Children's rights to safety 'compromised' in EU

Children’s rights to safety in the EU are being compromised by inconsistency in adoption and implementation of evidence-based policies to reduce child intentional injury, says the European Child Safety Alliance.

Countries need to increase uptake of proven prevention policies in this area in order to protect Europe’s most vulnerable citizens and future society.  Child intentional injuries, which include maltreatment, peer violence and suicide, create negative, life-long impacts to children, families and society and thus need immediate and greater attention.

Child intentional injury is both a major public health issue and one of human rights. The UN has clearly stated that “no violence against children is justifiable; all violence against children is preventable”. (UN Committee on the Rights of the Child 2011)

Of the 35,000+ children and adolescents aged 0-19 years who die each year in the EU, approximately 24% or roughly 9,100 deaths are due to injuries. About a third of these deaths are classified as intentional or of undetermined intent.  Intentional injury deaths are but the tip of the iceberg and even here, where the best data exist, evidence suggests that maltreatment deaths coded as child homicide may reflect as little as 20-33% of actual cases. (World Health Organization, 2013)

“Violence against children must continue to receive critical attention, and we must strongly reiterate this, rather than cloaking the issue in silence,” said European Parliament Vice President  Isabelle Durant. “In addition to applying what we already know, we need more research and improved data systems, particularly for all types of non-fatal intentional injuries to children that includes information on the cost of violence against children and its prevention.”

Within the report are individual country policy profiles for each of the participating member states: Austria, Belgium (Flanders only), Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden and the United Kingdom (England and Scotland only).

• Newly released report: National Action to Address Child Intentional Injury (in English, French and German)

• Video messages of support: Isabelle Durant and European Network of Ombudspersons for Children Chairman Bernard de Vos (also available in French)
• National Action to Address Child Intentional Injury

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