Down Syndrome International has developed new guidelines for specialists to educate learners with Down syndrome. Information in this regard is released by Georgian Down Syndrome Association. “Our association is a member of the international organization and we are pleased to have the opportunity to contribute to development of guidelines”, - is stated in the information, - “it should be noted that this manual is going to be the first guidebook, created on the basis of international experience, which combines best practices of various countries”. Read more…  Source:The website of the organization in a social network

Within the framework of a social campaign “This Country Is Yours”, the Civil Society Institute has started public meetings with young people in regions of Georgia... At meetings, attended by popular people, youngsters are informed about civil society, civic values and activities of civil society organizations; participants of meetings are going to receive an almanac, which is prepared within the framework of the campaign and brings together thoughts of the best sons of Georgia in regard to freedom, justice and democracy, as well as physical maps of the world, Europe, region and Georgia, including important information printed on them, promotional products of the campaign. There will also be conducted an award ceremony for winners of a youth competition of the “This Country Is Yours” campaign at public meetings. This competition was carried out all over the country and about 150 teams of senior schoolchildren participated in it. Winners – schoolchildren and their curator teachers - who were identified by a jury, consisting of teachers and representatives of civil society organizations, are going to be given notebooks as a gift. The first public meeting and the first award ceremony of winners were held today, in Gori. Until August 15, the team of the Civil Society Institute will conduct 15 more such meetings in Shida Kartli, Kakheti, Samtskhe-Javakheti, Kvemo Kartli, Mtskheta-Mtianeti, Racha-Lechkhumi-Kvemo Svaneti, Imereti, Adjara, Guria and Samegrelo. The purpose of the “This Country Is Yours” social campaign is to facilitate enhancement of civil society in Georgia and increase awareness of civil society organizations; to convey values and functions of civil society organizations, as well as the essence of their activities to population properly and demonstrate the importance of civic activism. The campaign is carried out within the framework of the “Civil Society Sustainability Initiative” project. The “Civil Society Sustainability Initiative” project is implemented by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS) in collaboration with the Civil Society Institute (CSI), the Center for Training Consultancy (CTC), the Center for Strategic Research and Development of Georgia (CSRDG) and the Education Development and Employment Center (EDEC). The project is funded by the European Union and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.

Tbilisi. On July 13, there was held an online presentation of the project – “Youth volunteering in response to the COVID 19 pandemic in Georgia”. The large-scale volunteer project is implemented by a non-governmental organization “Helping Hand” with the support of the United Nations International Children’s Fund UNICEF Georgia.  “At the online presentation, those interested in the project, as well as adolescents and young people, willing to participate in it, met with: Ghassan Khalil, Representative of the United Nations International Children’s Fund in Georgia; Nina Ferencic, a Regional Office of the United Nations International Children’s Fund for Europe and Central Asia, Senior Adviser on HIV/AIDS and Young People’s Health and Development; Revaz Charkviani - Head of Youth Agency Tinatin Meskhi - Executive Director of “Helping Hand”, a non-governmental organization. The project consists of several stages and at the initial stage is going to bring together more than 150 volunteers across the country. They will acquire professional experience and knowledge, develop necessary skills, make new friends and, what’s the most important, manage to plan useful volunteer activities in their communities and help others. The youthvolunteering.ge platform, created within the framework of the project, will enable all adolescents and young people living in Georgia to engage in volunteering activities and receive consultations from both local and international experts in regard to volunteering issues”, - is stated on the website of the organization in a social network.  Read more…  Source: The website of the organization in a social network

Tbilisi. The undersigned organizations would like to respond to the statement of H.E. Hubert Knirsch, the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Georgia, posted on the embassy’s official Facebook page on June 25. The statement was in response to the Georgian NGOs’ critical assessment of Ms. Sopio Kiladze’s nomination for the membership to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC). Ms. Kiladze is the member of the Parliament of Georgia. We believe that the state-nominated candidate in Georgia vastly lacks personal and professional integrity and is notorious for her openly confrontational attitude to the civil society that is critical of her public statements and work. There have been myriad of well-documented instances of Ms. Kiladze’s verbal abuse of human rights defenders and activists, homophobic and discriminatory public statements, public display of selective approaches to human rights protection, particularly with regard to the LGBTQI community and children. This has been the common practice of the candidate to such an extent that the civil society had to resort to the various forms of open protest on several occasions[i]. Various international and local organizations and the media have reported these facts. We would, therefore, like to underline that the statement made by the NGOs is not an attack of a personal nature, but the candid assessment of the facts that disqualify the nominated candidate from taking the CRC membership. It is not only desirable, but also the duty of the civil society organizations to call out such a lack of integrity, selective application of human rights by the candidate and disregard of the procedures by the nominating state. Read more… Source: phrgeorgia.wordpress.com

