“All the children’s rights provided in the UN Convention are violated in Ukraine”

The need to introduce the position of ombudsman for children has been discussed in Ukraine for a long time. In 2002 UN for the first time recommended our country to do it, however it has been only two months that the ombudsman for children’s office officially started its work. In the country where even adults can hardly protect their rights, the situation with children’s rights is yet worse. Twenty years ago Ukraine ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child but, unfortunately, now our country is far from considering children’s interests equal to the adults’ ones not to mention the supremacy of rights of the child. Moreover, children’s discrimination, abuse and orphanhood are common in Ukraine. Last year the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child made us 100 remarks. Obviously, the improvement of the youngest citizens’ condition should be the priority for any state. Yurii PAVLENKO, Ukrainian president’s ombudsman for children told The Day about the tasks, goals and prospects of his work in more detail.

What are the tasks you set as ombudsman for children and how will you fulfill them?

“On August 11, the ombudsman for children’s office, formerly absent in Ukraine was created by the president’s order.”

“Today such offices work in most European countries and there are over 70 of them in the world. They started introducing these offices on the initiative of a number of countries, in particular, Scandinavian ones supported by UN. All the countries received the corresponding recommendations to introduce such offices. In particular, the UN Committee on the Rights of a Child recommended Ukraine to do it back in 2002. Last time it addressed Ukraine with the appeal to create this office in January 2011. Ukraine reported about the fulfillment of the UN Convention on the Rights of a Child and received 100 remarks. One of them touched upon the introduction of the ombudsman for children’s position. Understanding that children’s rights need to be the national priority of the governmental policy, the president reacted to this appeal and introduced this office.

“The main task for the ombudsman for children is to monitor children’s position, their rights and legal interests. The task is to hear every child whose rights have been violated and to do one’s best to restore them. The information can be received from everywhere: the official requests, request through e-mail and media. We consider any children’s requests. The second task is to assess how the work of the central and local public authorities correlates with children’s interests. If we speak about the local authorities the question is how their decisions meet children’s interests and how they protect every child on their territory. Children live in real settlements where their rights are violated nearly every day. I am speaking about the ministries responsible for children’s rights protection: the Ministry of Education, Science, Youth and Sports, Ministry of Public Health, Ministry of Interior Affairs and the Ministry of Social Policy. We set the task for the government to speak the language of children’s rights so that the power triangle with children’s rights on the top works as it is provided in the UN Convention. The key principle is to adopt all the decisions and actions based on children’s interests. We speak about the legislative, executive and judicial authorities. The second task is to protect children from any discrimination. The third task is children’s participation in making decision concerning their life. Our task is not only to fulfill children’s interests in the relations between children and the state but also in the relations between children and family, children and society. In all these areas children’s rights are seriously violated. The relations between children and the state rely on certain decisions, standards, public opinion, certain responsibilities of the government, however, social and family relations are not reflected in the legislation. That is why another ombudsman’s task is to inform every adult and child about what children’s rights are and, what is more important, how to realize them. Our task is to hear every child.”

Who monitors whether the legislative acts fulfill the requirements of the UN Convention on the Rights of a Child?

“They are monitored by everyday life, social organizations, and the government itself. Unfortunately, today there is no any executive body that would be responsible for children’s interests. Today there are at least seven central executive bodies that have to protect the rights of a child. However, there are children’s rights that nobody is responsible for: refugee children, children seeking asylum. Let’s examine the right for healthy development. It looks like everybody is responsible for it but, as a result, children do not have a place to go after school… All the rights mentioned in the UN Convention are equally important but at the same time many of them do not have any systematic policy.”

Orphanages is a burning issue for Ukraine. Do you have a task to contribute to their quickest liquidation?

