Ofelia Calcetas-Santos | |
|---|---|
| United Nations special rapporteur on the sale of children | |
| In office 1994–2001 | |
| Preceded by | Vitit Muntarbhorn |
| Succeeded by | Juan Miguel Petit |
| Personal details | |
| Nationality | Filipino |
Ofelia Calcetas-Santos (died January 2011) was a Filipino public servant who was the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the sale of children,child prostitution and child pornography from 1994 to 2001. During her tenure as Special Rapporteur,Calcetas-Santos published reports on the sexual abuse of children in Mexico and the sale of children in Guatemala.
Calcetas-Santos graduated from the University of the Philippines College of Law. [1]
Calcetas-Santos started her career with the United Nations in 1994 when she replaced Vitit Muntarbhorn as the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children,child prostitution and child pornography. [2] She began her position conducting research on child prostitution across the world in 1996. [3] Her report released in November 1996 focused on the connections between sexually transmitted diseases and child sexual abuse. [4] In 1997,Calcetas-Santos conducted an inquiry into how tourist attractions of Mexico were effected by the pornography and prostitution of young children. [5] In her 1998 report presented to the United Nations,Calcetas-Santos said the sexual abuse of young children in Mexico was mainly occurring in Tijuana. [6]
The following year,Calcetas-Santos started research into the sale of children for adoption in Guatemala to North American and European countries. [7] After her report was published in May 2000,Calcetas-Santos was criticized for not providing statistical information on her allegation that Guatemalan babies were being sold more often than adopted. In response,Calcetas-Santos said that she did not include any statistical information due to the limited time she had for research. [8] When her tenure as Special Rapporteur ended in 2001,Calcetas-Santos was replaced by Juan Miguel Petit. [2]
Calcetas-Santos died in January 2011. [1]