Tbilisi. The Georgian Center for Psychosocial and Medical Rehabilitation of Torture Victims – GCRT expresses its concern in regard to a story broadcasted through the air of “Mtavari Channel”. The story was about a porn trafficking of minors from 6 to 16 years of age.  “It is categorically unacceptable to spread photo and video material with nude, erotic content about children through the mass media, regardless of whether their faces are covered or not. This action is contrary to the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse. Hiding faces of children cannot prevent the risk of their identification by people who are personally familiar with juveniles involved in this process. Besides, the risk of retraumatization is high - nobody knows how strong feelings viewing this material will cause in adolescents who have experienced violence against themselves. It should also be noted that by publicizing these shots through the television, we practically leave photo and video material about children in the Internet for ever and victims will be able to see them even years later”, - is stated on the website of the organization.  Read more… Source: gcrt.ge

Tbilisi. Civil society organizations release the statement on the possible election of Sofio Kiladze as a member to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC). “We, the undersigned organizations, underline that the state ignored the UN recommended selection procedure when selecting the candidate for the CRC membership and nominated Ms. Sopio Kiladze who does not represent for strong belief and respect for equality and human rights. Ms. Kiladze during her tenure as the Chair of the Human Rights and Civil Integration Committee has on numerous occasions demonstrated homophobic attitudes and selectiveness in supporting human rights, especially the rights of minority groups. We, the signatory organizations believe that the parties casting their votes should be aware of the civil society position before making a voting decision”, is noted in the statement. Read more… Source: phrgeorgia.wordpress.com

Tbilisi. Children and adolescents have been greatly affected by the COVID-19 global pandemic. UNICEF is particularly concerned about the impact on those that have inequitable access to basic services and resources. “Children living in overcrowded households or in inadequate conditions, like lacking hand-washing and other hygiene facilities, are particularly vulnerable to rapid COVID-19 transmission. According to UNICEF’s Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey, 29,800 children in Georgia have no handwashing facility with water and soap in the household. This means they are exposed to a greater risk of COVID-19 infection. All children should continue to learn during the ongoing crisis and be able to safely return to school. Children who are already marginalized by lack of access to digital tools and internet connectivity, favourable home learning environments and parental support, risk falling further behind”, is noted in the statement. Read more… Source: www.unicef.org

Tbilisi. Human Rights Education and Monitoring Center (EMC) demands protection of children from gambling industry. “Engagement of children in gambling, along with the high rate of child poverty and gaps in the education system, remains a serious challenge that increases the risk of chronic poverty and psychosocial problems. To ensure a safe environment and healthy development for minors, EMC calls on the Government of Georgia to enact strict gambling regulation mechanisms as soon as possible and prevent engagement of minors in gambling”. Read more… Source: emc.org.ge

Tbilisi. From today, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Georgia joins the global 15-day campaign with hashtags #LearningAtHome and #HaveFunAtHome. Within the framework of the initiative, the organization is going to offer parents of children of preschool age one easy-to-perform activity daily, which will facilitate mental and physical development of their children. Read more…  Source: The website of the organization in a social network

Tbilisi. March 16th, at 14:00, Chris Davenport, Press Attaché of the US Embassy in Georgia, will read a story about a little penguin to you. “While schools are closed in Georgia, we, at the US Embassy, would like to help children continue their education. From 14:00 on weekdays, an American diplomat will read his favorite story and talk to you in English through the Facebook live. This is an excellent opportunity to practice your English and learn more about the United States”, - is stated on the website of the US Embassy in a social network. Read more…  Source: The website of the Embassy in a social network

Tbilisi. The Public Defender of Georgia published a special report on the protection of procedural rights of juvenile defendants, witnesses and victims in the area of criminal justice.  The project was carried out on the basis of the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the Public Defender’s Office of Georgia and the Initiative for the Rehabilitation of Vulnerable Groups (non-commercial legal entity), with the financial support of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.  The purpose of the project was to evaluate, by observing trials, the quality of protection of the rights of children in conflict with the law and juvenile witnesses/victims during court hearings. Trials were monitored from July to December 2019 in three major cities, namely in the City Courts of Tbilisi, Kutaisi and Rustavi.  Read more…   Source: http://ombudsman.ge

On December 18, 2019, in New York, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution, which obliges all member states to close orphanages immediately.  According to the resolution, states should ensure return of children to biological families, however, if it is impossible, children should only be provided with services close to the family environment.  Read more… Source: https://phrgeorgia.wordpress.com

Samegrelo. Today, on February 25 at association "Atinati" a seminar was held about "Reproductive Health". "During the seminar, youth had opportunity to get information about: What does reproductive health mean and why is it important to discuss about it and educate young people; STI - sexually transmitted infections and its types; STI complications and etc." Read more… Source: Social network