“It is not even discussed. Children have the right to grow and develop in families. This right is fundamental and government’s task is to provide the right of every child who has lost the parents to be brought up in a family environment. Obviously, the existing orphanage system in Ukraine became inefficient long time ago. It was created as the response to the post-revolution challenges when a lot of people died during Holodomors and after the World War II when a lot of children lost their parents and homes. The situation was the same in Ukraine and in Europe. However, Europe refused from orphanages 10 years ago. The orphanages preservation is still discussed since they exist in Ukraine not that much for children’s protection or development. They make working places for adults, receive enormous money that is spent to maintain the orphanages and children receive just pennies for their needs. That is why it is clear that the question of orphanages reformation is the question of the past. Of course we will insist that central and local authorities finish the reform of orphanages in the quickest and most efficient way possible proceeding from the interests of every child and actively developing family forms of education: adoption, custody, foster homes and family type orphanages. Today they are legalized and we have some experience. We can say that this practice has become very efficient over the last five years (there are over 9,500 children living in foster families). The same goes for adoption: the Ukrainians have adopted twice more children over the last five years. However, if there are children willing to live in an orphanage because of their age or experience their right has to be fulfilled and the programs that would prepare them for adult life have to be implemented. On the other hand, children should not be sent to orphanages. In Ukraine there are enough families ready to adopt orphans.

“However, in orphanages there are many children having parents who sent them there because of the crisis. We believe that the government should stop punishing the families in crisis. The task is to do the best to preserve families. That is why we will initiate the review of the current Ukrainian annulment procedure. We want that the custody organs (mayors and local authorities) obligatory inform the court that a family needs help in fulfilling parents’ responsibilities. The government has to use all the available mechanisms in order to help this family. Besides, the obligatory social tuition has to be introduced for people whose children are temporarily sent to orphanages (without parents’ rights deprivation) and people who desire to restore their parental rights. It means that the government has to stop punishing families.”

Now in Ukraine there are a lot labor migrants’ children who have not seen their parents for years. We have already heard the ideas to deprive these people of their parental rights. How can you help these children and their parents?

“First of all, local authorities and the guardianship organs have to know about every of these children. The corresponding services have to provide social tuition for all these families. I do not support parental rights deprivation since parents go abroad to be able to feed their children and give them future. That is why the government should not leave children and their parents but help them to solve the problems children face without parents.”

But who will work if the Ministry of Family, Youth and Sports has been liquidated and a lot of people who worked in the local structures have been fired?

“Most of the structures are fortunately preserved: children’s and social services. These structures have a lot of experience and there are a lot of devoted people working there. They keep working and I think that their powers and functions should be increased. I am sure that the local regional services are ready to the new challenges since they have well-prepared staff. The question of central coordination is still unresolved. I think that the report on the work of authorities responsible for children’s rights protection will be prepared in the nearest time. Anyway, the president charged us to prepare the recommendations and today we cooperate with the government.”

How will the office develop? How long will the ombudsman work?

“Scandinavian countries have had the position of the ombudsman for children for 100 years now but the amount of work is still increasing. The office has to develop, get stronger, be independent of any political parties and become a serious tool for children’s rights protection. Now we are thoroughly analyzing the situation of children’s rights in Ukraine and a lot of questions have arisen: rights of property, social payments and personal rights (the right to be heard, the right to express one’s opinion, the quality and safety of children’s life). We are speaking about the children who have to be urgently helped and if their problems are not resolved we cannot talk about the governmental policy for children’s rights protection. It is also important to change adults’ attitude to children’s problems since it is also very important in the relations between children and the state, children and society, children and family. For example, family violence, physical and psychological one, is common in Ukraine despite the fact that it is forbidden by law. This problem exists in many countries. In 2009 UN created the Institute for Children’s Rights: they realize there that abuse is something global. One more problem is criminal children. It is a burning issue all over the world. The question is how not to educate criminals through the remedial justice system but how this system should save children and not vice versa. I can quote Thomas Hammemberg, European Commissioner for Human Rights who said: ‘Prisons for children is a disadvantageous option all over the world.’ Children, unlike adults have a tendency to improve.

“That is why we will initiate the resolution of many problems that complicate children’s life. Unfortunately, the society does not even realize many of these rights since neither children nor adults know their rights in full.”