tomaszdechovskymep

[tomaszdechovskymep]

Loyalty cannot be the right reason to give anyone a leading position

One of the reasons Communism was not successful economically was the planned economy. Bureaucrats in the capital decided at their desk how much wheat to grow in which season and with which fertiliser, to give just one example. They knew little about farming, but were loyal to the party and had a deep understanding of communist structures. The product of their work necessarily had to be below par. The promise of our free, democratic and capitalist societies is an easy vertical social vertical ascension for all its members, irrespective of their social background, sex, race, party affiliation or religion. Everyone is supposed to be solely judged by his or her objective qualifications and ability to work well and hard. 

It is no secret that we only partially succeeded in this mission. White men are overall still ahead of everyone else. Children born into upper-class families have higher chances to succeed professionally than working-class children. The more we remove barriers of vertical ascension, the more innovative, cohesive and successful our societies become. The success of the microcosm Silicon Valley is just one of many examples for this.

The European Institutions are an interesting microcosm of their own:

On the one hand, they attract some of the most talented, bright and motivated and I am repeatedly positively astounded by the intelligence and wide horizon of many of the people I encounter in the European Parliament and other EU institutions on a daily basis. On the other hand, the bureaucracy and safety many of the employees enjoy creates boredom and suffocates initiative and entrepreneurship. Additionally, nepotism is widely spread. There has not been a single Parliament President, who has not tried to use his term in office, in order to see those loyal to him climb to high and strategically important places inside the European Parliament hierarchy. President Schulz has been an especially negative example in this concern. Often qualifications and experience solely come second or even third in the chronology of importance, when scanning candidates for new positions.

As vice-coordinator for the EPP Group in the Budget Control Committee, I listened long and hard to many arguments made for and against the fast ascension of Martin Selmayr to Secretary General of the European Commission and must say that I come to the conclusion that I oppose it by principle. I do not doubt Mr. Selmayr’s brilliance or ability to do a good job as Secretary General. I rather principally oppose the way he achieved that goal. The most often repeated argument has been ‘loyalty’ and loyalty cannot be the right reason to give anyone a leading position anywhere. We are sending a bad message and strengthen the bad impression many people already have of our honourable institutions.

[tomaszdechovskymep]

Everything you wanted to know about Norwegian CPS Barnevernet and you were afraid to ask

The children of the state, a new documentary about Barnevernet by Czech television, gives the public response to virtually everything you needed to know about Barnevernet and you were afraid to ask. The director Ivana Pauerova-Miloševič does not press on the viewer, she tries to keep her distance, and draws attention also to comparable failures in the Czech child protection service (CPS), especially the excessive use of institutional care for toddlers. But she leaves no doubt that there is something wrong with the Norwegian system and it would be a mistake to overlook these problems.

In spite of all the frightening snatching cases, the documentary attempts to explain the Norwegian approach to the Czech public. The path to misfortune is often paved with good intentions, and this documentary clearly shows how this statement applies to the Norwegian CPS „barnevernet“ 100 percent. The whole movie confirms virtually everything I have been saying for more than three years.

 The vast difference between Norway and the Czech Republic

Whenever there is a discussion about Barnevernet, some important numbers should be mentioned, which are stated in the documentary too. Probably everyone will be interested in the numbers of snatchings. In Norway, according to sources in the document, 3,000 cases of removal are reported per year. By comparison, the Czech Republic has a bit more than that but is two times bigger than Norway. In total, Barnevernet receives up to 70,000 anonymous reports annually, and 80 % of them are being investigated. 53,000 children have some form of assistance - such as a "weekend foster-man who cuts wood with children." This is one method used if Barnevernet considers that a child raised by a single-mother is missing a male role model, as Margaret Hruza, a Norwegian co-author of a documentary, reveals in one of the interviews.

Indeed, the main reasons for the removal of children are very different in both countries. While in the Czech Republic the most frequent reason for removing children should be the poor social situation of families, the most common reason in Norway is the lack of parental abilities. And here begins the whole problem, because it is a vague title, under which can be hidden anything; even a badly prepared breakfast.

 Too much good for a child?

               I have mentioned many times that the difficulty lies primarily in the unlimited power of Barnevernet. Virtually nobody has effective control over this state organisation. This is what knows very well for example the family of a woman named Charlotte, whose children had been kidnapped on the basis of her stepmother's report. She was supposedly not giving the children sufficient care. The children were returned to Charlotte after 17 months. It was only after this long time that the Norwegian courts could declare that the snatching was absolutely unjustified. Throughout the proceedings, however, the mother became pregnant again. The newborn was preventively taken away only 14 hours after birth! They didn’t return this (third) child, stating the 6-month-old girl was used to the foster parents, and so the return to the biological parent was not possible. The family has been fighting for her daughter for more than five years now. They want to see her at least more often than four times a year.

Charlotte's partner, who was also interviewed in the documentary, sees the problem in the fact that Barnevernet goes too far when taking children into care. The behaviour seems to be because they can, and not because it is needed. In short, "where abusive power can be abused, it will be abused," as the co-creator Margareta Hruza said. If they don´t like you, they just take your child and find some reason. Barnevernet can explain everything by themselves. When the family had tidied their house, as they usually do before each visit, Barnevernet reported that it looked like no children lived in their home...

The words of Lotte's partner are also (unintentionally) confirmed by the staff from one Barnevernet office, which allowed the interview. The lady admitted that somewhere they went too far while trying to provide the best further development for the children. According to the director Ivana Pauerová-Miloševič, Barnevernet no longer deals with problematic cases, but they have begun examining if a parent is good enough.

