COMMITTEE ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD EXAMINES SECOND PERIODIC REPORT OF ROMANIA

The Committee on the Rights of the Child considered today a second periodic report of Romania, questioning a Government delegation, among other things, on monitoring, coordination, and implementation of programmes aimed at improving the situation of children in the country.
The report was introduced by Gabriela Coman, Secretary of State and President of the National Authority for Child Protection and Adoptions of Romania, who said a number of significant steps had been taken over the last two years by the Government to promote child rights, including the closing of some 60 large residential institutions, resulting in a significant reduction in the number of institutionalized children in favour of placing such children with families.
Responding to questions raised by Committee Experts, the Romanian delegation said among other things that child abandonment was a problem, with many mothers abandoning their children at birth; and that rates of abortion and infant mortality were high -- difficulties the Government was attacking through a series of measures and programmes.
The Committee will release its formal conclusions and recommendations on the second periodic report of Romania towards the end of its three-week session, which concludes 31 January.
Other members of the Romanian delegation were Anca Ilinoiu, Director-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Viorel Ifrim, Director-General of the General Secretariat of the Government of Romania; Silviu Calciu, Director of Cabinet of the Secretary of State and President of the National Authority for Child Protection and Adoptions; Alina Dragatoiu, Director of the Ministry of Labour and Social Solidarity; Florentina Negrutiu, Legal Counsellor of the Ministry of Justice; and Alina Mindroiu, an Expert of the Ministry of Health and Family.
Also Rodica Cherciu, an Expert at the Ministry of Education and Research; Victor Nicolaescu, an Expert at Ministry of Interior; Olga Jora, a Counsellor at the State Secretariat for Disabled Persons; Andra Filip, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Romania to the United Nations Office at Geneva; Petru Dumitriu, Minister-Counsellor and Deputy Permanent Representative of the Mission; and Cristian Badescu, Second Secretary of the Mission.
As one of 191 States parties to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Romania must present periodic reports to the Committee on efforts to improve the situation of the nation's children.
When the Committee reconvenes at 10 a.m. Tuesday, 21 January, it will meet in private session to discuss draft concluding observations. It was scheduled to take up the initial report of the Solomon Islands, but review of that report has been postponed until the Committee's next session. At 10 a.m. Wednesday, 22 January, the Committee will examine a second periodic report of Viet Nam (document CRC/C/65/Add.20).
Second Periodic Report of Romania
The report (document CRC/C/65/Add.19) describes the Government's reform strategy, legislative framework and structures for child protection. Reforms, initiated in an emergency procedure of the Government in March 1997, are based on the principle of the priority of the child's best interest, non-discrimination, decentralization of decision-making, and family-based alternatives to residential care for children in difficulty.
The report notes, among other things, that special consideration was given to the main causes of concern expressed by the Committee upon review of Romania's initial report in 1994; these concerns involved legislative reform, the situation of children belonging to ethnic minorities, child abuse and neglect, and measures for the training of personnel for the protection and promotion of the rights of child. A genuine respect for the rights of the child has been established through a continuous process of consolidation of new legislative and administrative frameworks, as well as their improvement in accordance with the needs and resources identified at national and local levels, the report states.
Introduction of Report
GABRIELA COMAN, Secretary of State and President of the National Authority for Child Protection and Adoptions of Romania, said some important results had been achieved during the last two years. About 60 large residential institutions had been closed, contributing to a significant reduction of the number of institutionalized children. A single decision-making authority had been established at county level to deal with child issues. Such measures and others had ensured an effective approach that encompassed the social, medical and educational aspects of the situation of children in difficulty.
Ms. Coman said that as a result of the general elections in November 2000, the new Government had made the protection of child rights a priority issue. Reforms related to child rights had been based on the principles and objectives established by a set of Government area strategies. The Government had designed a national plan of action for poverty reduction and social inclusion; a strategy on women, child and family health; a strategy on the protection of children in difficulty; and national strategies on HIV/AIDS, the Roma population, and disabled persons.
Ms. Coman said Romania was fully committed to promoting systems that would ensure that the rights of the child were properly observed and protected. That commitment and related positive developments had been supported by Romania's international partners. The Government's achievements in the field of child rights had implied sustained effort and commitment. However, authorities were aware that they still had a considerable way to go.
Discussion
Committee Experts raised numerous questions under the main topics of implementation of the rights in the Convention and the definition of the child. The questions focused, among other things, on the effective operation of the Ombudsman for children and the Ombudsman's accessibility to children; the role of inter-ministerial social assistance and other mechanisms dealing with child rights; the teaching of the provisions of the Convention; the minimum age of marriage; the sustainability of programmes aimed at the promotion and protection of child rights; the use by children of a Government hotline service; disparities between urban and rural areas; the conditions of the Roma people and their children; evaluation of the country's anti-poverty strategy; the situation of street children and disabled persons; the role of non-governmental organizations; and how the special services for children operated. An Expert commended the tremendous efforts made by Romania to promote and protect child rights in the country.
Responding to these queries, members of the Romanian delegation said, among other things, that since 1997, non-governmental organizations wishing to work in areas related to child rights had been accredited, and had been collaborating with local authorities. The Government appreciated the work done by such NGOs.