Kakheti. “Improving health and educational development possibilities for disadvantaged mothers and children” is the title of the project through which socially disadvantaged babies in Kakheti received their gift sets. This project was also implemented by the EU-funded Kakheti Regional Development Foundation. In 2018, a total of 60 beneficiaries have been supported in Akhmeta, Gurjaani and Telavi municipalities. “The EU has been financing this project since 2016. The partner organisations are the “Innovations and Reforms Centre” and “Europe Justice and Human Rights International Justice Institute”. The main objective of this project is to help women and children. 60 gift packages have been handed out; we have only two more to deliver. This year’s supply is almost complete, but the project will continue next year and 60 gift packages will be handed out again. The first criterion for receiving this support is that the family has to be disadvantaged. Some families may not have this status, but based on the family conditions, they can [still] benefit from this,” - explains Tamara Bekauri, Director of Kakheti Regional Development Foundation. She also says that, in addition to the gift sets, the EU funded training courses where mothers received both interesting and essential information about how to care for their babies. Read more… Source: https://eeas.europa.eu

Tbilisi. On February 14, 2020, the Public Defender of Georgia was informed about the illegal deprivation of liberty of a girl and an attempted forced marriage in the city of Marneuli. ‘The case has once again clearly shown the challenges relating to the protection of and assistance to minor victims of violence in Georgia. The observation carried out by the Public Defender and her representatives on the ground showed that the local law enforcement agency is not free of stereotypical attitudes, which is an essential hindrance to its effective functioning. This is particularly noteworthy for the protection of the rights situation of girls and women of ethnic minorities’, - is noted in the statement of the Public Defender of Georgia. Read more…  Source: http://ombudsman.ge

Imereti. Local Democracy Agency Georgia met with youth in Tskaltubo and Khoni Municipalities to discuss the importance of civic engagement and volunteering for young people in Georgia. The youth group was recently formed as part of the “Civil Society Development Initiative” project (also known as the Regional Hub project). The participants also got acquainted with the specifics of the work of the new volunteer portal, Time Bank. Read more… Source: Social network

Tbilisi. The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA) publishes a blog post: Proper representation of interests of children is not still ensured. “The complainant requested at the national level to urge the court to take into consideration the desire of her minor nieces and designate the residence of their aunt as their place of residence. Social workers were engaged into the trial stage as representatives of the children. In the final decision, national courts assigned the children to their father. However, courts and social workers took the decision without taking into consideration best interests of the children and their desire to live with their aunt”, - is stated on the website of the organization. Read more… Source: gyla.ge

Adjara. On 11-12 February, Georgia Red Cross Society with partnership of Ministry of Education, Science, Culture And Sport of Georgia and collage “Black Sea“ is conducting profession orientation workshop in Batumi for the youth representatives. “During these meetings, youth will be introduced to the needs of the labour market in the region, as well as the education opportunities available in the country / region. This will help young people to choose the right profession and plan the future accordingly. The participants of the meeting also have the opportunity to get familiarize with the system of Vocational colleges. Meetings will be held twice in a month for the youth of Senaki, Zugdidi and Khelvachauri / Batumi Municipalities“. Read more… Source: Social network page

Tbilisi. The Public Defender of Georgia shares a statement on Baghdati Municipality Tragedy.  ‘Unfortunately, child poverty and inadequate living standards have remained unresolved problems for years, which in some cases endanger the health and life of children. The child protection and social system fails to protect children from extreme poverty. The programmes offered by the State to families living in poverty are not oriented to outcome, individual needs or timely prevention; therefore, the socio-economic situation of such families basically remain the same over the years. Under the current social policy, it is problematic to satisfy even the basic needs of children living in poor families’, - is mentioned in the statement  Read more…  Source: http://ombudsman.ge

Kvemo Kartli. The Youth Bank has one of the most active committees in the Marneuli district. Both committee members and the authors of projects, i.e., young persons who turn ideas into projects, are quite active, and, in a joint effort with the committee, they work to benefit their local communities. This process is supported by Europe Foundation within the framework of its Youth Integration Program. This year, youth in the Marneuli district set a precedent for future projects to follow – they built a greenhouse that will generate income for the Maradisi village school district. Read more…  Source: http://www.epfound.ge

Tbilisi. The organization “Partnership for Human Rights” presents a handbook – Justice and the rights of the child. The handbook has been developed within the framework of a project “Access to Justice for Children”, implemented with the support of the United Nations Children's Fund and within the framework of an EU funded project “Enhancing Access to Justice and Development of a Child-friendly Justice System in Georgia”. Read more… Source: https://phrgeorgia.wordpress.com

Tbilisi. Human Rights Education and Monitoring Center (EMC) releases a statement in regard to death of Luka Siradze.  “This tragic case once again reveals systemic challenges that exist at state agencies. Educational and law enforcement agencies have not managed to identify individual needs of adolescents and introduce supporting social and psychological assistance approaches that are tailored to those needs. This case highlights malfunction of education, justice and social support systems as well as weakness of coordination mechanisms among them and methods of mutual empowerment. Obviously, in these circumstances objectives of the “Juvenile Justice Code”, the main principle of which is protection of best interests of a child in the process of justice, remain unachieved. At the same time, the state pays insufficient attention to development of a suicide prevention strategy in general and it implementation”, - is noted in the statement.  Read more… Source: https://emc.org.ge