talk about the headlines for you the flight recorders are examined to gain a crucial insight into the last minutes of a plane which crashed in western siberia you were a crofter wasn't dion's before takeoff. un peace envoy kofi annan convinces a present us up on april tenth ceasefire as doubts grow up we have funded bubbles willingness to stick to their son about. plus risking it all and losing everything and growing number of italians into gambling to make their fortune in tough economic times. but next we talk to the deputy secretary general of the council of

europe discusses the painful issue of children's rights abuses in the row the state in protecting youngsters that's in spotlight coming up next. well that is true science technology innovation all the news developments from around russia we've got the future covered. hello again the war from to the ends of the shelves on. today my guest on

the program is more verbal taking. in the modern concept of human rights children held a very special place it is still unclear how the rights of the little while should be protected and if the states or whatever institution can't interfere in family relationships but most people look at currently doing kids have a right to a child even this understand it right is our friend so is it possible to secure a calm and saying childhood if not mostly for most children how can we protect them from being used as a bargaining chip and adult and think we'll discuss it with deputy secretary general of the council of europe more thinking. when it comes to children's rights violence is one of the most pressing issues council of europe says about one hundred fifty million european kids face some form of violence from simple smack at home to sexual harassment children born cross border

marriages or adopted to foreign homes often become victims too they might not face islands but if something goes wrong with the parents the kids become involved in judicial or even political intrigues protected. children's rights are something the council of europe has concentrated on lately its deputy secretary general has just started the rights protection program in russia. hello to the welcome to the show you know thank you very much for being with us i want to start with with a question about russia russia has recently created the position of a child rights ombudsman of ours here in the studio a couple of months ago how. do you think the creation of such a position is the step in the right direction did you think do you think is that was the right thing to do it is absolutely the right thing to do but it's only one step as you say because when you want to tackle the issue of children's rights and

in particular. deal with the issue of violence against children. creating an institution like an ombudsman is absolutely important in particular in the regions because the russian federation says so is so big and in particular when you provide for access by children to this. person institution but as i said it's only a step because if you really want to be effective in combating violence against children you need to think of other things stand creating institutions however important it is you need to think about legislation you but perhaps the most important thing of everything is to think about a culture of zero tolerance in respect of violence against children because violence is bytes in the russian society as it is in the society in europe as a whole the council of europe has a program called building

a europe for children can you can it also you know more about the good that's a very good very good slogan but what does it mean it's not just a slogan and i appreciate that you emphasize the word will because obviously that refers to the participation of children. because any strategy rich we want to design. to for it to protect children's rights must involve the children themselves they must have a say and that's why the with children is so important. the council of europe has developed such a strategy. as from two thousand and six on words because but because there's so much to do we we have to revise our priorities after years and actually just adopted for the coming three years a new strategy an action plan in which once again we emphasize the need to do everything we can to prevent and commit violence against children is the

particular emphasis on particular vulnerable children. we want to promote child friendly services like child friendly justice child friendly health care and we want to promote it once again the participation of the children don't vote which is a pretty formal frame why do you think they should have a say in how to build europe but isn't it a contradiction it's not because. the reality is that voting rights are normally granted to children through to human beings at the age of majority when they reach the age of eighteen but a lot of things happen in the children's work world before they reach that age and again particularly issue of violence against children and what happens to them if they're being abandoned. how they're being how they live their now how they're being treated by society this is something which happens from that from birth on

words i would say and as soon as children are able capable of the sermons and capable of contributing to a discussion on their rights and how they can be best protected they should be given opportunity to do so he kills all of europe wants. to burn corporal punishment of children. it is very important because it is first of all it's a very vital spread form of violence and it's medically frequently only a mild form of silence although it can of course lead to excesses but apart from leaving from traumatizing children leaving physical and psychological scars but it's important to realize that it is conveys a completely wrong message namely that conflict can be solved through violence and that it's a way to impose your view and that can have consequences also for the future both for the way parents deal with children but also how children. act amongst

themselves the council of europe a blockage. to burn. like. we haven't got a treaty on banning corporal punishment but we have. un convention on the rights of the child. which. contains a prohibition of each form of violence and that is an international commitment but most of all i think it is important for our member states to understand why it is important to ban corporal punishment in all settings in the schools. in the institutions but above all in the homes and i think we must make parents and everybody who is involved in children's education understand why it is important. many people's when russia will start to talk to him these three will one thing is

violence is reading your kids or just smoking which is a difference so do you do you make a distinguish between smoking or beating you up or you're against any any kind of blows at all even even i mean. yes yes i'm against even a little bit of call a little smack because this is your perception as an adult you don't know how it's perceived by the child and i think that is what matter of humiliation it's humiliating it's. even if it is only if it doesn't hurt yeah it's really hard saluting absolutely and as i said it can say it's a completely wrong message and some people especially in russia would and i'm sure they are telling you that this is a family matter it's a religious matter you know they even see this in the bible it says if you don't do it if you do smack your child you're a bad father something like that you know they found it in the bible so well let me say that of course prohibited prohibiting it in law gets

