Message by the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights on the occasion of the second European Day on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse

Ombudsman László Székely has called attention to the importance of preventing the sexual harassment, abuse and exploitation of children, of increasing their protection and providing help to the victims. According to the Commissioner, these continue to be among the most pressing tasks of child protection. In addition to deepening professional cooperation, child-friendly hearings in judicial procedures, based on the exemplary Barnahus model, should be introduced as soon as possible, and more attention should be paid to true and real sexual education of children.

November 18 has been proclaimed the first European day on the protection of children against sexual exploitation and sexual abuse. In this context, the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights has pointed out that no form of violence, including sexual harassment, committed against children may be justified or explained. However, violence against children can be prevented; its ways and means include showing trust, providing information, rendering assistance and paying attention. Hungary promulgated the Lanzarote Convention, adopted in 2007 under the aegis of the Council of Europe, stipulating several obligations, in August 2015. The Convention strives to provide equal protection to children, introducing a common set of criteria and definitions for European state parties. The Convention is aimed at observing the best interest of the child, ensuring professional cooperation, preventing sexual exploitation and abuse, protecting the child victims of sex crimes, bringing perpetrators to justice.

Sexual exploitation and abuse may take various forms in practice; however, their common feature is that they may cause irreparable damage to the mental and physical health of children, and the consequences will haunt them even in adulthood, causing former child victims to feel continuous pain and shame. Approximately every fifth child in Europe falls victim to some form of sexual exploitation and harassment. Moreover, according to the aggregated European data, in at least 70-80 percent of all cases the perpetrator is not an unknown pedophile, but someone known to the child, someone within the "circle of trust", i.e., in the family, among friends and relatives. It is a sad fact that no more than one-tenth of the sexual harassment cases come to light, the data are insufficient and latency is notoriously high. According to some estimates, even three hundred thousand Hungarian children may have come across some form of sexual harassment or abuse; however, proceedings have been conducted only in one thousand cases, and proving such crimes is extremely difficult.

That is why the Ombudsman keeps on promoting and deems extremely important the domestic introduction of Iceland's Barnahus model that is already proven and showing convincing results. The first state-of-the-art Hungarian Barnahus House has been opened in Szombathely this week, and another one is planned in Budapest. According to the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights, domestic legal regulations have to be revised and supplemented in order to enable Barnahus houses to function properly. A major advantage of the model is that, while serving the children's best interest and taking into account their age and special considerations, it helps avoiding the trauma resulting from repeated hearings – the professionals concerned may work, conduct interviews and provide crisis support to the child victims and their families in this complex institution together, in a child-friendly manner. The application of the Barnahus method may significantly increase the number of substantiated indictments in sexual harassment cases, contribute to the effectiveness of criminal proceedings and facilitate the perpetrators' punishment.

The Ombudsman has also pointed out that, from the aspect of prevention, proper sex education is crucial – it gives real answers to questions asked by 10-18 year olds in connection with their self-image, body image, relationships and sexuality, simultaneously helping the parents as well, since these issues are still plagued by reticence, taboos or serious misconceptions. According to the Commissioner, one cannot stress enough the importance of local, school or institutional projects and interactive programs aimed at children, e.g., UNICEF's Ébresztőóra (alarm clock) program, having been conducted successfully for years.