Round table

Strengthening the protection of children and victims of gender-based violence, in the context of refugee flows in Romania

UNHCR – Council of Europe

Bucharest, 22 November 2023

Opening the roundtable, the discussion revolved around the significant insights unveiled in the Report by the Special Representative of the Secretary General on Migration and Refugees (SRSG)  from the fact-finding mission to Romania in December 2022. The roundtable, specifically delved into key recommendations concerning gender-based violence and child protection, particularly focusing on refugees of all nationalities within Romania. Mr. Necula, State Secretary and Chief Police Inspector at the Ministry of Internal Affairs underscored Romania's active role in establishing an emergency transit center for refugees in partnership with UNHCR and ongoing support to Ukraine. He also underlined the milestone Inter-ministerial Joint Order issues in 2022 on entry, registration, transit, residence and protection of the rights of unaccompanied children from armed conflict areas in Ukraine and stressed the importance of adopting a balanced approach to address both legal and irregular migration challenges. Mr. Pirvu, Deputy General Inspector and Police Quaestor, General Inspectorate for Immigration (GII), highlighted GII’s role in providing Temporary Protection measures in collaboration with civil society actors and international organizations. Dr. Raed Arafat, State Secretary and Chief of the Department for Emergency Situations at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, outlined legislative changes implemented in 2023, specifically related to the protection of human trafficking victims, expressing appreciation for the thorough preparation of the report.

Ms. Leyla Kayacik, Special Representative of the Secretary General of the Council of Europe on Migration and Refugees stressed the evolving nature of challenges and the need for long-term solutions, praising the efficiency of registration centers and coordination systems. She highlighted the importance of developing a systematic vulnerability assessment and referral procedure, improving legal professionals' knowledge, and addressing the shortage of guardians. Ms. Kayacik expressed gratitude for the hospitality extended by Romanian authorities. Mr. Pablo Zapata, Representative of UNHCR Romania, acknowledged persisting issues outlined in the SRSG report and highlighted the need to continue working on inclusion of refugees into national systems in a moment of shift towards a longer-term refugee response, assessing the impact of the ongoing crisis and the need to continue strengthening the Romanian national systems to include refugees. He emphasized the continuous nature of challenges and the progress made over the years in handling refugee and migrant arrivals.

During the morning session, Valentin Nicolescu, Lawyer from the Registry of the European Court of Human Rights, provided an insightful presentation on the ECtHR' case law, focusing on legal standards related to refugee and migrabt children's vulnerabilities and rights and highlighting the impact of lack of safeguards, such as the absence of legal representantives, inadequate information about procedures, or limited access to legal support. In this regard, he emphasized the significance of Articles 3 (prohibition of torture), Article 8 (right to respect for private and family life, home and correspondence) ECHR, and the crucial role of Rule 39 interim measure. As such, Mr. Nicolescu highlighted the necessity of accurate age assessments, citing cases like Rahimi v. Greece and Darboe and Camara v. Italy, When discussing Article 3, he pointed out that the living conditions of asylum seekers must reach a certain level of severity to fall under the prohibition of inhumane treatment as presented in  M.S.S. v. Belgium and Greece . Mr. Nicolescu also elaborated on the principle of the presumption of minority rights and the rights of unaccompanied children under Article 3, which obligates states to identify unaccompanied children and ensure their placement in adequate accommodation. Finally,  he highlighted the critical need for adequate living conditions for vulnerable individuals as emphasized in R.R. and Others v. Hungary.

Laura Fragiacomo, serving as the Child Protection Emergency Coordinator for UNICEF Romania, and moderator of the first panel on «protecting refigee children», highlighted the organization's strategic approach towards aiding refugee children, including unaccompanied children. Emphasizing collaborative efforts with the government, United Nations, civil society, and the Council of Europe, she stressed the importance of integrating these children into Romania's educational system and ensuring access to mental health and psychosocial support. UNICEF's inclusive strategy, benefiting not only to Ukrainian refugees but all vulnerable children in Romania, includes enhancing the justice system for child sexual exploitation survivors and improving social service support.