Anyone who wants to know more about the child protection philosophy in Norway, they should study the book Sveket, which in English is translated as "betrayal." This is the Barnevernet bible, and as indicated by the title, a betrayed child is supposed to be the reason why the world looks the way it does. At least the author of the book, the Norwegian psychologist Kari Killén, is persuaded by this. The main priority is therefore following: the state is supposed to protect the child from every violence done by parents and foster parents. Protecting children from any negative stimulus has to be an absolute priority. The child must not be exposed to any stress or stimulus that could depress it. To show sadness in front of a child is unacceptable.

The state does everything to ensure that children are brought up to the best of their abilities. They even hold free courses for parents about "parent management". The child must have more recognition for what it does (e.g. dishwashing), although this should be considered as natural.

The documentary also indirectly points out that the upbringing of children is in fact reduced to only a technical matter and that the biological parent's emotional bond with the child plays virtually no role here. If a child is taken away and is entrusted to another person for a long period of time, the principle is that they must be left outside their original home due to the newly created bond.

 State as a friend or tyranny of the majority?

From the documentary, you can sense the struggle to find people willing to talk about Barnevernet publicly. This especially applied to those who were willing to talk about Barnevernet critically. As Margaret Hruza said at the beginning, people can even lose their job when they publicly criticise the Norwegian social workers.

The truth is that being in the "care" of Barnevernet means social stigma and people, therefore, refuse to talk about it. Other people think that something really must’ve happened if Barnevernet came. Why? They cannot admit that it could be a mistake. Nor the Norwegian partner of Margaret was willing to speak on this subject because he was not willing to accept any criticism of the Norwegian system.

 Those who observed the situation for a long time are not surprised that Barnevernet did not show much willingness to speak. Their introversion and hiding for the best interest of children is a long-standing problem. The reluctance to do the opposite was explained by one of the aforementioned Barnevernet employee. She said it is because the Czech media do not write positively about the institution.

Norwegian society is typically non-critical of the state and has a trusting, and close relationship with it. The state is considered a "friend," who wants only the best for people. The same applies to respecting all social conventions that are not written, but everyone knows they should be observed. Failure to comply, albeit unwritten, may cause suspicion in others, and the person may find himself in Barnevernet's viewfinder or face other inconveniences.

It reminded me of the almost 200-year-old words of the French political thinker Alexis de Tocqueville, who in his famous work ‘Democracy in America’ warned against the tyranny of the majority manifesting just as described above. The company is labelled with a number of different rules, and no one has to go too far. And if that happens, the person concerned has to face an ostracism from the rest of society.

 Norway, the country of fear

And the same applies to today's Norway. Every parent must keep an eye on each other. The pressure to adhere to the rules is enormous. Sofie, the little daughter of Margaret Hruza, told to her mother at the beginning of the documentary that she would like to invite her friends or just some girls to her birthday, but she cannot. Why? Other children would be sad because they were not invited too. They would have to invite at least the entire class.

The fact that the pressure of society is real in Norway, and it can be very unpleasant especially for foreigners, can eloquently demonstrate the story of journalist Andrej Ruščák. He lived in Norway for several years but recently decided to return to the Czech Republic. He did not feel well in Norway precisely because of the ubiquitous oversight of the society.

E.g. the control of children at a nurse reminded him of interrogation, and the overall social pressure on compliance and enforcement of informal rules was hard for him and his family to bear. Barnevernet was an imaginary last drop for him, and his move back to the Czech Republic described Ruščák as “a statement" - a form of expression of disagreement with what is happening in Norway.

The children of the state is a very strong statement that there is really something wrong in Norway, and the talk about unjust kidnapping is not just a fancy rumour. I therefore ask how many such documentaries must be filmed so that all the non-critical Barnevernet supporters finally understand that there is something really wrong and they should stop playing down the situation, and not even hold Norway for an inspiration and pattern for changes in the foreign child protection system?

[tomaszdechovskymep]

Norway has promised to stop stealing children

Are you still one of those who think that in Norway children can never be taken away from their parents for no reason? Do you still believe that there are always serious grounds for it? Well, then this article will definitely not be a pleasant reading for you as it will make you admit your own mistake.

 When we first started to heavily criticize Norway for what happened to Eva Michaláková and her children, a number of Norwegian politicians and journalist thought we were totally insane.  Today, a lot of them contact us themselves, informing us about system changes or about further and further cases of unjustified or suspicious child removals. The shift in public opinion is indeed enormous and the system is only defended by those who benefit from it financially or are worried that their own children could be taken away from them.

 1)       A Norwegian woman with a college degree has applied for asylum in Poland due to Barnevernet

Right now, the greatest amount of attention is attracted to the case of Silje Gram, a native Norwegian, who has applied for asylum in Poland because there is a risk that even her second daughter will be taken away from her in her home country. This case has been covered by the Norwegian media as well as the Polish radio or Czech media.  What is more, Silje´s Polish lawyer Jerzy Kwasniewski has confirmed that he has been helping several other Norwegian citizens with their asylum applications. I have been in contact with Silje and her colleagues for some time and I have had an opportunity to become familiar with some of the details of the case. And I am genuinely shocked at how far this system of child “protection“ can go.

Silje was deprived of her older daughter Fröy by Barnevernet upon a statement made by her ex-husband claiming that she allegedly abuses painkillers and leads a “chaotic life“. Barnevernet officials have neither specified what it means nor given any concrete reasons proving that the mother is so dangerous that her daughter is not allowed to see her until she turns 18.  They only had their assumptions which have never been proved – just like in Eva Michaláková´s case. But still, Silje, who was expecting her second child at that time, was notified that her second daughter would also be removed, although her frequent and regular blood tests had never proved increased use of even the most common analgesics.

Moreover, all the media point to the fact that Silje is educated and well-off, and that she has a good knowledge of law and Norwegian culture, so no one can really say that she is socially unadaptable or that there are some other cultural barriers – an argument that is often foisted by Barnevernet advocates on those who criticise the system. Also, Silje comes from a family of a Norwegian politician who had long been defending the system. Now he has changed his opinion, too.

