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Ministers' Deputies CM Documents  685 Meeting, 20 [-21] September 1999 6 Social and Economic questions
6.1 26th session of the Conference of European
Ministers responsible for Family Affairs Report of the Secretary General
CM(99)134 23 September 1999
1. The Conference of European Ministers responsible for Family Affairs, for which the Council of Europe has provided secretariat services since 1970 footnote 1 , held its 26th Session in Stockholm (Sweden) from 14 – 16 June 1999, at the invitation and under the presidency of Mrs Maj-Inger KLINGVALL, Swedish Minister for Social Security and Family Affairs. 2. The Conference was attended by representatives of 38 of the 41 member States of the Council of Europe. Twenty-one of those States were represented by a Minister or Secretary of State. Representatives of the Committee of Ministers, the Parliamentary Assembly, the Holy See, Canada, and Bosnia and Herzegovina also attended. 3. The list of the Heads of Delegation at the Conference is given in Appendix I. 4. The theme of the Conference was "Towards a child-friendly society". This was discussed under two sub-themes, which were each introduced by one of the ministers, with a reply from another minister, before discussion was thrown open for general debate. 5. The theme had been the subject of national replies to a questionnaire prepared by the liaison officers responsible for the Conference. The national replies, as well as a summary of them, are available from the Secretariat. 6. Mr Daniel TARSCHYS, Secretary General of the Council of Europe, opened the Conference. Mr Göran PERSSON, Prime Minister of Sweden, delivered a speech of welcome. Mrs Magdalena TOVORNIK, Ambassador of Slovenia to the Council of Europe, spoke on behalf of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe. 7. After the opening session, a group of children were able to express their ideas to the Ministers as to what they thought a child-friendly society would be. 8. At the beginning of the first working session, Mr Ivan NEYKOV, Bulgarian Minister of Labour and Social Policy, introduced the theme "What should the goals and priorities for families and children be?". Mrs Valgerd SVARSTAD HAUGLAND, Norwegian Minister for Family Affairs spoke in reply. 9. The second working session on "possibilities and obstacles on the road to reaching a child-friendly society" was introduced by Mr Theodore KOTSONIS, Greek Minister responsible for Family Affairs. Mr Dermot AHERN, Irish Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs spoke in reply. 10. This Conference had been planned to make a specific contribution to the Council of Europe’s Programme for Children, launched by the Committee of Ministers in May 1998. The Ministers concentrated many of their discussions therefore on their national priorities for families and children, emphasising the need for coherent and integrated family and child policies. Whilst the range of preoccupations expressed by governments covered a wide variety of situations, particular stress was laid on the role of education in promoting the essential values for building a child-friendly society. 11. Since the Conference took place just after the conflict in Kosovo had come to an end, many Ministers referred to their anxiety about the impact of this conflict on the children of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the neighbouring countries. 12. Among the measures proposed during the Conference, agreement was reached on the need for a broad family agenda, including a system of indicators for family policy. This should be accompanied by effective preventive policies including initiatives against juvenile delinquency, school dropout and truancy. The Ministers also set out the implications of promoting coherent and integrated family and child policies. 13. At the international level, Ministers asked for a follow-up mechanism to support the implementation of the Council of Europe Programme for Children. They wanted a network, including information and knowledge centres, to be established among member states. 14. The Ministers also welcomed the Council of Europe initiative taken to develop, in collaboration with UNICEF, an emergency training programme for professionals and volunteers dealing with children traumatised by the Kosovo crisis. 15. The Slovenian Minister responsible for Family Affairs invited the Ministers to meet for their 27th session in Bled, Slovenia, taking as theme the "Reconciliation of family and working life". 16. The final communiqué of the Conference appears in Appendix II.