Mr. Nicolae Gabriel Gorunescu, Undersecretary of State and Vice President of the National Authority for the Protection of the Rights of the Child and Adoption in Romania, outlined the country's response to the Ukrainian refugee crisis, focusing on emergency actions and systems for managing the influx of refugees, especially unaccompanied minors and families, with a special mention to the Emergency Ordinance 20/2022 to establish support measures and humanitarian assistance. Collaborative efforts with UNICEF and UNHCR have been crucial, including the implementation of the 'KidsUkraine' App, which was developed exclusively for the integrated management of the situation of children entering Romania without a parent or legal guardian and who were in need of accommodation. In collaboration with UNICEF, the authorities are using Primero, which was designed for registration and monitoring of all Ukrainian children in the country. Romania has registered 33,000 Ukrainian children, ensuring their access to education, healthcare, and social services, with a strong emphasis on protective measures against abuse, exploitation, and violence. Despite the challenges in balancing immediate interventions with long-term integration plans, including education and child protection, Romania has shown resilience and adaptability in providing essential support to refugees during this humanitarian crisis.

Mr. Pedro Munoz Alonso, Community-Based Protection Officer at UNHCR Romania, discussed the protection of unaccompanied and separated children displaced by the conflict in Ukraine, focusing on UN and UNHCR standards. He detailed three main areas: demographics and risks of these children, UNHCR's guiding frameworks, and their practical application in programs. Over 7,000 unaccompanied and separated children have been registered, with 48.8% intending to stay in Romania and 50.5% transiting, including 42 unaccompanied children who came with no adult presence to the country. Alonso highlighted the legal frameworks, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Refugee Convention, and emphasized the collaboration between UNHCR and UNICEF in protecting refugee children, by notably citing the joint advocacy agenda for action by UNHCR and UNICEF, as well as UNHCR’s position on voluntary returns of children from institutionalized cared to Ukraine, emphasizing the importance of ensuring safe, voluntary returns and prioritizing the child's best interest, which involves the alignment with best interest determination procedures. Lastly, he mentioned safeguards like employing qualified professionals and assigning legal representatives to protect the children's rights.

Ms. Zaruhi Gasparyan, the Head of Co-operation Unit at the Children's Rights Division of the Council of Europe (CoE), dedicated her session to CoE standards relevant to the protection of refugee children, with a specific focus on reception and effective guardianship. At the heart of CoE’s work is the Council of Europe Strategy for the Rights of the Child, which is updated every six years to reflect the changing dynamics and requirements in child protection in order to provide guidance to CoE’s Member States in integrating the standards and recommendations into their national policies. Ms. Gasparyan outlined the three main strategic objectives relevant for asylum-seeking and refugee children: children’s rights in crisis and emergency situations, child-friendly justice, equal opportunities and social inclusion. Furthermore, she presented the main recommendations on guardianship and age assessment and mentioned the development of a handbook and a checklist to protect children in the context of migration from sexual abuse.

Ms. Daniela Zaharia Manescu, principal lawyer at the Daniela Zaharia Manescu Law Firm and consultant to Terre des hommes Romania, discussed the Romanian legal framework and practical approach to handling unaccompanied children, including asylum seekers, beneficiaries of international protection and temporary protection. Having underlined the importance of legal representatives, Ms. Manescu also stressed how fundamental it is to cooperate with all stakeholders and specialists involved, such as psychologists, interpreters, public officers and NGO representatives. Furthermore, she elaborated on the recent improvements in the Romanian legislation, emphasizing the many principles from EU and international law that have been implemented and the good practices associated with legal and practical aspects of managing unaccompanied children in Romania. Among the challenges identified by Ms. Manescu are vocational training for all professionals, assessing immediate needs and planning for the long term.