The country's new family code had modified the age of marriage and had reduced the age of marriage for boys from 18 to 16, instead of raising that of girls from 16 to 18, the delegation said. The Committee's recommendations might spur a new debate on raising the age of marriage to 18 for both sexes.
A new national social assistance scheme had been defined over the last two years to provide family benefits, including to children, the delegation said. Allowances to families took into consideration the number of children in the family. Other services were also being developed at the county level based on strong partnership with local stakeholders. Social assistance was also extended for housing and to provide day care services for children from needy families.
The Ministry of Health had been expanding community nursing services at the local level, the delegation said. The accessibility of primary health care for Roma children was being given emphasis in all counties. However, when the national health insurance system had been created in 1997, families not included in the health insurance scheme had faced problems. Now the community nursing system was being strengthened to provide better coverage for those in need of basic health care.
Through reform of the juvenile justice system, the Government intended to reduce the number of young offenders going to prison, the delegation said. The vast majority of those between 14 and 18 years of age who were sentenced for crimes did not serve prison terms but instead had their sentences commuted to community service.
Committee Experts posed further queries under the main subjects of general principles of the Convention; civil rights and freedoms; and family environment and alternative care. Among other things, they asked about how cases of child abuse, neglect and exploitation were monitored; what was the percentage of births registered in the country; about allegation of ill-treatments of children, particularly of Roma, and a lack of investigation into such complaints; about the rights of children to express their views and the right to be heard; about statelessness, particularly of Roma people; about cooperation between Hungary and Romania concerning children of Hungarian origin in Romania; about the rate of divorce and efforts to reduce it; about kidnapping of children; about State assessments of child support and payment of alimony; about measures to prevent discrimination; about control of access to harmful Internet sites by children; and about child abandonment.
Members of the Romanian delegation said among other things that the Romanian decentralization process was an experiment in what was traditionally a centralized society. The Government had decided to go ahead with the process as a political choice. The transfer of power to local authorities was not without problems and risks -- the Government had had to combat fraud and mismanagement by certain individuals of funds assigned for the execution of projects and programmes.
A post of "Students' Attorney" had been set up to defend child victims of violence in schools, the delegation said. Other legal measures had also been taken against child abuse and domestic violence involving children. Corporal punishment by parents against any family member could be penalized if reported either by the victim or a neighbour on the basis of legal provisions not directly related to the prohibition of corporal punishment. The Romanian legislation did not explicitly prohibited corporal punishment. The Government was considering introducing such legislation in the near future.
On the issue of child abandonment, the delegation said the Government had been trying to prevent such practices, which mainly took place in maternity hospitals. Among measures of prevention were the identification of pregnant women and efforts to improve the social situations of those mothers who might abandon newly born children. Children below 2 years of age who were deprived of parental care were kept in foster families, while children above that age were placed in institutions. Among the 6 million Romanian children under 18 years of age, only 100,000 were taken care of in institutions. Poverty and lack of education in parenting were among the causes of child abandonment.
Under the Romanian legal system, child abandonment was an offense and could result in imprisonment, the delegation said. The Government had been campaigning against child abandonment over the last year to increase awareness among families, and particularly among teenage girls.
The rate of abortion was high in Romania, the delegation said. Lack of education in family planning and in the use of contraceptive methods was at the root of the high number of abortions in the country. The Government had been disseminating information on the use of contraceptive and had been expanding reproductive health care systems. Contraceptive materials were distributed free of charge to teenage girls and mothers. Abortions were most often sought by women living in rural areas.
Disabled children in Romania were protected by a law and by an institution which recognized their special needs and sought to enhance their rights, the delegation said. The law was in line with international standards, particularly article 23 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Disabled children unable to go to school had the opportunity to complete their studies at home. Another law on disabled persons, introduced last year, reinforced their rights to employment. A national strategy for the integration of disabled persons into society and workplace had also been designed by the Government.
Five centres had been established in Bucharest alone this year to shelter street children, the delegation said. The Government had allocated US$3 million for the implementation of programmes run by three non-governmental organizations to help street children. The number of street children was expected to drop drastically over the next few years as a result of measures already taken.
Roma children enjoyed all the rights and privileges of Romanian minorities, the delegation said. Teachers from Roma minorities were trained to teach in the Romani language. Hungarian children had also been enjoying all their rights as Romanians. Their education was conducted in Hungarian language. All children from minorities were guided to help them pursue better opportunities in society.
The last decade had been spent enacting major reforms, including in the area of family protection, the delegation said. Maternity leave had been extended, and aid provided to working mothers through the social insurance system.
The country's courts had approved 600 cases of inter-country adoption last year, the delegation said. A law on international adoption had yet to be approved. In 2001, some 1,500 children had been adopted by persons living in other countries.
The rate of infant mortality had been decreasing from its high level, the delegation said. The main causes of such mortality were lack of adequate medical services and parents' lack of knowledge of disease prevention. The rural areas were most affected by high infant mortality.
Preliminary Concluding Remarks
SAISUREE CHUTIKUL, the Committee Expert who served as country rapporteur for the report of Romania, said the Committee appreciated the efforts of the members of the delegation to respond to the various questions put to them. The Committee recognized the difficulties faced by Romania. The Committee was, however, concerned about the implementation of the general principles of the Convention. It also was concerned about the functioning of the various special services designed to promote child rights, about the implementation of legislation enacted by the State party, and about the participation of children in activities concerning them.
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