Conference organized by FICE Romania
On November 16th, 2017 FICE International participated in the opening session of the conference organized by FICE Romania with the support of the National Authority for Children Rights Protection and Adoption and other local authorities that showed their full support.
The conference took place in the context of 19 days of activism (November 1-19) against abuse and violence and represents another event in the series of events that directly contribute to the wellbeing of children, their proper development and protection against any type of violence.
Even though the president of FICE International, Mr. Hermann Radler, was not able to participate in person he assured that FICE International’s voice will be heard during this very important conference, through his Counselor Mrs. Crina Hristodorof.
By 2020, Romania pledged to close more than 180 traditional residential institutions and thus to reintegrate one third of the institutionalized children into a family environment. In this respect, many private, Romanian and foreign organizations have endeavored to create sustainable policies and programs to help the Romanian State achieve this goal.
In this sense, we believe that a centralized policy will be necessary, with the setting of objectives, but especially clear ways of intervention by the State in this field. Private aid, especially financial, is good only to the beneficiaries of these changes, to the children themselves, but not to the relevant state policy.
Many foreign volunteers, as well as organizations from outside the country, give a helping hand to these changes. However, this support lacks local, cultural and social character. Their contribution is of particular importance, but it must be adapted to the real capacity of the beneficiaries to adopt it and bring it closer to it, in order to get the most out of it.
Numerous projects are being created in this field in Romania. The participants propose ideas, know-how, specialized training, exchange of experience, and even financial support, often total. However, trying to discuss the concept of bureaucracy, the State Institutions which should give their approval for their implementation delay it, motivating various inconsistencies in theoretical policies, never implemented by itself, without a holistic analysis of the proposed problem, all centered on budget expenditure as small as possible, if not non-existent. The state is thus demonstrating its controlling power, but the main losers are again the children.
How can this change? By establishing a general social policy.
The attitude of society towards this theme, the options for educational change of this attitude, the involvement of the state apparatus in these approaches, and the private organizations must be involved in the implementation of these policies.
We need the organization, structure and collective organization of all these ideas, which both FICE International and the other organizations involved and present at this Conference support, and which are the essence of their existence.
We are confident that this conference has made a special contribution to the transformation of systems that directly contribute to the well-being of children and their protection against all forms of abuse, violence and discrimination. And, the intention and motivation to achieve this state of affairs surely has been our message at the end of the day!