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Press
release
Children
in residential institutions desperately vulnerable
to abuse
Data gaps make the issue “invisible”,
says UNICEF
GENEVA, 31 May 2005: Violence
against children in residential institutions
can be found across Europe and Central Asia,
according to research gathered by UNICEF in
the run-up to a major conference on violence
against children. The research also reveals
glaring gaps in knowledge and data.
“Children in residential institutions
– from children’s homes to detention
centres – are desperately vulnerable,”
said Maria Calivis, UNICEF Regional Director
for Central and Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth
of Independent States. “They are vulnerable
because they are separated from society in a
‘closed’ environment. And the more
closed that environment is, the greater the
risk of violence and the smaller the chance
that it will be reported.
“We have to remember that things have
already gone badly wrong for the children who
end up in institutions,” she added. “They
are already scarred by family troubles and that
only increases their vulnerability.”
One of nine consultations worldwide, the Consultation
on Violence Against Children in Europe and Central
Asia takes place in Slovenia in early July and
will feed into the Secretary General's Study
on Violence Against Children due out in 2006.
Nobody knows exactly how many children are
living in institutions in Europe and Central
Asia. The most conservative estimates put the
figure at around one million.
“There is a serious and fundamental knowledge
gap on the numbers,” said Calivis “which
makes the issue ‘invisible’ and
undermines the chance of an effective response.”
The research is likely to fuel debate at the
forthcoming Regional Consultation:
- Ongoing investigations in Ireland testify
to abuse over decades: an inquiry has received
3,000 complaints, 60 per cent of them from those
over 50 who were abused as children in institutions
;
- The Committee on the Rights of the Child has
expressed concern at the lack of a clear ban
on corporal punishment in institutions in Belgium,
Czech Republic, France, Kyrgyzstan and Moldova;
- A report on Kazakhstan shows that 80 per cent
of children in residential schools are treated
“cruelly” ;
- Interviews with children in institutions in
the UK found that 62 out of 71 reported physical
violence between children. Half had experienced
physical violence ranging from knife attacks,
kicks and punches to damage to their personal
property and threats .
UNICEF sounds the alarm on juvenile justice,
with research suggesting that juvenile offenders
may face the greatest risk of violence in the
earliest, pre-trial stages. The Committee on
the Rights of the Child has raised the issue
of police officers ill-treating children and
young people in police custody in Albania, France,
Georgia, Romania, Switzerland, Ukraine and Uzbekistan.
Young people may also be kept in pre-trial custody
alongside adults, increasing the risk of abuse.
In Germany there is evidence that they have
been threatened, blackmailed and even raped
. In Croatia, custodial staff have been seen
to punch, kick or hit young people with batons
.
“This is unacceptable,” said Calivis.
“The UN Convention on the Rights of the
Child sets the standards for children in institutions.
The Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers
has spelled out their rights, including the
right to a non-violent upbringing. The ground-rules
are there, but they need to be followed.”
UNICEF calls on the ministers attending the
July Consultation on Children and Violence to:
- Legislate to ban all forms of violence against
all children in all settings – institutions,
schools, the home and the community;
- Ensure that the institutionalisation or detention
of children is a measure of last resort;
- Set in motion the region-wide gathering of
consistent, comparable and disaggregated data
on children in institutions;
- Screen staff working with these children,
pay them properly and ensure that they are qualified
to deal with the tensions and conflicts that
can erupt into violence;
- Create effective complaints channels for children
in institutions and make sure that the children
know about them;
- Ensure that these children have regular contact
with their own families, unless this would put
them at risk.
NOTE TO EDITORS:
UNICEF has been gathering existing research
on violence against children in residential
settings in preparation for the Regional Consultation
on Violence against Children in Europe and central
Asia, which will be held in Ljubljana, Slovenia,
5–7 July 2005, hosted by the Government
of Slovenia and co-organised by the Council
of Europe, UNICEF, WHO, OHCHR and the NGO Advisory
Panel.
The United Nations Secretary-General has appointed
an independent expert, Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro,
to lead a global study on violence against children.
The study, rooted in children’s right
to protection from all forms of violence, aims
to promote action to prevent and eliminate violence
against children at international, regional,
national and local levels. The study is a United
Nations-led collaboration, mandated by the General
Assembly, to draw together existing research
and relevant information about the forms, causes
and impact of violence affecting children and
young people (up to the age of 18 years). A
major report will be published in 2006 and recommendations
presented to the United Nations General Assembly.
Nine regional consultations, including the Consultation
in Slovenia in July, will pull together regional
information on violence against children in
four settings: the home, the community, the
school and residential institutions. These will
articulate the agenda for action and contribute
recommendations to the study.
For more information:
Angela Hawke, UNICEF Communication Officer for
Central and Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth
of Independent States, tel: (+4122) 909 5433.
e-mail: ahawke@unicef.org
Monique Thormann, Communication
Section, UNICEF Geneva Regional Office, (+4122)
909 5730,
e-mail: mthormann@unicef.org
Visit the website: http://www.unicef.org/ceecis
Press Release: Word
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