| Mr President , I would like to begin by referring to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child , and to urge the European Union to accept that this should be far more than a paper commitment on our part , but should actually be a legal obligation - as it clearly is - to deliver civil , political , social , cultural and economic rights to our children. It is the most widely ratified international convention in history and carries with it very clear and unequivocal obligations which we should face up to.But of course wherever we look , we see that children all over the world are used , abused , exploited and ignored. Today UNICEF publishes its State of the World's Children report , which deals with child labour. 9 million children across the world die from causes which could very easily be eliminated with very inexpensive solutions , solutions that we in our part of the world have been using for half a century.So what we are asking for here is that we should have , not just the good intentions , but actually the political will , to deliver the goods to the children of Europe and the world. We need to shift resources to our children and also to shift our interest to the children in all our societies rich and poor.I should also like to refer to the Hague Convention , and to a particular case in my own constituency of Adam and Nathan , two little boys abducted by their Tunisian father , a national of a country which has not ratified the Hague Convention. As you said to me recently in an answer to my question , we have few options in the case of a country which has not ratified the Hague Convention. He treated them as if they were his property , he deceived them and he took them to a very bewildering situation in a country and a family which they can barely understand.I would like to ask you , Commissioner , what can be done in this case. What leverage are you able to use in this case. Tunisia is a recipient of large amounts of European Union aid , and you say in your answer to me that there are obligations under international law which you consider they should be respecting at this time. I would like to ask you whether any future discussions with Tunisia will include these international obligations , particularly the Hague Convention. And could you tell me , please , what words of encouragement I can give to a mother who in these few weeks before Christmas is heartbroken and longing to have her children , Adam and Nathan , home with her in South Wales where they belong.In any case , there is no practical problem , because the very sharp fall in the birth rate in Europe means that there are on average ten applications for adoption for every abandoned child | Herr Präsident , meine Damen und Herren. Das Anliegen des Berichtes Zimmermann über den Schutz der Minderjährigen ist es , einen möglichst einheitlichen Rechtsrahmen zu schaffen. Die Grundaussage dieses Berichts , nämlich einen besseren Schutz der Minderjährigen zu erreichen , ist voll zu unterstützen. Aber bei genauerer Analyse dieses Berichts gibt es doch verschiedene Punkte , die einer differenzierten Betrachtung bedürfen. Der beste Schutz , und darauf hat Frau Sellier bereits hingewiesen , besteht darin , daß Kinder in einer intakten Familie aufwachsen können. Sie ist die Keimzelle unserer Gesellschaft , aber dieser Umstand wird in keinem einzigen Punkt der Entschließung zu diesem Bericht erwähnt. Dies halte ich für ein großes Manko.Die beste Voraussetzung für den effektiven Schutz Minderjähriger ist und bleibt die Familie. Die Interessenlage von Kindern und Familien ist normalerweise - ich weiß , daß die Realität oft anders aussieht - gleichgerichtet. Daraus folgt , daß sich zunächst der Schutz auf die Familie selbst richten muß. Ihre Belange müssen untersucht werden. Dabei haben wir es aber mit vielen gesellschaftlichen Problemen zu tun , mit zunehmendem Egoismus , zunehmender struktureller Rücksichtslosigkeit. In Großstädten finden wir Stadtteile , in denen nur noch 10 % der Familien überhaupt Kinder haben. So ist es kein Wunder , daß das Bewußtsein für die Bedürfnisse der Kinder immer mehr zurückgeht.Erst in zweiter Linie soll man sich , wenn man an den Schutz Minderjähriger denkt , Gedanken über die Rechte machen. Die Rechte der Kinder sind vor allen Dingen in der UN - Kinderrechtskonvention formuliert |