Polish authorities have already confirmed that the application is being processed. So far, they have been careful about making any concrete statements regarding Silje´s chances of getting the asylum, but no one has brushed the application off. And what is more, Polish politicians and journalists have voiced their concerns about the fact that child removals in Norway have reached “epidemic level”. And it is this high level of child removals that gives evidence of system human rights violation in Norway, which is a fundamental condition for granting asylum.

Also, attention is now being drawn to the fact that over the last year 9 cases have appeared before the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, which simply brings a lot of shame on Norway.  Moreover, at the beginning of October, Norway lost a dispute concerning the Norway vs. Becker case in which a journalist was unlawfully sanctioned and freedom of expression was not respected.                       

Picture 1: Silje with her daughter. The petition supporting her asylum application has already been signed by 11 000 people and the number of signatures is quickly growing. http://www.maszwplyw.pl/azyl-dla-silje-garmo-,76,k.html

  Picture 2: Silje´s father was an MP.  For him, it is also incredible to see how much the system is abusing its power now. http://www.se.pl/wiadomosci/opinie/uciekamzdzieckiem-znorwegii-dopolski-jej-historia-szokuje_1019059.html

 2) Morten Ørsal Johansen, a Member of Parliament, has admitted that Barnevernet is a state within a state and its only aim is to achieve as many unannounced urgent child removals as possible.

Morten Ørsal Johansen has been an MP since 2009, representing the same party as the Norwegian Minister of Children and Equality Solveig Horne. He caused great surprise at the end of September allowing the Indian newspaper The Sunday Guardian to publish the English version of his comment on whether the Norwegian authorities may remove a child for no reason. He said that he had always thought that there has to be a serious reason for a child removal. Then, however, he began to study concrete files, wondering how it is possible that the social service can do what they like and who these people actually are.

It is also necessary to note that Mr Johansen himself was once present a commission´s meeting that was supposed to evaluate whether or not Barnevernet had the right to remove children. There were 13 witnesses and 12 of them were against the removal. Barnevernet was the only party that insisted on it. Yet the commission decided to remove the children. They do it just to “make sure” in as much as 93 % of all cases.

And what was the reason for this urgent unannounced child removal? Mr Johansen says that it was a four (!) months old “ report on concern” claiming that someone heard the child say that “ daddy will be angry like father Emila from books by Astrid Lindgren ”. As little as this childish remark was enough …

And this is what Mr Johansen is deeply concerned about. The thing is that absolutely no evidence is required for both the removal itself and further permanent placement in foster care. Phrases such as “We think …” and “According to our evaluation of the situation …” are considered to be sufficient arguments, which means that, of course, no review is allowed because it is in the best interest of the child to be silent about everything. Simply anything can be hidden under these phrases and no appellate review is possible. They still have courts, some might object. But as the case of Maxine, little girl born into a Norwegian-Slovak family, has revealed, the parents have won their dispute regarding the immediate return of their daughter twice, Barnevermet, however, appealed and refused to return the daughter, claiming that the court was biased because it did not decide in their favour.

Mr Johansen also heavily criticized the police who are just dancing attendance on Barnevernet.  It is a well-known fact that in case of urgent child removals Barnevernet calls 4 policemen to guard the entrance to the house for 7 hours, together with 2 police patrols assisting them.

In conclusion, Mr Johansen promised to commit himself to this topic in the following election period (in Norway it is right after the elections). It was the last straw when he heard a recording with a Barnevernet employee saying that although they know the legislative requirement of developing every effort to return children to their families, they have practically no reason to fulfil it because the law is just something like an instruction.

Picture 3: Morten Johansen, Member of Parliament, first issued the article criticising Barnevernet in Norway. Later, however, he gave his permission to publish its English version in the Indian newspaper The Sunday Guardian. https://www.oa.no/morten-orsal-johansen/fremskrittspartiet/politikk/morten-orsal-johansens-anklage

 3) Minister of Children and Equality Horne has published „the law of love“ and is going to invest  NOK 80 million in „increasing the competence“ of Barnevernet employees

The growing criticism of Barnevernet procedures on the national as well as international level is already so strong that Ms Horne has promised to “stop stealing children”.  She is going to draw up a stricter law obliging Barnevernet to develop every effort to return children to their parents and to prove that they are actually doing so. The new law will also stipulate that the “report on concern” will have to include the evidence of Barnevernet claims and the reason for sending it.

In other words, the Norwegian idea of the best child protection system in the world is breaking down because real behaviour of Barnevernet officials is totally different from what they are theoretically supposed to be doing. However, I am personally convinced that no partial changes, massive investments in trainings and new laws will be effective until Barnevernet loses its power to carry out urgent child removals and the possibility of case review is introduced.

I wish you a nice day and a happy mind!

[tomaszdechovskymep]

What crimes did the Michalák brothers´ grandfather commit?

Jiří Pavelka, the Michalák boys´ grandfather, has died. The only thing he wished was to wave one last goodbye to his grandsons Denis and David through Skype. Why did Barnevernet fail to fulfill his last wish?

I first met Jiří Pavelka in autumn 2014 on the square in the town of Hodonín. He came to me after the KDU-ČSL meeting (Cristian and Democratic Union - Czechoslovak People´s Party) held in this town where my mum and I also arrived in order to find out about the case of Eva Michaláková and her family. We met an unassuming man who began to tell the story of her daughter and her sons. He was prepared - all information carefully organized in a file – and his account exactly corresponded to what we knew from Norwegian records.

Later in the car, my mum and I agreed that it would be great if all children could have such a grandpa. We tried hard to look for any possible inconsistencies that could cast doubt on the man´s story, but without success. My mum is a pediatrician and I remember how patiently he answered her questions regarding the suspicion of the Michalák brothers sexual abuse as well as his daughter´s childhood and teenage years.