APPENDIX I LIST OF MINISTERS AND HEADS OF DELEGATION ALBANIA
Mr Kadri RRAPI, Minister of Labour and Social Affairs ANDORRA Not represented AUSTRIA Ms Veronika HOLZER, Director General, Federal Ministry of the Environment, Youth and Family BELGIUM Mr Lieven VANDENBERGHE Administrateur Général de l'institution gouvernementale flamande 'Kind en Gezin' (Enfance et Famille) BULGARIA Mr Ivan NEYKOV Minister of Labour and Social Policy CROATIA Ms Štefanija BORTEK KNEŠAUREK, Head, State Office for the Protection of Family, Maternity and Youth CYPRUS Mr Andreas MOUSHOUTTAS, Minister of Labour and Social Insurance CZECH REPUBLIC Ms Bèla HEJNÁ, Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Affairs DENMARK Mr Brian NICHOLLS, Deputy Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Social Affairs REPUBLIC OF ESTONIA Ms Katrin SAKS, Minister FINLAND Ms Maija PERHO, Minister of Social Affairs and Health FRANCE M. Pierre-Louis REMY, Délégué interministériel à la Famille GEORGIA Not represented GERMANY Ms Gabriele CONEN, General Director, Bundesministerium für Familie, Senioren, Frauen und Jugend GREECE Mr Theodore Thr. KOTSONIS, Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare HUNGARY Dr. Péter HARRACH, Minister of Social and Family Affairs ICELAND Ms Sigridur Lilly BALDURSDOTTIR, Deputy Secretary General, Ministry of Social Affairs IRELAND Mr Dermot AHERN, Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs ITALY Mme Mirella BONCOMPAGNI, Dirigente Generale, Presidenzia del Consiglio, Ministry-Dip. Affari Sociali LATVIA Mr Viktors JAKSONS, Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Welfare LIECHTENSTEIN Mr Marcus BÜCHEL, Head of Department, Department of Social Services LITHUANIA Mr Alfredas NAZAROVAS, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Social Security and Labour LUXEMBOURG M. Michel NEYENS, Conseiller de Direction 1ère Classe, Ministère de la Famille MALTA Dr. Lawrence GONZI, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Social Policy MOLDOVA Not represented NETHERLANDS Mr Eddy ENGELSMAN, Director of Youth Policy, Ministry for Health, Welfare and Sport NORWAY Ms Valgerd SVARSTAD HAUGLAND, Minister of Children and Family Affairs POLAND Mr Ryszard CZARNY, Ambassador PORTUGAL Mme Joana DE BARROS BAPTISTA, Haute Commissaire pour l'Egalité et la Famille ROMANIA Ms Norica NICOLAI, Secretary of State, Ministry of Labour and Social Protection RUSSIAN FEDERATION Ms Stalina KAPOSTINA, Deputy Director General SAN MARINO Mrs Maria Lea PEDINI, Ambassador REPUBLIC OF SLOVAKIA Mr Peter MAGVAŠI, Minister of Labour, Social Affairs and Family REPUBLIC OF SLOVENIA Ms Helena KAMNAR, State Secretary for Family Affairs, Ministry of Labour, Family and Social Affairs SPAIN Mme Consuelo SÁNCHEZ NARANJO, Conseiller de suivi et évaluation des Programmes sociaux de la Direction Générale d'Action sociale du Mineur et de la Famille SWEDEN Ms Maj-Inger KLINGVALL, Minister for Social Security and Family Affairs SWITZERLAND Ms Ruth LÜTHI, Minister for Social Affairs and Health of the Canton of Fribourg "THE FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA" Ms Sofia TODOROVA, Ambassador TURKEY Mr Hasan GEMICI, Minister of State, Responsible for Family Affairs UKRAINE Ms Valentyna DOVZHENKO, Minister for Family and Youth UNITED KINGDOM Mr Hugh BAILEY, Minister for Social Security COMMITTEE OF MINISTERS OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE Ambassador Magdalena TOVORNIK, Permanent Representative of Slovenia to the Council of Europe PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE Ms Elena POPTODOROVA, Member of Bulgarian Parliament CONGRESS OF LOCAL AND REGIONAL AUTHORITIES OF EUROPE Not represented EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Not represented PERMANENT MISSION OF HOLY SEE Mons. Francisco GIL , Secretary of the Pontifical Council for the Family, Vatican City UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Not represented CANADA Mme Michèle JEAN, Conseillère spéciale auprès du Ministre canadien des Affaires étrangères JAPAN Not represented ARMENIA Not represented AZERBAIJAN Not represented BOSNIA and HERZEGOVINA Mr Marko ASANIN, Minister for Civil Affairs and Communications
**** COUNCIL OF EUROPE SECRETARIAT Mr Daniel TARSCHYS, Secretary General Mr Jean-Paul CHAUVET, Private Office of the Secretary General Mr Matthew BARR, Administrator, Secretariat of the Committee of Ministers Ms Gabriella BATTAINI-DRAGONI, Deputy Director of Social and Economic Affairs Ms Anna GILLETT, Principal Administrator, Health and Social Policy Division Mr Thomas KATTAU, Administrator, Health and Social Policy Division Ms Sheila PIDL, Secretary, Health and Social Policy Division Ms Florence MANSONS, Secretary, Health and Social Policy Division.