Ms. Delphine Leneutre, Legal Associate at the UNHCR Representation to the European Instititions in Strasbourg and moderator of the second panel on «preventing and protecting victims of gender based violence in refugee contexts”, underlined the excellent cooperation between the UNHCR Representation in Strasbourg and the CoE , the SRSG’s work has been particularly synergetic and complementary to UNHCR’s protection advocacy. She emphasised that as we move into a more protracted situation moving from an emergency response, it is crucial now that pathways to sustainable and long-term solutions to address GBV are available.   

Ms. Sabrina Wittmann[A1][A2][A3], from the Violence against Women Division of the Secretariat of CoE’s Istanbul Convention monitoring mechanism (GREVIO), presented the Baseline Evaluation Report on Romania published in 2022 which contains an in depth analysis of the implementation of chapter 7 of the Istanbul Convention, regarding asylum and migrant women. The three main provisions highlighted by Ms. Wittmann, articles 59, 60 and 60 para. 3, focus on: granting migrant women depending on their spouse an independent residence status, ensuring that gender-based violence is recognised as a form of persecution giving rise to a complementary protection, developing gender-sensitive reception and asylum procedures. Although GREVIO observed good practices in the Romanian asylum system, such as gender-sensitive procedures, it also identified some improvements to be implemented in the area of training for professionals, cooperation between stakeholders, funding and interpretation.

Ms. Carmen Nicolescu, Senior Advisor, National Agency for Equal Opportunities Between Men and Women (ANES) made a presentation on the the national system in law and practice and challenges encountered. The national system ensures the coordination and provides  methodological guidance of the activities of the General Directorates of Social Assistance And Child Protection and of the Public Social Assistance Services regarding the observance of the legal provisions on prevention and combating  domestic violence. Furthermore, it elaborates the minimum quality standards, methodological norms and working procedures for services in the field of preventing and combating domestic violence and violence against women and for the aggressors. Lastly, the national system elaborates minimum quality standards for the case management (victims /agressor) as well as minimum cost standards for social services. The social services in place to prevent and combat GBV include  the following structures in all counties: emergency centers, recovery centers, safe houses, centers for preventing and combating domestic violence, centers for information and awareness raising, counselling centers for perpetrators in addition to a national helpline.

Mr. Alexander Seger, Head of the Cybercrime division of the CoE, discussed the application of the Budapest Convention tools in investigating various crimes, including Gender-Based Violence (GBV). The convention's first protocol addresses Xenophobia and racism via computer systems, while the 2nd protocol focuses on enhanced cooperation and the disclosure of electronic evidence. The Budapest Convention extends beyond the Council of Europe's member states and aligns with standards in other conventions like Istanbul and Lanzarote Conventions. The cybercrime division conducted a mapping study on cyberviolence, drawing inspiration from the Istanbul Convention for its definition. He highlighted several tools offered by the Convention and its protocols, ensuring data protection, showcasing advancements in international cooperation and sensitive information safeguarding. The session concluded with a pertinent question on adapting the existing framework for a more effective implementation of the Istanbul Convention.

Ms. Konstantina Loupeidou, UNHCR's PSEA Inter-Agency Coordination Officer in Romania, delved into the nuanced challenges surrounding gender-based violence (GBV) within the ongoing refugee crisis. In the context of its work in Romania, an EU member state with a dispersed refugee population, predominantly composed of women and children, UNHCR primarily focused in supporting the government of Romania and in building the capacity of all relevant stateholders on GBV and PSEA, with emphasis on frontline service providers. In addition to its direct implementation GBV activities and its partnership with a national woman-led NGO, Sensiblu Foundation, UNHCR co-leads the  GBV sub-working group and the Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse Network, fostering relations between UN sister agencies, large NGOs and smaller associations. Noteworthy is the UN ONE in action approach followed, with very close collaboration among the UN sister agencies and important joint achievements, such as the co-organisation and the co-facilitation of substantial capacity buidling activities. The strategy of the organisation is to promote societal change on gender perceptions as a prerequisite for the improvement of the quality of services available to GBV survivors. In this sense the refugee response is viewed as an opportunity to  support the national structures relating to GBV prevention, risk mitigation and response, thus contributing to social cohesion.