We simply wanted to make sure that we can trust these people before I commit myself to this case. And Mr. Pavelka, with his openness, truthfulness and warm-hearted nature, totally convinced me.

 Mr. Pavelka was a modest, ordinary guy

I would like to make one more observation concerning Mr. Pavelka. He was not a media star. He was an ordinary country guy who did not pretend anything. He acted like someone who is good-humored even a little shy. He was unhappy about what had happened to his daughter and wanted to do everything he could to help her. Later we met again several times, and I always left the meeting with a very pleasant feeling.

But Mr. Pavelka was also an incredibly brave and good-humoured man who believed that the truth would come to light. ´You see, Norway is a democratic country so the truth must win in the end, don´t you think?´. Therefore, he kept on struggling and was ready to stand by his daughter wherever she was in Europe. He traveled both to Vienna to take part in a demonstration, and to Prague where we protested in front of the Norwegian Embassy.

When we met for the last time at a discussion session in Brno, he gave me a bottle of “slivovice” (Moravian plum brandy) and said: “I believe that I will be able to see the boys once more.” What a pity that his optimism betrayed him. Norwegian Barnevernet simply did not allow him to say goodbye to his grandsons. And now we have to ask WHY. What was the horrible thing Mr. Pavelka had done that would disqualify him from seeing his beloved grandsons even shortly before his death? Why did Norway refuse to fulfill the grandfather´s last wish although they had already known for several months that he was terminally ill?

 Lies, lies and lies

The answer is probably known only to the Norwegians who should be ashamed of how they treated this man. In fact, he had done nothing wrong. On top of all that, even on his deathbed, he was exposed to another Bernevernet lie claiming that David did not want to see his grandfather because of a picture that the grandpa had allegedly received from David and posted it on Facebook. Well, the thing is that Mr Pavelka had never received any pictures from David and never had a Facebook account.

And here we go again – the vicious circle of Norwegian lies, lies and lies that continues, and nothing can break it, not even a fatal illness of a man who only had a couple of days before death. Therefore, I personally refuse the words of certain Czech ministers promising that they will never let our citizens down. In case of rich countries, such as Norway, they have totally failed to persuade us.  When it comes to money, humanity and courage simply become qualities which some people loathe. We should definitely not forget about this during the following days.

I wish you a nice day and a happy mind!

[tomaszdechovskymep]

Media Coverage of Barnevernet Scandals Is Working Well.  Norway Is Making a Volt-Face

Media coverage of Barnevernet cases is slowly beginning to bear fruit in Norway itself. Last year´s developments might also bring hope to Eva Michaláková and her children. The present situation is in no way comparable to the one at the end of 2014.

The shift is enormous. And Norway itself is waking up to the fact that the faux pas of the local child-protection service are nowadays subject of public debate. I have written earlier about the story of Natasha and Erik whose twins were taken away on the basis of an extremely dubious expert opinion and then returned. This case was far from being the only one.

Other people are gradually breaking the silence, and the most significant thing is that the mainstream media report about the cases during prime time. Before that, silence and obfuscation associated with the Norwegian child-protection service was justified by the best interest of the child. However, the number of cases and facts proving the severe deficiencies of the Norwegian system is so high that it is impossible to further ignore the Barnevernet issue. Generally speaking, publicizing more and more cases also encourages parents to break the silence and speak in the media about the distress they suffered when fighting with Barnevernet.  And the media, too, are no longer worried about bringing new information as the cases are so clear and  Barnevernet “lapses” so evident that the we-only-have-a-one-sided-version argument is just grotesque.

 Norwegian media are continuously breaking news stories about recent cases

I would like to mention one of the cases publicized not long ago, which is the case of Tonje Jakobsen who ran away from Norway to Sweden to give birth to her baby.  Her escape was motivated by fear that Barnevernet, having a mendacious expert opinion, was supposed to take the child away from the mother immediately after birth. The above-mentioned expert opinion claimed that Tonje was mentally disabled and unfit to look after her child. The Swedish child protection service, however, described her as a good and decent mother. With the help of her lawyer, Tonje managed to testify about the alarming Barnevernet practices and her story had a happy ending. She did not lose her child.

At the end of March, Norwegian TV2 screened other reports about people who lost their children due to incorrect or even mendacious expert opinions. Unfortunately, most parents were not as lucky as Tonje. They did not leave Norway and lost their children as a result.

The available data reveal that every year about 200 children are taken away from parents with learning disabilities or mild mental retardation. And also because the mother was incorrectly diagnosed with mental retardation, which repeatedly happened even though the expert opinion presented inaccurate information and the mother was arguably capable of looking after the child, as illustrated by the case of Natasha´s or Tonje´s parents.  

Nevertheless, Barnevernet unfair practices reach beyond the Norwegian borders so it comes as no surprise that this Nordic country is beginning to feel the pressure from outside. Over the last 18 months, eight child removal cases have ended up before the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. For Norway, such a high number of cases that this court has to hear a is a serious warning as well as sign that something has indeed gone wrong.

Personally, I am extremely happy that the Barnevernet issue is also being discussed at the EU level. Thanks to the initiative of my colleague Julia Pitera,  Polish member of the European Parliament,  the topic was raised at the February Inter-Parliamentary Meeting between the European Parliament delegation and Norwegian representatives.

Norway is making a U-turn

Norway or, more precisely, its political representation have long been evasive about Barnevernet, burying their heads in the sand. I believe that this is over now. What is more, in March last year professional experts joined the public debate. The result is that more than 200 Norwegian professional experts on childcare (e.g. doctors, psychologists or lawyers) have signed a petition expressing their concerns regarding the current situation.  This petition has been officially submitted to the Norwegian government.