APPENDIX II FINAL COMMUNIQUE 1. At the invitation of the Minister responsible for Family Affairs of Sweden, the Ministers, or their representatives, responsible for Family Affairs of 38 States footnote 2 of the 41 member States of the Council of Europe, and representatives of the Committee of Ministers and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe as well as of the Holy See, Canada and Bosnia and Herzegovina met in Stockholm, Sweden from 14-16 June 1999 for the XXVIth Session of the Conference of European Ministers responsible for Family Affairs, devoted to the theme "Towards a Child-Friendly Society". 2. The Conference was opened by Mr Daniel TARSCHYS, Secretary General of the Council of Europe. Mr Göran PERSSON, Prime Minister of Sweden, delivered a speech of welcome. Mrs Maj-Inger KLINGVALL, Swedish Minister for Family Affairs was President of the Conference. 3. After the opening session, a group of children were able to express their ideas to the Ministers as to what they thought a child-friendly society would be. 4. The Conference theme was discussed under two sub-themes: "What should the goals and priorities for families and children be?" introduced by Mr Ivan NEYKOV, Bulgarian Minister of Labour and Social Policy, with a discussant who was Mrs Valgerd SVARSTAD HAUGLAND, Norwegian Minister for Family Affairs; "Possibilities and obstacles on the road to reaching a child-friendly society" introduced by Theodore KOTSONIS, Greek Minister responsible for Family Affairs with as discussant Mr Dermot AHERN, Irish Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs.
* * * Context 5. The Conference was planned to form an integral part of the Council of Europe’s Programme for Children, launched by the Committee of Ministers in May 1998 footnote 3 . This Programme for Children was an initiative of the Second Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe, which took place in Strasbourg in October 1997. 6. The tragic events of 1999 in the Balkans have created a situation of much suffering for hundreds of thousands of children and their families from Kosovo and also other parts of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. It was inevitable for the attention of the Ministers responsible for Family Affairs in Council of Europe Member States to be turned towards the actions required to alleviate the suffering, not only immediately but also in the medium term. Further references to this discussion are made elsewhere in this text. Background 7. 1999 is a year of important milestones for the values of human rights and democracy in Europe. Fifty years ago the Council of Europe was founded, and to this day its greatest achievement is the European Convention on Human Rights, together with the single Court which upholds those rights. Ten years ago the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) was opened for signature and ratification, in the same year, 1989, that the wind of political change swept through central and eastern Europe. There are now forty-one member States in the Council of Europe, all of whom have ratified the UNCRC. 8. The theme of the XXVIth Session of the Conference of European Ministers responsible for Family Affairs, "Towards a child-friendly society" is closely linked to the aims of the Programme for Children, which are "to promote the interests of children, in partnership with the international and non-governmental organisations concerned". Among the issues to be included in this Programme was the question of "the place of the family in society", and the Conference was certainly a forum for discussing this. 9. Conditions for families vary widely across Europe, depending on social, cultural, and economic factors that are distinctive from country to country and from region to region. However, all countries attach a fundamental importance to the family as being "the natural environment for the growth and wellbeing of all its members and particularly children" footnote 4 . In order to enable this to become a reality, certain conditions need to be fulfilled. These include, first, the freedom of choice of a couple in its decision to have a child. Secondly, there is the society that facilitates responsible and joyful parenthood, and thirdly, help and support to be provided to the family in times of crises. 10. The starting point for the preparation of the Conference was to ask the positive question "what are the factors that create a good childhood for all children?" Within this context, these factors for a good childhood include the following:
11. The above factors cover three different perspectives affecting families: that of the public sector, that of civil society, and that of the child as the subject of rights. The discussions of the Ministers responsible for Family Affairs centred on these three perspectives. Issues
12. It emerged from the national reports prepared for the Conference that over the last ten years many countries have set up bodies responsible for co-ordinating and/or administering family policies and policies for children. The questions of inter-sectoral and inter-ministerial co-operation remain significant issues for all member States. 13 The principles of a coherent and integrated family policy are set out in Recommendation No. R (94) 14 of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe to member States on coherent and integrated family policies. The objective is that the needs of the families and children should be taken into account throughout public policies having impact on their daily lives. The public policies concern in particular social security, working life, education, environment, consumer interests, culture, housing, traffic, mass media, tourism. Co-operation with and between regional and local authorities as well as the non-governmental sector is very important for this objective to be achieved. 