a very strong signal because that means that the the authorities condemn it. what that person all these question is the best interest of the child so we don't want children to be taken away from parents as a result of one or the other beating mistakes in the family place in the home we want we want children to be brought up without violence and because we want this to happen we have at the same time in parallel to this initiative developed a whole let's say package should package for parents for positive parent parenting because there are alternatives to the smacking i am talking about it's i mean i'm not against the state to try to avoid violence guns. at the same time i think we should. establish some some some limits of state violation into family affairs. i think. when it comes to

really serious issues human rights very fact that matters take place and and i'm not also referring to other forms of violence like sexual abuse of children the sense that this takes place within the walls of the family is no excuse at all on the contrary it means it means and. for the state to interfere interfere by way of legislation setting example early penalties for the offenders but above all to prevent this this phenomenon to occur this is exactly what we have developed in terms of strategy and legal tools to bitch about which i will talk in a moment we will start talking about rights our wall ways recall a case of a friend of mine who lives in canada and his daughter was about twelve something years old twelve thirteen i started doing the pursing through. the nose under leg from the bench or into the belly button so i'm sort of the father said you should stop it and. i don't like it and she said it's my body i can do whatever and one

would want the father said well the first was my body too. finally he forgot he was a canadian and he recalled that he was a rush of blood and you saw this matter every right but so right in this case the father or the girl isn't really her body and can cheat she can do whatever i think they're both right in the way they're both right. but i think it is important for children to be aware that they're dangerous. that their parents can play a very protective role so there's no it's not just like children do anything they like. this is happening but when it comes to violence. and especially if the violence is something which is being committed by the family members then you have really a clear role for the state because we happen to know that in terms of sexual abuse of children seventy to eighty five percent of these cases take place in

a context of people in whom they have trust in the parents and the. problem so should be as physical as i absolutely. do to sometimes have an impression that we may be opening the box office and. all those cases when when kids are silly parents when they make them. do their homework or read a book and they're watching television you know i try to bring them to where i'm not in favor of this is bringing to court and i think for a case comes to court there are whole series of institutions or intervene like social services and support for them for insists to assess whether it's necessary to pursue any matter of. which brings the child in conflict with a parent says more bootable kiki our deputy secretary general of the council of you probably will be back should we grant after a break so stay with us. there

hasn't been anything yet on t.v. . just to get the maximum political impact. and force source material is one hopes he journalism honest. we want to present. something else. if it makes commission dates. believe me oh just a one to two minutes is enough for anybody to go through my life and. you know more than fifty percent of the people who are if you have are not. you know liberal no duffer was writing. this snag for you know we execute our convicted capital murder

we have the highest execution rate in america we're not afraid to do it we do it well this becomes a point we just becomes. oh i have no hope. i will get a letter your dad is going to be executed next week then as appears scary money and use you know you can loose here money be appearing at the in a manner of me saying i say it's time to go. and i would lead them into the. death chamber of. commerce trade till after they were dating.

welcome back to spotlight i'm al green auburn just a reminder that my guest on the show today is their border book you know they're pretty sexy general of the council of europe we're talking about children about children's rights which actually are human rights i mean that's a little bit in the book but they are smaller and we want to make bigger yes the question as to what extent should we should and should they become equal to its ordinary you have a right that's a good question that's a very small there should not be smaller rights let's remember that yes well let's talk about a very serious matter about adoption which which sometimes a good news is the children grows greatly many many media reports they are saying about the increasing problems the adoptive children get from for foreign foster families especially in the united states including tremendous violence we we we we witnessed the deaths of children so what why are these cases less in europe in

foster families with russian children because because the laws are stricter on adoption legal then in the u.s. we have an exclusion abuse in the family rather logical family or. a large family created as a result of adoption takes place also in europe. we have very serious figures about abuse in the family. which show that we in all in all cases of adoption. as for general family life we have to be very alert about the interests of the child. i happen to know but i may be wrong and this in russian federation of older of the and by. and children in russian federation ninety five percent are actually social orphans they're not. one are or

both biological parents are still alive so i think the first thing to assert is whether it is possible to reintegrate these children into their original authentic families and we need a lot of support from that by the state both in terms of finance but also social social support. if that doesn't work. in fact adoption is a possibility i would personally favor a first international adoption precisely because i don't exclude one day that she still didn't can be reunited with her family. and run it comes to international adoption which i think should not be banned by definition we have to make sure that the agencies which are involved in the adoption process are accredited by the state and that there. they perform in a way that the risks are reduced at the other end of the tunnel that a child eventually will end up but all this can never be apparently the child

children can be safe from abuse whether it's in the united states but it's in russia but it's in france. it's a problem everywhere i think the reason i've heard that the reason why russian russian authorities could give their children for adoption abroad to countries with higher living standards because they believe for example for aggression in the holland from sample frogs he will be happier there than he will be in the russian affair with which i think is wrong it's a line i mean children does need to really use the living standard seems to love no i mean really i'm afraid that all this is based on something which i consider as the wrong approach this is the right of parents to a child whereas what you should be talking about is the right of a child to a family and i mean if you adopt that approach that means that you take the best interest of the child as a decisive factor this this is just and this is

