Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance 2012
CIVIL SOCIETY FACILITY Programme 2012
Children’s role for a strong Civil Society
“FINAL WORKSHOP
FOR THE SHARING OF RECOMMENDATIONS”
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
Hotel Hollywood
Mustafe Pintola 23, Ilidza
Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
report by dimitra soulele
Background:
The Workshop was implemented under Activity 3 “Final Workshop for the sharing of recommendations” of the Project “Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance 2012, CIVIL SOCIETY FACILITY Programme 2012 - Children’s role for a strong Civil Society”, and after having concluded the Activity 2 (that included a General desk research, monitoring activity and empirical research/workshops with children), and after having produced and disseminated to partners the Final Report on “The Status of Children’s Rights & Access to Justice in BiH”.
The responsibility for the general organization of the workshop and its implementation workshop belongs to EPLO and Vasa Prava. The coordination team for the implementation of workshop’s sessions was participated by the data collection team and the author of the Final Report.
Objectives:
The main objective of the workshop was to further acquaint the local stakeholders with the outcomes of the Research that had been conducted in the previous stage of the Project, as well as the recommendations drafted by the experts, the EU standards and best practices in the field - under the main objective of the Project, i.e. to support the competent actors in BiH towards the improvement of their capacities in the area of justice and security, especially with regard to the promotion and protection of children’s rights.
Within this context the main objective was analyzed into two main aims:
a) to raise awareness and enhance the perspectives for the capacity building of the participants
b) to have input towards the evaluation of the Research’s findings and Recommendations in the local context, so as to suggest ways for their implementation and further improvement in daily work practice
Target group – Participants:
In accordance to the workshop’s objective, representatives of the following agencies were targeted:
- NGOs activated in the field of children’s rights and protection
- Local Authorities responsible for children’s protection (esp. “Social Work Centers”)
- Judicial practitioners
- Social workers and representatives of children’s institutes
- Teachers and other educational stakeholders
Contents and Programme:
The workshop was based on the gaps and needs analysis presented in the Final Report and on the outcomes of the children’s workshops. Specifically, the subjects covered during the workshops focused on:
- Legislative framework regulating children’s rights and their protection
- Actual implementation of children’s rights
- Gap and needs analysis
- Perception of children raised during the children’s workshops
- Recommendations and EU best practices.
- Introductory presentation of the Project’s frame and objectives of the workshop, as well as interactive presentation of the Final Report “The Status of Children’s Rights & Access to Justice in BiH”
- Session 1: Bosnia and Herzegovina’s legal framework and policies regulating access to justice for vulnerable minors: evaluation with reference to international standards (including: Main gaps and shortcomings - Key areas: social protection; legal representation; guardianship; legal aid system -Case studies)
- Session 2: Implementation of regulation and enforcement mechanisms guaranteeing access to justice for vulnerable minors in Bosnia and Herzegovina: stakeholders experiences and views (including: Administration - coordination and cooperation among key actors - Human and material resources - Legal awareness - Case studies)
- Session 3: Formulation of recommendations for reform (Break-out sessions)
Methodological approach:
The methodology is based on a multi-discipline, multi- stakeholder/ horizontal approach,[1] that acknowledges:
a) the necessity to combine more approaches i.e. needs-claim, individual, human rights based approach, towards the safeguarding of children’s rights protection in the context of a certain case or group of cases
b) the children’s population overlap, as well as the interconnection of the individual case to wider issues, towards policy and legislative proposals in the social context
c) evaluation of bottom – up approach as an informing process
Accordingly to this, and in combination with the Recommendations of the Final Report, the following steps were designed:
- Establishing multi – stakeholders’ work groups so as to cover more discipline aspects when addressing issues related to children’s protection issues
- Combining theoretical knowledge and practical experience from different professional disciplines through the presentation of case studies where it is asked:
b. to define the claim(s) and to interconnect them with the legal and judicial protection of children in the wider socio-legal context
c. to suggest and evaluate possible solutions/(best) practices for the solving of the case
- Active participation of all participants
- Break – out discussion on the outcomes of the work groups
Main outcomes- Participants’ input:
Participants were in line with the Recommendations suggested in the Final Report, and went further by specifying the concept of Recommendations into specific core issues they deal with in their daily work on the field of children’s protection. As presented below:
Recommendations of the
Final Report / Issues – problems most outpointed by participants / Suggestions – proposals by participants
1.Children’s profile and needs: Combined approach for the identification / 1.1. Multi – regulations and laws leading to different
(discriminatory) treatment of children, depending on their local origin and dwelling
1.2. Additional discriminations against Roma children
1.3. Obstacles to uniform approach of childhood on legislative level due to Constitution restrictions, in combination with political and financial issues. / 1.1. Harmonization of the legal framework
1.2. Inclusion Strategy – uniform approach on Federal level
1.3. To initiate efforts towards the set of standards on Federal level, safeguarding the protection of children in all entities.
2.Legal protection and access to justice: Bridging the gap between provisions and implementation / 2.1.Limited capacity of Social Work Centers – lack of human resources: it is quite difficult to allocate financial resources
2.2. Inequality in social benefits (family allowance)
2.3. Inter-dependency of access to health care and school attendance / 2.1Training and Internships – students to support the function of the centers under a sustainable internship scheme, perhaps combined with the establishment of a volunteers’ network
2.2. Harmonization of the relevant laws towards a uniform approach
2.3. Universal health care for children
3.Raise legal awareness and participation of children: Strengthening the perspectives towards the implementation of children’s rights and access to justice / 3.1 Limited or total absence of the voice of children / 3.1 Include children’s input in the policy and legislative planning
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[1]Soulele D, (2013),”On behalf of or with children? – A combined child based approach towards the implementation of child law and access to justice” (under publication)