14. It is important that there be mainstreaming of family and children’s perspectives throughout national policies. Whilst respecting cultural diversity, governments should ensure that universal and basic principles for respecting children’s rights include the following: the banning of all forms of discrimination and exploitation; providing adequate support for parents in their parental role bringing up their children; adequate health and education provision; reducing social and geographical inequalities and recognising the rights and competencies of children according to their age. 15. As most decisions concerning children are made at the local level, it is most important that decision-makers at that level, as well as people working directly with children, have sound knowledge of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, and of the relevant Council of Europe legal instruments. Governments should strive to ensure that such knowledge be available at the local level.
16. Changes in social, cultural, demographic and economic structures over the last twenty years have radically altered the context in which parents bring up children in European countries today. One result of these changes is the high and continuously rising level of education of young women in all European countries combined with a wish for more autonomous life-choices. Most women would like to have a choice of whether to continue working after their child is born. In many families two incomes are necessary to attain a decent standard of living. It is the general living expenses for a family in a country that is decisive whether a family can live on one or two incomes. 17. Gender equality is a prerequisite for the parents’ shared responsibility for their children. Although great strides have been made towards equality in the work-place, the pace of change has been significantly slower in the allocation of the domestic tasks associated with child-rearing in the family. In many families, the result can be that the father works very long hours in his place of employment, whilst the mother has in effect two jobs, her paid employment and housework, caring for children and, in some cases, caring for other dependent family members. This situation can mean that neither parent can devote enough time to their children – especially the kind of time that really responds to the child’s basic needs for intimacy, security and sharing. 18. The possibilities for modifying this situation depend on attitudes in civil society as much as on government action. Whilst some countries make arrangements for both fathers and mothers to be able to take substantial amounts of parental leave, most countries have introduced the right to parental leave. However, conditions at work, the surrounding culture and the attitudes of the social partners influence significantly the extent of use of such provisions. Similarly, child day care arrangements vary enormously across Europe. Where there are very limited public facilities, families are confronted with serious difficulties in juggling working hours and budgets.
19. The importance of democratic values has if anything increased in the last years, as witnessed by what happens when there is a failure to respect them. Learning democratic values is a process that starts, for the child, almost unconsciously, in the family. This is where sharing and negotiating, inter-dependence and mutuality should be the order of the day. Children’s views should be listened to when developing a child-friendly society. By encouraging this simple form of participation, one can enable children to contribute actively to the world beyond the family – school, leisure activities, the local community. The central topics referred to at the Conference were: I. The situation of displaced families from Kosovo 20. The Ministers expressed much preoccupation about the situation of displaced families from Kosovo. It was felt to be a shared concern, insofar that most European countries have given a haven to displaced persons, and that the problems arising out of the violent uprooting of so many children from their familiar setting were likely to be similar whatever the haven reached. Whilst the vocation of the Council of Europe is not that of the humanitarian organisations, it would be for the Council of Europe to provide a context within which some of the difficulties could be tackled. At the same time the Ministers expressed their anxiety about the impact of conflict on the children of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the neighbouring countries. II. The implications of the UNCRC for a child-friendly society 21. The framework of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child provided an important guideline for the Ministers describing the objectives to be achieved in creating a child-friendly society. The first aim of government must be to pursue an effective child protection policy. In situations of great social and economic difficulty, for instance, priority will be given to dealing with crime, juvenile delinquency, child prostitution, child labour and drug abuse. Ministers agreed however that this aim must be accompanied by the effective pursuit of the other main aspects of the Convention. These are, on the one hand, the adequate provision of resources for the prevention of the above-mentioned evils, and on the other hand the promotion of the concepts around the effective democratic participation of children in decisions concerning them, in a manner appropriate to their age and capacity. Major changes in the attitudes of adults and authorities are a prerequisite for fulfilling the principle of the best interests of a child, especially in situations where, within the family, the interests of the child and the parents are conflicting. III. National priorities for governments 22. The considerable variations in national situations across the whole of Europe means that within the broad agreement over the role of the family in relation to children, governments have different priorities when it comes to working towards a child-friendly society. In order to achieve such a society, this leads to Ministers putting a different emphasis on the following themes, according to their own country’s possibilities. They indicate the variety of preoccupations expressed by governments:
