An extraordinary joint meeting of the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs takes place to discuss the risk of illegal adoption of Ukrainian children from institutional care. The EP Coordinator on Children's Rights VP Ewa Kopacz addresses the MEPs on the legal and social policy aspects of adoption and the need to ensure international and European legal norms. Extract with Theoni KOUFONIKOLAKOU, Aaron GREENBERG, Anna KRAWCZAK, Katarina IVANKOVIC KNEZEVIC

Brussels

exchange of views

Committee on Employment and Social Affairs

troubles in Ukraine (T)

Committee on Legal Affairs

rights of the child (T)

children's rights (T)

KOPACZ, Ewa (EPP, PL)

PÎSLARU, Dragoş (Renew, RO)

VÁZQUEZ LÁZARA, Adrián (EPP, ES)

GREENBERG, Aaron

KOUFONIKOLAKOU, Theoni

IVANKOVIC KNEŽEVIC, Katarina

KRAWCZAK, Anna

The risk of illegal adoption concerning Ukrainian children from institutional care fleeing from war: extracts from the exchange of views - JURI and EMPL Committees

SOUNDBITE (English), Adri&#225;n V&#193;ZQUEZ L&#193;ZARA (Renew, ES), Welcome to today joining committee meeting with employment and JURI committees on this change of views on risk of illegal adoption of Ukrainian children from institutional care fleeing from war

SOUNDBITE (English), Drago&#351; P&#206;SLARU (Renew, RO), We are leaving right now a major humanitarian crisis with a horrible war and an act of aggression which took away the life of many people and children aspiring to have a normal life in times of peace and democracy

SOUNDBITE (English), Drago&#351; P&#206;SLARU (Renew, RO), It's really important to protect vulnerable children from the danger they might encounter while running away from war and along with violence, exploitation, trafficking and abduction. The risk of illegal adoption is also a major issue, and evacuation should be made with the involvement of competent authorities to guarantees safety, and once arrived in the EU that these children should be provided with safety and adult responsibility, social protection, access to decent housing, to have psychological care and mental health support and education after school activities

SOUNDBITE (English), Theoni KOUFONIKOLAKOU, Chairperson of the European Network of the PE731.500v02-00 2/2 OJ\PE731.500v02-00EN.rtf EN Ombudspersons for Children (ENOC), Deputy Ombudswoman for Children&#8217;s Rights in Greece; Perspective of the Child Ombudsmen in neighbouring countries , Because of the lack of coordination between the states and agencies and the lack of a compulsory uniform registration mechanism at the borders and reception countries, that is depriving us of essential data regarding children at risk of trafficking, exploitation and other dangers

SOUNDBITE (English), Theoni KOUFONIKOLAKOU, Chairperson of the European Network of the PE731.500v02-00 2/2 OJ\PE731.500v02-00EN.rtf EN Ombudspersons for Children (ENOC), Deputy Ombudswoman for Children&#8217;s Rights in Greece; Perspective of the Child Ombudsmen in neighbouring countries, the Russian Federation is currently developing amendments to its legislation in order to accelerate, to speed up, the procedure of adoptions of children from the temporarily occupied territories. ENOC reminds all states that Article 21 of UNTAC stipulates that intercountry adoption may be considered as an alternative means of child's care only if a child cannot be placed in a foster or adoptive family or cannot, in any suitable maner, be cared for in the child's country of origin

SOUNDBITE (English), Theoni KOUFONIKOLAKOU, Chairperson of the European Network of the PE731.500v02-00 2/2 OJ\PE731.500v02-00EN.rtf EN Ombudspersons for Children (ENOC), Deputy Ombudswoman for Children&#8217;s Rights in Greece; Perspective of the Child Ombudsmen in neighboring countries , ENOC fully endorses the recommendation included in the European Parliament's resolution for the protection of children fleeing war and urges member states to halt child adoptions to avoid separation of children from their parents and families against their best interests

SOUNDBITE (English), Aaron GREENBERG, Senior Regional Advisor for Europe and Central Asia, Child Protection at UNICEF on perspective of the international organisation operating in both Ukraine and neighbouring States, including implementation of the Child Guarantee , In line with the Ukrainian government suspension of intercountry adoption, we urge receiving states, international bodies and humanitarian agencies to adopt a harmonised approach and call for a moratorium on intercountry adoptions from Ukraine

SOUNDBITE (English), Aaron GREENBERG, Senior Regional Advisor for Europe and Central Asia, Child Protection at UNICEF on perspective of the international organisation operating in both Ukraine and neighbouring States, including implementation of the Child Guarantee , Children separated from their parents during a humanitarian emergency cannot be assumed to be orphans until the fate of a child's parents or other close relatives can be verified

SOUNDBITE (English), Aaron GREENBERG, Senior Regional Advisor for Europe and Central Asia, Child Protection at UNICEF on perspective of the international organisation operating in both Ukraine and neighbouring States, including implementation of the Child Guarantee , These children should be in national child protection systems in the countries they are currently residing, not in ad hoc arrangements and privately organised care

SOUNDBITE (English), Aaron GREENBERG, Senior Regional Advisor for Europe and Central Asia, Child Protection at UNICEF on perspective of the international organisation operating in both Ukraine and neighbouring States, including implementation of the Child Guarantee , We are calling also for governments to consider extraordinary steps, including issuing very public messages about the requirements of anyone who has arrived to a country in Europe or any other country with an evacuated child or an unaccompanied child to register with national authorities immediately as their legal obligation

SOUNDBITE (Romanian), Anna KRAWCZAK, Empowering Children Foundation, Interdisciplinary Team on Childhood Research, Warsaw University on situation in Poland in view of legal and social policy issues , please have the courage to stand by the children who are under three years old and who should always be taken care of by foster families and never institutionalised. Yes, let's register those children, let's register those families. Let's provide cultural trainings to local family and through local foster families. Let's monitor the temporary nature of this care. But we need to see that those children are people with our rights and not just a property of a country that needs to be returned

SOUNDBITE (English), Katarina IVANKOVIC KNEZEVIC, Director, European Commission/DG EMPL on the implementation of the Child Guarantee and the ESF+, Some member states are establishing multidisciplinary teams to coordinated by the national governments in order to reflect on all the different aspects relevant to children. Some member states are appointing so-called special commissioners or special bodies, which are nominated to coordinate procedures specifically on unaccompanied migrants