July 19, 2007: Carel de Rooy met with young journalists from North Osetia
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© 2007 UNICEF/Bela Tsugaeva |
Carel de Rooy, UNICEF Representative in Russian Federation and Belarus, answered questions of more than 50 young journalists from “Erasik”, a UNICEF-supported North Osetian Foundation for Children’s Creativity Support, during a press-conference held in the House of Cinema in Vladikavkaz on 19 July. The Foundation has been working in North Osetia for eight years. Since the beginning of its activity more than 300 children of school age studied the profession of young journalist. 350 TV programmes for children were broadcasted through the local TV channels through the Foundation. Three pilot issues of the “Erasik” newspaper were published as well as the book of fairy-tales written by children. More than 20 graduates from the school of the young journalists grew into professionals.
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© 2007 UNICEF/Bela Tsugaeva |
Zarina Mamaeva, 17: How can children uphold their rights?
Carel de Rooy: There is a Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). We are now in the process of producing child-friendly copies of the CRC for two age groups – teenagers and younger children. Through those copies you will get all basic information on the child’s rights. The CRC was introduced in 1989 and, as of today, is adopted by 192 countries. Russia ratified it in 1990.
Besides this, there is a process whereby all countries, which have ratified the CRC, every five years, must submit the report to the Child’s Rights Committee in Geneva. Russia submitted its last report in September 2005 in Geneva. I was there when it happened. The Committee issued concluding remarks. These remarks show everything which, according to the Committee of the Rights of the Child, still have to be done in the Russian Federation to uphold children’s rights. It is public information and is available for anybody concerned.
On the top of that, there is another mechanism. It is Child Rights Ombudsperson. Ideally it should be very strong independent institution, which we have not yet in the North Caucasus, but we are gradually working on strengthening this opportunity. You should not forget that you have not only rights, you also have duties. Fortunately, you have a strong culture of respecting of elders, strong culture of discipline and duty and I think with a strong Osetian culture, it is relatively easy for you, children of North Osetia, to uphold your rights and to fulfill your duties.
Milana Tadeeva, 14: Mr. de Rooy, why are UNICEF supported children’s summer camps called ‘peace camps’?
Carel de Rooy: We started with the idea of peace camps after the Beslan tragedy. At the time UNICEF helped on four different things: we helped with health, we helped with education, we helped with psychosocial rehabilitation of children and now we help with peace and tolerance promotion amongst children in the North Caucasus. The summer camp is one component of the peace and tolerance promotion project. We started with the summer camps in 2005 and 2006 in Dagestan. In 2007 we decided to do it in four republics but five camps. The camp from Chechnya will be in Kabardino-Balkaria – so 2 camps in Kabardino- Balkaria, one camp in Ingushetia, one camp in North Osetia, and one camp in Dagestan. These are very good initiatives. Children really enjoy and cherish being together, learning about peace and tolerance and also living together for 10 very fruitful days.
There is other component also in peace and tolerance – the Mobile Trainers Groups, which give trainings on peace and tolerance at schools. In Osetia they have covered 25 schools, some 5 000 children from grade eight to eleven. They all have received materials and information about peace and tolerance.
There is also a component of Peace Clubs and the most active children in the summer camps are identified and supported and have opportunity to continue their work once they go back to their republics. Equipped with knowledge received in peace camps and enthusiasm they all are able to support and establish peace clubs in all of the republics. The clubs will have computers, a website, so children can maintain contacts, e-mail each other. This is a network of different things we do to promote peace and tolerance.
Angelina Farnieva, 15: The UNICEF supported centre BINONTÆ has been opened after the tragedy in Beslan in September 2004. Is the Centre only for children attacked by terrorist act or for all children who need psychosocial assistance?
Carel de Rooy: It is very difficult to draw a line. If you are a neighbor, who has been living next to the house who has four children, and two of which have suffered from tragedy, the neighbor can be also traumatized and that neighbor also needs support. People who need psychological support, who need physical therapy, who need support on the emotional level should be able to be served at BINONTÆ.
I have worked with different contexts, different children who needed psychological rehabilitation. My experience with that touches Colombia, El Salvador, Iraq and now here Beslan, Chechnya. I experienced that children will never forget the event which causes trauma - neither will adults. The objective of psychological rehabilitation is to help children to function normally in the society again, to be able to relate normally with their family, to relate normally with their friends, to relate normally with their teachers, to be productive in school. That’s the purpose of psychological rehabilitation.
Fatima Dzivaeva, 17: Who are those people who need UNICEF’s help?
Carel de Rooy: Basically, children in need – they need UNICEF’s help. We strongly believe that the societies which can give equal opportunities to all children become better, more efficient. UNICEF works through upholding of children’s rights to helping societies to move in the direction where every child gets the equal opportunity to maximize this potential. If we achieve that, we will have a much better world. Fortunately, we have good partners that give us support – non-governmental organizations, volunteers, governments structures.
Alana Ogoeva, 14: Does children’s journalism have a future?
Carel de Rooy: All children should have future, not only young journalists. I believe that journalism is important. I can give you examples from the country, where I come from. I was born in Holland, but grew up in Brasil. I saw the role of journalism in that country last twenty years. When I was 12 years old, which is probably the age many of you here, Brasil became a military dictatorship, That lasted for 22 years. Thereafter, that is the last twenty years there has been very-very free press. Thanks to journalists and the role they played and play today is amazingly important in building of the strong democratic society. I think that journalism play an important role in the society.
