On 13 June 2023, Deputy Ombudsman Dr Jože Ruparčič, responsible for children's rights at the institution of the Ombudsman, discussed the issue of violence against and among children with members of the Advocacy Council.
The Deputy Ombudsman began by emphasising that the Ombudsman pays particular attention to this issue as the safety of children is one of the key factors for the realization of all their other rights. "Violence against children and peer violence have an impact on children's mental health, on their school performance, on their integration into society, and if we do not pay sufficient attention to curbing it, the consequences can be severe," he said.
"In child advocacy, we are faced with particularly vulnerable children who witness their parents' divorce stories, which are often very painful and some also full of violence," he stressed, adding that there is a need to empower the whole of society to identify and act in a timely manner, in accordance with the protocols. Advocates can also contribute with their expertise and stance to reducing the hardships experienced by child victims of various forms of violence, he added.
He also recalled that advocates and all those who have been ensuring professional execution of advocacy for years have already discussed ways and means of action in cases of violence against children entering the advocacy process at the two-day consultation in October 2022 at Brdo pri Kranju. The final outcome of the consultation, in addition to the knowledge gained, was the development of a Protocol for dealing with perceived violence during advocacy.
Experts at the Advocacy Council have assessed that perceptions of violence have changed very slowly over the years. They agreed that it is necessary to work with parents to reduce violence, as many of the parents they meet in their advocacy work do not have the necessary educational competencies. Raising awareness about appropriate parenting practices should start before children are born, they argued. They considered it necessary to create a sense of security in society, which is not helped by messages to the public about the acquittal of those who have committed crimes. There are too many cases in Slovenia where decisions are not made in the best interests of the children, they added. They are committed to monitoring children's well-being because only credible analysis can help us tackle problems in the right way.
Deputy Ombudsman Ruparčič also reminded that the Ombudsman, together with the Koper Scientific Research Centre and primary schools in Ljubljana, is participating in the REBOOT NOW project - Preventing Gender-Based Violence in Schools, which is funded by the European Commission under the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme (CERV). We are also collaborating with the Centre for Social Informatics at the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ljubljana, on the international TRACeD project, which aims to address gender-based violence against girls and young women online.
