and in their value chains.
Carlos Sandoval
Director
Yacutinga Lodge
Reserva Privada de vida silvestre Yacutinga
Estacion Biologica Yacutinga
conservacion@yacutinga.com
www.yacutinga.com
Misiones – Argentina