Naturally, the Norwegian political scene also had to respond. On 17 October last year, Dagbladet, the Norwegian national newspaper, published a breakthrough article. Norwegian Minister of Children and Equality Solveig Horne herself admitted that Norway violates human rights in the area of childcare. In her opinion, it is necessary to develop every effort to return children to their families if it is possible. She explicitly said that frequent practices allowing parents to see their child only twice up to six times a year for several hours do not constitute good presumptions necessary for reaching this goal. Needless to say, that this all happens under the supervision of Barnevernet employees outside a home, without the possibility for children to hug their parents and talk to them about their common past.

The minister´s speech was preceded by a report of the Commission for Childcare Legislation published on 29 September last year.  The report formulates a requirement according to which children should be returned in all possible cases while providing assistance to parents. The report also reveals that current legislation regulating the children-parents meetings is insufficient with regard to supporting family life as stipulated by the European Convention on Human Rights. Last but not least, the report mentions that the child´s right to contact does not only apply to his or her parents but also to his or her siblings and grandparents.

Therefore, the minister might be anxiously awaiting decisions from Strasbourg. She admits that changes will have to be carried out in order to reconcile the practices with the European Convention on Human Rights. Apart from that, a recent article published at the end of March presents Ms. Horne voicing her opinions on the need to reform the system, to provide better formal education for employees of local Barnevernet offices and to evaluate their work on a regular basis. Which is, in fact, admitting, although indirectly, that the system is not working the way it should be working.

 What happened in Norway is a crime against human rights

In conclusion,  I would like to add the following facts: there is absolutely no doubt that those people who have long been criticizing Barnevernet and the Norwegian systems are right. The system is failing, and it is no longer possible to see child removals based on dubious expert opinions and do nothing. The whole effort that has been developed indeed appears to be meaningful.

We are beginning to feel hope that things will change for the better as official Norwegian authorities, too, are expressing their criticism over the current situation. However, the battle is not yet over! It will never be won unless all unjustifiably removed children are returned to their parents.

I wish you a nice day and a happy mind!

PS: Picture with the minister Horne is photoshoped.

[tomaszdechovskymep]

Another Norwegian Family Beat Barnevernet by Publicising their Case

Great news has arrived from Norway: parents Natasha and Eric Olsen Myra have won back their twins taken away from them immediately after birth due to the mother´s alleged mental retardation. However, the battle is not yet over as the Norwegian system is threatening the parents with 2 years of imprisonment for the abduction of their own children to Poland.

The whole story began when Natasha was 13. At that time she was growing up with her foster parents who, for the sake of higher social benefits, arranged for the following diagnosis to be written down in her medical records: “non-specified mental retardation manifested by misbehavior”. Although Natasha was fighting fit, her foster parents received significantly higher social benefits for two years on account of fraud committed by one of the doctors who was their friend.

The consequence of this falsified diagnose made with the intention to enrich the foster parents was that Natasha (24), who started living with her boyfriend Eric, was deprived of her children by Barnevernet,  totally out of the blue and without any other medical check-ups or reports. It happened only 4 hours after birth when Barnevernet’s officials literally stormed into the maternity hospital and hurriedly took the new-born baby girls away from their mother, placing them in foster care.  

The reason why neither the father nor the other relatives were taken into consideration was that they had refused to accept the Barnevernet’s diagnosis regarding the mother´s retardation and insisted that Natasha was normal. This fact must have been clear to everyone who could hear the mother talk in a series of reports on TV2 (having a similar reach and profile as our TV Nova) which repeatedly informed the public about the case during prime time. They also gave the floor to the doctor who had made the diagnosis for teenage Natasha. He said he had wanted to  “make her life easier” at school.

Barnevernet, as usual, made no comments to the media. However, Norwegian journalists obtained information provided by the local authority mayor in Stange, who claimed that the given diagnosis had allegedly been made during pregnancy on the grounds of mental problems. But there is a little catch in it - there is no single medical record proving that the mother had been examined by someone.

Later, Barnevernet claimed during the trial that, actually, they had allegedly supervised the mother for another two serious facts - according to the former foster parents (benefit cheats), the mother was supposed to be untidy and even unable to look well enough after herself. However, the mother´s lawyer strictly refused these claims, pointing out that these are only additional reasons for taking the children away, grounded in the simple assumption that the diagnosis of mental retardation was correct although the alleged  “untidiness” is in no way related to mental retardation.

 There would never have been a fair trial without publicizing

TV2 started covering the case shortly before the trial which was supposed to deliver a decision on placing the baby girls, half-year-old at that time, in foster care. The mother even had two very positive expert opinion reports which strictly refused mental retardation.  But Barnevernet was reluctant to acknowledge them. However, it was the media coverage and the help of the well-known lawyer Gro Hillestad Thune that enforced a fair trial for the parents. But instead of Barnevernet’s apology and the children´s immediate return, an “agreement” was concluded according to which Natasha and Erik had to be placed under supervision together with their children in a family center.

When their stay similar to participating in BigBrother was coming to an end, the parents learned that Barnevernet again intended to take their children away. It was allegedly proved that the parents were unable to raise their children, which, however, Barnevernet failed to substantiate. Therefore, the parents did not go home after the stay, but ran away with their children to Poland where they have been hiding for several months already.

 An international arrest warrant for the parents has been issued upon Barnevernet´s request

According to section 261 of the Criminal Code, an international arrest warrant has been issued for the parents upon Barnevernet’s request. By leaving Norway they have allegedly refused to give their children the best possible care and abducted their own children, while Barnevernet insisted on having the children in their care. Barnevernet’s officials were so unscrupulous that they not only contacted  Interpol, demanding that they find the family, but also blocked the parents´  bank accounts, cutting them off from their finances. Fortunately, there were enough people not only in Norway, but also in Poland who helped the family out financially.