a place yes this is where you have to be talking with your girlfriend for of the year because they're going to cross the border adoptions which have gone wrong keep over sharing russia's relations with the united states with france spotlights you know the media reports and. we made russia and the west she did. heise throughout all after our children say their lives had been sand back to russia alone by his adoptive family in america the russian foreign ministry said enough was enough it immediately called for a suspension of all adoptions by u.s. citizens our own story was the last straw in the series of child abuse cases over the last twenty years more than sixty thousand russian children were adopted by american one thousand nine hundred one fortunately most of these children are now or live in. was in new american fairness. however soon to murder children dozens harmed and hundreds who disappeared. which cannot be just

a lot to put an end to adoption related scandals russia and the west negotiated a bilateral agreement it took seven rounds of talks before the document was finally signed last summer by cindy lauper rove and hillary clinton but. as a result we have an agreement which is truly parents granting equal rights to both russia and the u.s. in security guarantees that adoptive parents are psychologically and mentally stable. however celebration of this mutual understanding didn't last in february the russian foreign ministry once again called for adoptions by u.s. citizens to be put on hold among the reasons behind moscow's indignation was a series of sentences for abusive adoptive parents which were considered too soft like in the case with monster of a god. the seven year old who received approximately eighty injuries and died in

a hospital in two thousand and nine last year a jury found his adoptive parents guilty of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced them to nineteen months in prison however they were released having already spent their time in detention awaiting trial. well i want to add something to what we just heard these sad stories that we heard is that children also. fall victim still when parents divorce there's varying different passports different gnashed are you there is part of governments try to protect each their own parents and the every government thinks that considers the child to be the citizen of one country and they say is this citizen of our country and children of victims and do you think that we should do something bad and passed some international law that would that we regulate is a passable. well i mean the hague convention which russian federation has not

ratified deals with the question of international adoption i think that when it comes to separation of the parents and divorce it is the responsibility of the judge in prison pronouncing of course separation to look into the matter of the child's best interests of the judge is opens all always a citizen of one of the two country as a judge should be objective and the best interests of the child should not be nationality related to this is mean and i don't see how you can lay there and it is down in an international treaty i think it is something which you must must if the responsibility and the authority to one additional authority to assess that. of course in europe we have the european court of human rights which ultimately can rule on compatibility of this issues of that kind or failure to decide with the rights of the child. but it should not be the ultimate rather matter remedied it

should be should be addressed properly domestically have a good question i want to ask you. about the strategy that we had with those children the children from. europe from from brussels that were willing skiing and recorded an awful lot. twenty two something children die while whole europe was mourning for four for for a couple of weeks four for two dozen children that were killed their acts and but every day hundreds of children around the world even us are dying because the tragic incident because of the condition of the wife is organized in a way that will make people die tomorrow and the day after tomorrow and nobody seems to cheer for that is a double standard is. it made me i makes me and it make me angry turn makes me very upset actually i was very upset by this accident on. not only because six of the

children. and i find it's a terrible tragedy for the family should but i did not react publicly because precisely of the reason which you're given every day children die as a result of. violence against children trafficking. eases diseases and there there's a so we we should really as adults. look at children as as not as our future children suffer today and we must do everything we can to prevent this from happening this is this is this is what the council of europe is designed has been run it developed this building the europe for children it's to give to make it a public responsibility of the authorities of all our member states to do everything to prevent this from happening but also to make every individual in society responsible these are the things you can do we got to prevent accidents and we will

in prevent things like you control your silence is the worst of the enemies when it comes to protecting children you must have the courage to speak up it's not easy but if you go to societies getting so hypocritical do that when somebody like a journalist start saying things like that you know an accident shut up what are you talking about i mean you have no heart but that's what they say but but i mean i'm very pleased that this interview today because it shows also your your social responsibility as a media and then what i want to say is well on this occasion i mean media have a very important responsibility and you don't think you are doing. is a program called the every thirty something years of one in five one file in front of the net the couple was about one in five is to complain against a sexual violence against children because our estimates have it van and every fifth child is subject to some kind of sexual abuse during childhood and so the one

in five pain is on the one hand to promote our and the ratification in our member states of the lanzarote a convention which is an international treaty which deals with this issue of sexual abuse. of children from exploitation from the point of view of prevention protection and prosecution of the criminals and partnerships and here i gan i come back to the need for the media to get involved private sector. when they can all everybody can contribute and media have an important role the second aspect of this campaign is the awareness raising thank you thank you very much for being with us and just a reminder that my guest on the show today was more of their good will kiki deputy secretary general of the council of europe and that's it for now from our spotlight will be back with more for his kind comments on what's going on in and outside russia until then they are teach and take care.

it.