23. There was general agreement that education plays a key role in promoting the essential values for building a child-friendly society. Educational systems can equip children with the knowledge and skills necessary to reach their full potential. In this context, the principal aims of education should be to prepare for democratic citizenship, and to facilitate social inclusion. Policy reactions and proposals 24. Ministers agreed on the need for a broad family agenda to meet the challenges preventing the realisation of a child-friendly society. This agenda might include a system of indicators for family policy, such as the infrastructure, road safety, child-friendly housing as well as health, education and leisure time facilities. Measurable indicators might include paid parental leave and unpaid leave of absence, day care facilities and family-friendly work-places, as well as the share of the GDP for child-related activities. At national level, instruments for routinely auditing the impact of policy on families and children may also be useful. Ministers also considered that benchmarking can be a useful tool to enable governments to make and assess progress, particularly in adverse circumstances. 25. However, Ministers felt that this positive agenda should go hand in hand with effective preventive policies, as early as possible, including parental support, initiatives against juvenile delinquency, school dropout and truancy, as well as fighting violence in the family and child abuse and supporting parental education. 26. Ministers agreed that an important goal of child policies is to break the inter-generational cycle of social exclusion and poverty. 27. Ministers were also aware that much still remained to be done for parents in particular and society in general for the care of children with special needs, whether with physical or mental disabilities, or with other problems of social integration (abandoned and marginalised children for instance). 28. Ministers emphasised the continued importance they attached to participation. Policy makers should encourage initiatives which emphasise participation as a sharing of rights and responsibilities, where the child is recognised as a subject of rights, and where there is a coherent development envisaged from the child as primarily being a member of its family, to its integration into the wider community. 29. Ministers took note that several member States of the Council of Europe have abolished corporal punishment of children by their parents. They were informed of experiences showing that abolishing corporal punishment reduces violence and does not result in increased interventions into families. 30. Ministers noted that much research into questions concerning families and children does not have adequate data available for examining these questions from the perspective of a child-friendly society. 31. However, the main role that Ministers could play in working towards a child-friendly society would be in the promotion of coherent and integrated family and child policies. This would imply:
32. Other issues that Ministers wanted to promote included :
International Co-operation 33. Ministers expressed the need for a follow-up mechanism to further the effective implementation of the Council of Europe Programme for Children. A network including information and knowledge centres should be established among Member States. 34. The Ministers drew attention to the need to assist the central and eastern European countries in their efforts to build up child-friendly societies. 35. The Ministers highlighted the importance of youth mobility for the development of pan-European relations, and encouraged Council of Europe member States to overcome existing obstacles to such mobility. 36. The Ministers welcomed the initiative taken by the Council of Europe to develop, together with UNICEF, an emergency training programme for professionals and volunteers dealing with children traumatised by the Kosovo crisis. The programme is intended to have a strong impact on efforts towards reconciliation and integration in the region. * * * 37. Finally, the Ministers expressed their gratitude to the Swedish Government for the excellent organisation of the Conference and for the hospitality offered to them. They accepted with gratitude the invitation of the Slovenian Minister responsible for Family Affairs to hold the XXVIIth Session of the Conference in Bled. The proposed theme was "Reconciliation of family and working life." 1. The first session of the Conference took place on 10 September 1959 in Vienna 2. Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, "The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia", Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom 3. The Council of Europe Programme for Children was approved by the Ministers’ Deputies at their 634th meeting, 3-5 June 1998 4. from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child |