The impact on the lives of citizens in times of crisis – economic, social, political or otherwise – is always great. And if the crisis is a health crisis, like the one that has plagued the planet for two years now with the coronavirus pandemic, our lives are changing dramatically. New and unknown habits appear, new terminology “leads” our way of life and the consequences of the crisis are felt by the citizens, especially the children.
In this chapter of the pandemic in relation to children, the Commissioner for Child Protection, Despo Michailidou , focuses part of her annual report, pointing out that “in such times of crisis, the assessment of the impact on the rights of the child must be a precondition for the taking of any decision “.
The statements of Ms. Michailidou, during the delivery of the report to the President of the Republic, are indicative of the situation: The Commissioner spoke about “lost childhood, lost experiences, motivation for life, stress, phobias, insecurity, instability and disorganization of their lives” . He attributed the psychosocial effects to the prolonged isolation of children and abstention from school communities, while he made special reference to children with disabilities, who experienced social isolation, increased levels of stress in the family, aggression and fatigue.
Regarding the role of parents, he said that professional challenges or psychological and emotional effects on them, prevented them from exercising their parental care effectively.
“Children have other needs or are in a stage of development and it is obvious that special attention should be paid, which is why my Office focused mainly on actions and interventions aimed at protecting the mental and holistic health of the child population.” , said the Commissioner.
He emphasized the need for a child-centered policy, which would take into account the needs of children in decision-making, “in order to restore, as far as possible, the damage already done to children in the last two years and to prevent its impact in the future” , as he said.
During this period of the health crisis, and the measures taken by the authorities and inevitably had to be observed by the citizens, in order to control the spread of the COVID-19 virus, the Commissioner received piles of complaints concerning violations of the rights of the child. These complaints come from citizens, children and organizations.
Mask use: Other ways of protection should be sought
Regarding the use of masks in schools, the Commissioner was clear: She understands the objective difficulties involved in this measure, “especially when children are asked to apply it, in the context of the school environment and the weather conditions prevailing in Cyprus.” , however, stressed the need to protect public health. Points out that the implementation of the measure of use of a face mask by students and teachers “should be part of a general plan by the competent Ministry in relation to the measures to be taken, emphasizing in particular that this measure should not be applied horizontally “. And Other ways of protection should be sought which take into account the particularities of each child and / or group of children (eg children with disabilities) in order, above all, to ensure the Principle of the Child's Interest and the Principle of Non-Discrimination , points out the Commissioner for the Rights of the Child.
Distance learning
The Commissioner for Children called on the Ministry of Education to follow the specific instructions and directions of the Commissioner for Personal Data Protection in a way that balances the right to privacy and the right to the dignity of children. And this arose from the decision for distance education. In fact, in a letter to the competent minister, she asked specific questions regarding violations of children's rights: Use of a camera so that students / mothers at home can watch the lesson that takes place in the classroom, for example. He called on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to follow the specific instructions and directions of the Commissioner for Personal Data Protection in a way that balances the right to privacy and the right to the dignity of children.
Problem in the cooperation of Ministries of Health – Education for the Protocols
In her report, the Commissioner notes that in some cases, the Ministries of Education and Health did not cooperate as much as they should to comply with the Safety and Health Protocol for the Pancyprian Examinations and the participation of students / three who were positive for the coronavirus or showed symptoms during the tests.
From the answers received from the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Health, reasonable questions arose about the degree of their cooperation: The answers of the Ministry of Health do not refer to this Protocol but only to a joint meeting of officials of the two Ministries, nor a clear and transparent information on the degree of involvement of each co-competent Ministry, the Commissioner states in her report.
Inadequate living conditions in refugee reception centers
The Commissioner for Child Protection points out the need to protect the rights and health of refugees, migrants and stateless persons in the conditions of the pandemic and recommends the taking of all necessary preventive and protective measures provided for the protection of health in the two reception and hospitality centers of applicants. asylum, in Kofinou and Kokkinotrimithia, to control the spread of the virus.
The report notes that due to the pandemic and the restrictive measures taken to deal with it, the functioning of the public service and the state mechanism was significantly affected, as a result of which the services provided to the various groups of people served, including international protection refugees and migrants: “The access of international protection applicants to asylum application processes has been affected, thus affecting their access to material reception conditions (housing, necessary for survival). The access of asylum seekers and other recipients of benefits to the Department of Labor was affected. Two especially in the Center of Kokkinotrimithia “, the Commissioner states, among other things.
