On 14 March 2023, the conference "Protecting the rights of Ukrainian children during and in post-war context" was held. The international conference in an online format and gathered more than 240 participants.
The main purpose of the conference was to present support and resources developed by the Council of Europe in 2022 for authorities working to protect children's rights in Ukraine. At the same time, the conference aimed to assess the needs for further support during and in the post-war context within the framework of the Council of Europe project, which will be implemented until December 2024.
The conference was opened by Jeroen Schokkenbroek, Director of Anti-Discrimination, Directorate General of Democracy and Human Dignity of the Council of Europe, and Olena Lytvynenko, Head of the Council of Europe Office in Ukraine a.i. In their welcoming speeches, representatives of the Council of Europe emphasised the importance of continuing joint work with the national authorities to protect the rights of Ukrainian children, because this topic is becoming particularly important in the context of war.
"We remain committed to supporting Ukraine during the war and the reconstruction process, to strengthen the resilience of Ukrainian public institutions, to enhance democratic governance and the rule of law and to protect citizens’ fundamental rights" - noted in his welcoming speech Jeroen Schokkenbroek, Director of Anti-Discrimination, Directorate General of Democracy and Human Dignity of the Council of Europe.
"The Council of Europe is currently implementing the project "Protecting the rights of Ukrainian children during and in post-war context", with duration until 31 December 2024. The aim of the project is to support the Ukrainian authorities and relevant stakeholders in strengthening their response to sexual exploitation, violence against children, human trafficking , including in war and post-war conditions, encouraging child-friendly practices, with an emphasis on ensuring the rights of child victims and witnesses in court proceedings, as well as promoting respect for the rights of the child.",- marked in her welcoming speech Olena Lytvynenko, Head of the Council of Europe Office in Ukraine a.i.
National partners of the project also addressed the participants with welcoming remarks. In particular, Viktoria Litvinova, Deputy Prosecutor General of Ukraine; Dmytro Lubinets, Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights (video message); Daria Herasymchuk, Adviser - Commissioner of the President of Ukraine for Children's Rights and Rehabilitation.
The conference was held in the format of three sessions on the following issues:
Session 1: Identification of key needs for the protection of children's rights in the context of war by national stakeholders
Session 2: Presentation of the main results of the project “Combating violence against children in Ukraine” in 2022
Session 3: Initiatives and key priorities of international partners regarding the protection of children's rights in the context of war
In the course of Session 1 national partners and stakeholders outlined the main challenges that currently exist in Ukraine, and made proposals for cooperation within the project. In particular, the following representatives took the floor during during the session: Ulyana Tokareva, Deputy Minister of Social Policy of Ukraine; Oleksandr Banchuk, Deputy Minister of Justice of Ukraine; Kateryna Pavlichenko, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine; Yulia Usenko Head of the Department for the Protection of Children’s Interests and Combating Violence of the Office of Prosecutor General; Vasyl Bohdan, Head of Juvenile Prevention Division of the National Police. Among the main challenges, the following issues were identified: the problem of forced deportation of children from the occupied territories, the need to monitor the observance of the rights of children who left the territory of Ukraine, challenges in working with children in the de-occupied territories. In addition, the participants highlighted the importance of interagency cooperation and continued work on the projects that existed before the war, in particular the introduction of child-friendly justice, the operation of Barnahus units, and professional development of specialists working for and with children.
During Session 2 the main achievements of the project "Combating violence against children in Ukraine, Phase III" were presented.
In Session 3 representatives of international partner organisations presented key initiatives and priorities for the protection of children's rights in the context of war.
- The conference recording is available for viewing at the following link: https://fb.watch/jiPLffja4e/
- Programme: https://rm.coe.int/draft-programme-conference-on-protecting-the-rights-of-ukrainian-child/1680aa7aa7
- Presentations by experts on the achievements of the project "Combating Violence Against Children in Ukraine, Phase III" are available here: https://mycloud.coe.int/s/As2jiYyCxKGnDzg
The conference was followed by the first meeting of the Steering Committee organised to present the objectives, logframe and planned activities of the new project.