What is more, last week it came to light that Barnevernet HAD FALSIFIED THE DATE until which the parents had been ordered to stay in the family center, changing it from 27th to 17th June,  in order to provide its officials enough time to take the children away before the Commission ´s meeting. The fact that they had recorded the change just in pen and with the consent of the parents, as they solemnly swear, is quite beyond me. A secret recording of Barnevernet’s talks with the family made by TV2 proves that the date in question had always been 27th June.

The parents want to return to Norway in the summer

The parents have now persuasively won a 4-day trial in which they appealed against the Commission´s decision to take the children away issued in June - this time for  “a lack of parental competence”. Barnevernet has even given up the possibility to appeal, claiming that the parents may now return to Norway with no fear of future persecution. TV2 captured the extreme happiness of the parents. Nevertheless, they said that they were planning to wait until the summer.

Personally, I would recommend that they should not return at all. Barnevernet’s incredible manipulations have only proved that they will never leave the family alone. So far, the criminal persecution initiated by Barnevernet has not been terminated, because the parents have abducted their own children, and their bank accounts are still frozen. Whenever Barnevernet requests investigation, the police must always deal with such a case, so claiming that both processes are independent of each other is, in my opinion, buck-passing rubbish.  

It is just a way indented to further destroy the family. Barnevernet will return the children to the parents while developing every effort to take them away again, so that the children could be at least under Barnevernet’s supervision for the time when the parents are in prison. Money makes the world go round so a new opportunity is opening up to Barnevenet’s officials for bullying the parents just like in the case of Eva Michalakova, the Czech mother.

 Another slap in the face for Czech advocates of Barnevernet

As I have already mentioned in the article „Australian Journalists Reveal Child Thefts  in Norway (Australští novináři ukázali, jak se v Norsku kradou děti)“, this case is a huge slap in the face for Czech advocates of Barnevernet, for it  shows that  all those well-worn phrases proclaiming that the media coverage of Eva Michalakova’s case has her done a lot of harm are nonsense. If Natasha and Erik and tens of other parents had not publicized their stories, they would never be able to see their children again.

The case of Natasha and Eric also proves that Barnevernet’s officials, just like in Eva Michalakova’s case, indeed have the stomach to do anything, even falsify the official documents in this well-publicised affair, just to get their own way. And the best interest of the children comes last. This also applies to certain Norwegian foster parents and doctors who have the stomach to falsify medical reports. For this reason, it is crucial to conduct independent international investigations into hundreds of cases of children taken away from their parents by Barnevernet. Everything leads to the conclusion that something is rotten in the Kingdom of Norway.

I wish you a nice day and a happy mind!

[tomaszdechovskymep]

Shall we lose the opportunities offered by Azerbaijan?

In autumn I had an opportunity to visit Azerbaijan where I attended the International Humanitarian Forum held in the metropolitan city of Baku. Many people still consider this country in the post-soviet area as something like Russia´s backyard. But nothing could be further from the truth. On the contrary, Azerbaijan is a country of distinctive culture, enjoying fast economic growth over the last years thanks to its oil resources.  By way of illustration, in 2010 the value of Azerbaijan´s GDP was twenty times higher compared to 1995. Not surprisingly, this little country aims at becoming a real Caucasian economic tiger and, as such, should not go unnoticed by Czech or European companies.  

In addition, not many people know that thanks to its oil wealth the Azerbaijani metropolis is now called the New Dubai. This name is definitely not an exaggeration, but rather a truthful description of the current reality. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Baku underwent substantial transformation and megalomaniac construction projects are not dissimilar to those in the above mentioned familiar city located in the United Arab Emirates.

Azerbaijan is a very clean, peaceful and, more importantly, secularized country with very pleasant people. Thousands of tourists from all over the world visit this Caucasian county every year, admiring not only the beautiful mountains but also the sea. For European countries, Azerbaijan is first of all a country of opportunities. There is a chance for it to become an important and extremely useful economic partner of the EU including the Czech Republic.  Since Azerbaijan is a rapidly developing country, the economic presumptions are already more than favorable.

 A number of opportunities as well as challenges for Europe

However, the present situation is not very encouraging. As far as trading with Azerbaijan is concerned, Europe has to make up ground in this area, as the trade deficit with Azerbaijan has been huge over a long period of time. On the one hand, Azerbaijan has a strong trade balance based first of all on exports of oil and oil products, which means that trading with Europe as a whole accounts for nearly 46,5% of Azerbaijan´s turnover.

But on the other hand, Europe seems to be in the dark about what to offer Azerbaijan. Yes, Europe exports machines, means of transport, food and consumer goods to Azerbaijan. However, in recent years the exports to the EU have always significantly prevailed over the imports from the EU. Just to give some concrete numbers, last year, for example, the Azerbaijani exports to Europe accounted for 10,7 million Euros while European exports to Azerbaijan only accounted for 3,5 million Euros.    The gap between the total export and import values is indeed huge.  

Therefore, the priorities of the common EU foreign policy will play an important role in the future. It is essential to develop good neighbourly relations not only between people, but also between the EU and countries in its close surroundings. Therefore, I am delighted that a Polish initiative led to the birth of the Eastern Partnership within the EU in 2008, covering cooperation with six countries in Eastern Europe and Caucasia. Azerbaijan surely belongs to those countries. We can also trace Czech influence in the beginnings of cooperation with these post-soviet countries, because the Eastern Partnership started working a year later in 2009 under the Czech presidency.

By the way, this was an enormous contribution to the foreign EU policy. Prior to this event, the EU neighbourhood policy took a one-sided approach, focusing rather on the Mediterranean area and paying only a��little attention to Eastern Europe countries. However, there is no time for complacency, because I consider it absolutely crucial to develop this partnership in the future. Further development of Eastern Partnership is undoubtedly one of the greatest challenges not only for Czech foreign policy, but also for all “new” EU countries in central Europe.

