Slovenia adopts a declaration on the creation of a Children’s House for child victims of sexual abuse
Jan 20, 2019
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Representatives of Slovenian authorities have signed and adopted the Declaration on the creation of a Barnahus (Children’s House) for child victims of sexual abuse in Slovenia.

The declaration was signed by the Slovenian Minister of Justice Andreja Katič; Minister of Family, Labour, Social Affairs and Equal opportunities Ksenija Klampfer; State Secretary of the Ministry of the Interior Natalija Kovač Jereb; State Secretary of the Ministry of Health Pia Vračko; the State Prosecutor General Drago Šketa; the Deputy Director General of the Police Directorate Jože Senica, and Mateja Končina Peternelj, the Supreme Court Judge.

On signing and adopting this Declaration, Slovenia has joined the club of the Council of Europe member states stepping out of the shadows, bringing the reality of children being sexually abused into the light and offering them a safety net.

In the Declaration, the parties have stated their commitment to a coordinated investigation of cases where children may have been victims of sexual abuse; to the provision of the least traumatic and disruptive investigative measures; to the coordination of medical and mental health interventions, as well as to the development of a child-friendly setting where interviews, treatment and other services may take place for such children.

The parties have agreed to support the creation, development, implementation and operation of a Children’s House.

For more information on the above, please reference the Council of Europe.

The project closing event included a panel discussion featuring representatives from the Council of Europe, the European Commission, and other guests, including Mr Bragi Guðbrandsson, the founder of the Icelandic Barnahus, Ms Olivia Lind Haldorsson, the author of the Barnahus Quality Standards and members of the Inter-departmental working group for the implementation of the Barnahus project. The representatives of the National Focal Point and Programme Operator for the programme Enhancing Human Capital attended the event as well. The programme identifies the Barnahus project as a pre-defined project. For more information, please reference the EEA and Norway Grants 2014-2021

National Guidelines defining the organisational and operational framework of the first Children’s House in Slovenia, as well as a Roadmap for the establishment, operation and evaluation of a Barnahus in Slovenia were developed during the period of February to October 2018 under the joint EU-Council of Europe project “Barnahus/Children’s House”. The joint EU-Council of Europe project was co-funded by the European Union via the Structural Reform Support Programme and implemented by the Council of Europe in close collaboration with the Ministry of Justice of Slovenia and the European Commission’s Structural Reform Support Service.

The Slovenian Ministry of Justice is a founding member of the PROMISE Barnahus Network.

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