Child protection legislation should be enhanced

Child protection legislation should be enhanced

PODGORICA, 15 February, 2012 - Respect for human rights is a core value of the European Union and an essential part of the EU enlargement policy in the Western Balkans, said the Head of Operations at the EU Delegation to Montenegro, Nicola Bertolini. At a roundtable discussion on social and child protection, he stressed that Montenegro's children were future EU citizens and that the country should fully incorporate international child protection standards into domestic legislation.

The revision of the law on social and child protection represented, he said, an opportunity to introduce a new approach to child protection, including the creation of a legal basis for the development of alternatives to institutionalisation and for the prevention of segregation of children with special educational needs. “I am pleased to see that the draft law is much closer in line with international standards than the 2005 law currently in place. However, implementation of the draft law seems likely to cause many challenges. It does not fully reflect the recommendations and findings of experts engaged on, neither the development of the legal text, nor those of other experts engaged in the reform process. In addition, it will not now be possible to achieve some of the results expected from the Social Inclusion Project since some elements, which were key prerequisites, are missing from the law”.

The Head of Operations explained that the draft law did not facilitate the development of fostering, that there was no provision for reform of Centres for Social Welfare, nor provision for all children, regardless of citizenship, to have access to benefits. Also, mechanisms to encourage decentralisation of social services and in particular the Social Innovation Fund (SIF) are not in place.

The Head of the UNICEF Mission to Montenegro, Mr. Benjamin Perks, said that the Draft law was designed to create more efficient and effective, to address the problems faced by vulnerable groups, especially children, and to ensure their inclusion in mainstream society. “We have made much progress so far, but much more needs to be done. We hope that this law lays the conditions for our continued efforts”.

The Minister of Labour and Social Welfare, Suad Numanovi?, said that the draft law aimed to contribute to the protection of vulnerable groups and the building of an institutional framework and the capacity for the implementation of further reforms.

The legislation is part of the Social Reform and Child Welfare Project, implemented by the Government with technical support from UNICEF and the UNDP. The EU financially supported the project with approximately €3 million.

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