It was not only the migrant crisis that demonstrated how strictly essential it is to maintain the best possible relations with countries close to the EU. However, it is first of all the economic aspect that is significant. Despite being the second largest economy in the world, the EU simply cannot do without cooperation with other countries. The more countries we cooperate with, the better for us. Only few surrounding countries offer as many opportunities as Azerbaijan with its growing economy.  

In conclusion, I would like to note that on my recent journey I was pleasantly surprised to see how greatly the Azerbaijani people value the Czechs and how good the reputation of the Czech Republic is in Azerbaijan. Having a skilled ambassador with a good team in this country means that fantastic things can be achieved here. Azerbaijan is a country of numerous opportunities for Czech as well as European economies, and therefore it would be a sin not to use them.

[tomaszdechovskymep]

Europe must be able to take advantage of cooperation with Japan

European countries and Japan are several thousand kilometres apart. Claiming that both players are similar to each other in many respects, and that they are also natural economic and political partners may sound surprising, but it is a fact. Why? Despite the huge geographical distance between Europe and Japan, and despite the differences in culture and traditions, there is no doubt that Japan belongs to the “broader Western World” comprising democratic countries with developed market economies. I could see it myself during the visit of the European Parliament Delegation for relations with Japan.

In addition, both EU countries and Japan face the same or very similar challenges that basically all developed economies have to deal with. Firstly, it is very slow economic growth, secondly, a gradually changing economic structure associated with the post-industrial era, and finally, an unfavourable age structure of the population. In other words, countries on both ends of Eurasia are undergoing a period of economic stagnation and their populations are ageing. One could find more than enough common features, whether positive or negative. Perhaps both entities are more similar than we think.

Uneasy beginnings

But let us proceed to the development of relations between Europe and Japan which go back to the time when post-war European integration was still in an embryonic state. In 1959, the European Communities accredited the first representative of Japan. However, it was as late as 1974 when the European Delegation in Tokyo was set up and the European Communities entered into formal relations with the Land of the Rising Sun.

It should be noted that the cooperation between European countries and Japan was far from being perfect at times. The 1970s and 1980s saw a raging business war between the European communities and Japan which was caused by Europe´s trade deficit. However, conflicts of the past are over now and the trend has reversed now, following a direction in favour of the EU countries.    The fall of the iron curtain and further EU enlargement opened up other opportunities to enhance cooperation between the two significant world players.

Dramatic developments of the 90´s  

It was the joint adoption of the 1991 Hague Declaration which represents a key development in relations between Europe and Japan. In this declaration both parties express their common respect  to democracy and human rights as well as their willingness to support a free market. But above all, the declaration set up a clear goal - to look for other areas of cooperation. Thanks to this declaration, annual summits have been held since then with the aim to evaluate and deepen mutual relations.  These summits are regularly attended by the so-called “troika” consisting of the President of the European Council, the President of the Commission and the Japanese Prime Minister. In this way mutual relations between Europe and Japan have gained another dimension and reached a higher level.

This trend initiated at the beginning of the decade before last continued further by the publication of the Action Plan for EU-Japan Cooperation in 2001. Such developments laid the foundations of a fully-fledged partnership based on the action plan focusing, in particular, on the following four areas:

1) Supporting peace and security  

2) Reinforcing the economic and business partnership

3) Facing global and social challenges

4) Bringing together people and cultures

The trend of reinforcing the economic cooperation still continues. Ongoing negotiations on the Free trade Agreement and Economic Partnership Agreement (FTA/EPA) and on the Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA) only demonstrate the established trend and increasing benefits of mutual relations. Moreover, the fact that Japan is nowadays the second most important business partner of the EU in Asia after China and the seventh most important business partner of the EU of all the world countries also illustrates the significance of EU-Japan relations.  Last year Japan accounted for 3,3 % of the total foreign trade volume of the EU. Exports to Japan represent a significant source of earnings for European manufacturers of motor vehicles, machines, medicines, optical and medical tools. Therefore, the benefits of trading with the Land of the Rising Sun are indeed considerable.

But let us go back to the above-mentioned Free Trade Agreement and Economic Partnership Agreement (FTA/EPA) and the Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA). The negotiations on FTA/EPA were launched in 2013 with the idea to bring benefits both to Japan and the EU. According to the estimates from 2009, the forthcoming agreement is believed to increase the EU GDP by 0,8%  and Japan´s GDP by 0,7%. It is also assumed that, in view of the above, there might be more than 30% rise in European exports to Japan, and on the other side, Japanese exports to Europe might rise by more than 20%. So it is absolutely clear that both parties would profit from this agreement.

The Free Trade Agreement between the European Union and Japan was one of the major topics discussed during the visit of the European Parliament Delegation for relations with Japan. I could see myself that Japan is extremely interested in making this agreement and that on the side of the EU there are no more obstacles that would pose a threat to it.  Nevertheless, no concrete date has been specified so far. It is encouraging to note, however, that both parties have agreed on the necessity   to speed up ongoing negotiations.

The cooperation does not only have a purely economic dimension as it covers many different areas. One of them is conflict resolution and rehabilitation of countries affected by war. The EU is together with Japan involved in post-war reconstruction and stabilization processes in the Western Balkans, Afghanistan and Iraq. Both actors operate together in conflict areas such as the Gulf of Aden, Mali, Niger, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan.

Future prospects

The EU and Japan have undoubtedly come a long way in their approximation.  Mutual relations, however, may still encounter a number of difficulties. Given the current developments, it is, of course, impossible to avoid the issue of Brexit, casting a shadow over the EU economy and the EU as a whole. The British exit severely damages the world´s trust in the EU and may also have a negative impact on the relations with Japan. The Japanese people wish to have stronger business relations. In order to achieve this, however, it is absolutely crucial to maintain a coherent and stable European Union.