Ms. Cristina Horia, President of the Sensiblu Foundation, discussed their efforts addressing Gender-Based Violence (GBV) among Ukrainian refugee women. The foundation provides crucial services and certified GBV training programs. Ms. Horia highlighted the significant consequences of GBV, including psychological and economic impacts. Economic vulnerabilities were highlighted, emphasizing the importance of employment for financial independence. Challenges stemming from displacement, family separation, language barriers, and societal prejudices were also addressed. Single parents, particularly middle-aged women, face complexities in securing employment while balancing childcare responsibilities. Women reported various challenges, from aggression to threats, both in Romania and Ukraine. Support groups play a crucial role in providing a safe space, although some women resist therapeutic processes due to a strong desire to return to Ukraine. Ms. Horia emphasized the need for community integration and assistance in finding employment aligned with qualifications for these refugee women.

During the final discussion, participants shared their remarks and questions. The exchanges primarily revolved around the necessity to target the aggressor, particularly on a legal level, while also emphasizing the importance of respecting the victim's choices. Participants also discussed the need to involve healthcare professionals more extensively in the referral pathway.

One of the interventions in the discussion came from Ms Carmen Niculescu to clarify that ANES has made a series of efforts towards legislative changes, including the formation of a task group for amending Law 217 on the Prevention and combating domestic violence. Currently, they are making proposals, but their actions are constrained by the victim's right to file a complaint and to continue the protection order, as well as by the reconciliation with the aggressor (a cycle of violence where a victim may return up to 9 times before realizing the need to leave the abusive relationship). It's not feasible to both regulate and impose interventions. Within ANES's jurisdiction, they are in the process of developping secondary legislation.

Furthermore, Ms Anet Nangozi, Gender Based Violence in Emergencies (GBViE) Consultant for the World Health Organization, underlined that  healthcare providers are often the primary point of contact, and sometimes the sole point of contact for individuals experiencing gender-based violence (GBV). They should offer information and empower individuals to decide when they are ready to report and they should be equipped and trained to do so. Therefore the role of WHO is crucial towards ensuring that our health system is adequately prepared to support and receive GBV survivors. Ms Nangozi saluted the excellent Inter-Agency collaboration with regards to GBV, highlighting the importance of co-organizing and co-facilitating capacity building activitites, as the Clinical Management or Rape Training of Trainers co-organised by WHO, ANES and other UN agencies.

Conclusions:

The Special Representative acknowledged that while the challenges outlined in the report persist, Romanian authorities are actively engaged in addressing them. She also mentioned that the Council of Europe (CoE) is prepared to offer targeted support for the effective implementation of measures, aligning with the Action Plan on protecting vulnerable persons in the context of migration. Expressing gratitude, Ms. Kayacik thanked the UNHCR for their excellent cooperation and complementarity, also acknowledging the participants for their engagement in the event.

In the concluding remarks, Mr. Zapata praised the ‘resilience’ of the Romanian authorities and highlighted the on-going transition from an emergency response to a longer-term approach, extending support not only to individuals from Ukraine but also encompassing all vulnerable persons, including migrants and refugees within Romanian society. In this shift, it is important that all actors concerned start envisioning a ‘route-based’ approach, aiming at ensuring the provision of meaningful protection to all persons on the move.

Furthermore, Romania has adopted new legislation regulating the role of representatives for unaccompanied underage children, aiming to enhance practices in dealing with this vulnerable category. However, challenges in knowledge and implementation persist. The Special Representative also highlighted the issue of enforceability, indicating the need for sustained efforts to ensure that protective measures are effectively implemented. Addressing the gaps in knowledge, there was a call for vocational training for lawyers and educators to provide tailored support for vulnerable populations. The meeting emphasized the need to include refugees in all services, recognizing that, despite being in an EU country with well-established capacities, structures, and institutions, refugees are not solely reliant on traditional humanitarian actors but are actively incorporated into government-provided services. In summary, the concluding remarks reflect a comprehensive and collaborative effort to address ongoing challenges, with a focus on long-term solutions, legislative enhancements, and inclusive support mechanisms for vulnerable populations.