Setting the future EU priorities in the area of foreign and security policy is also a significant issue. Regarding the current migration challenges, there is a real risk that Europe will primarily focus its attention on the Mediterranean area to the detriment of other strategic areas including East Asia. I could see myself that Japan has an interest in cooperation with the EU. The migrant crisis, however, poses an enormous threat to European stability. Therefore, it is no surprise that Japan is deeply concerned about the migrant crisis which is not yet over. Especially at a time when the EU as a whole represents the third biggest business partner for the Far East Empire after the USA and China. 

But it is definitely not only the EU who is to blame for all the difficulties. There are problems on the Japanese side as well. Japan is quite naturally concerned about the political as well as economic growth of China, which might result in the fact that the Land of the Rising Sun will focus its attention primarily on balancing the Chinese influence by cooperation with other countries in East Asia. And, of course, to the detriment of cooperation with Europe. So one could say, with a little exaggeration, that Japan´s need to balance the power of the “Chinese Dragon” and Europe´s need to solve the migrant crisis are the same type of challenge.

Those challenges, however, do not detract from the fact that there are opportunities to strengthen the partnership even more. An increased focus on Asia and the Pacific is, after all, reflected in the “Trade for All” strategy form 2015, with FTA/ EPA being the crowning achievement of this strategy.

The forthcoming agreement on duty free trade is, in my opinion, an exceptional chance for Europe as it will enable European companies to penetrate the quickly developing Japanese market. As a country with a high purchasing power, Japan might be an ideal opportunity for Czech exports as well. Our country enjoys a good reputation thanks to its hops and machinery. And it only depends on us to what extent we will be able to take advantage of this. In short, Japan is a country that Europe should not forget about.

Opportunity also for the Czech Republic

In conclusion, I would like to add that the Czech Republic too, being part of the EU, should not forget about the tremendous opportunities arising from the cooperation with the Land of the Rising Sun. In my country, we continuously talk about the necessity of Chinese investments. As if we have totally forgotten about one of our biggest and most stable partner over a long period of time, which is none other than democratic and in all respects incredibly developed Japan.

I am delighted that the European Parliament mission reached a clear consensus regarding the increase of Japanese investments in the Czech Republic, for example in the area of information technologies or automotive industry. The total amount of investments is roughly billions of Czech crowns and thousands of new jobs. The cooperation with Japan indeed offers more than enough opportunities and it would be a real shame if the Czech Republic failed to use them!

[tomaszdechovskymep]

Murdering of Prisoners of Conscience for Organ Harvesting in China is a Disgusting Crime

The economic relations with China are very important, however one cannot overlook human rights abuse, wherever it takes place. This is also the case of the involuntary organ harvesting in People´s Republic of China as investigated in a recent report. According to the investigation of two Canadian experts, David Matas and David Kilgour, there were at least 100,000 religious and political prisoners murdered for organ harvesting since 2000 in this Asian country. Most of them were Fa-lun Kung (Falun Gong) practitioners, but also Uyghurs, Tibetans and Christians facing violent repressions and persecutions by the Chinese communist regime. These numbers are horrifying.

In 2006, Matas and Kilgour were the first to express their suspicion that political prisoners are being killed in Chinese prisons or military hospitals for their organs. At that time, the investigators did an analysis of statistics on organ transplantation in China and contacted many Chinese hospitals to verify the suspicion that Falun Gong practitioners were brutally abused as involuntary organ donors.

Several doctors confirmed that they were really using Falun Gong practitioners’ organs for transplantations. The Chinese regime denied it and claimed that the organs were from executed prisoners sentenced to death for serious crimes such as murders. But the figures are on the investigators´ side. The transplantation waiting times were unusually short and there were not so many prisoners sentenced to death. On the other hand, transplantations also represent a serious business for hospitals, since this type of intervention is typically cover by patients themselves.  

 Proving innocence

 For this reason, we can assume that the investigative report´s allegations may be somewhat true. Now it is up to China to allow an independent investigation and disprove the suspicions that prisoners and Falun Gong practitioners are being executed “on demand” when a transplantation receiver is ready in a hospital.

It is obvious that China represents a huge business potential for us. But there are lines we cannot cross. We may not overlook the murders for organ harvesting and pretend that everything is ok. In case these serious suspicions prove to be true it is necessary to show China that such practice is unacceptable for us. Inactions and making excuses would be an inexcusable cowardice in this case.

[tomaszdechovskymep]

Migration - a topic dividing the EU

Immigration into Europe and relocation of asylum seekers among the EU Member States – two of the most important topics in the European Union over the last 2 years that have developed into a divide between the East and the West. Both sides hold a different view on how to solve the ongoing refugee crisis. The eastern Member States argue that the decision on allocation cannot possibly be based on quotas, which are ineffective and contraproductive system, while the western Member States blame the East from nationalism and populism.

By 30 August 2016, only 4,455 migrants out of planned 160,000 have been relocated so far. That is a very small number and only proves that a successful outcome of any relocation scheme will be hard to achieve. Quotas are hardly effective in any other area of life and I believe they will also fail in the case of reallocation of migrants, especially while the majority of asylum seekers has only three destinations in mind: Germany, Sweden and the United Kingdom. But the divide is not only apparent between the East and the West but has its tangible outcome in the form of successful Brexit campaign. Whereas some of the western Member States insist that the quotas will lift the weight of the shoulders of the Member States guarding the external border, the central European countries (and especially the members of the Visegrad group) counter-argue that the only solution of migrant crisis is on the outside of the EU border and they stress the importance of increased protection of the EU border.

Arrival of more than one million migrants last year has become one of the main challenges of the present day EU. The number of migrants has somewhat dwindled since the agreement with Turkey, yet there are still many questions ahead of us, which need to be addresses in a satisfactory way.   The crucial question concerning also the European economic future is the matter of migrant integration. We knew this would not be an easy process but many were taken aback by how challenging this issue actually is.  For many reasons, integration of people from war torn countries is a long-term process. To name just few: the most important predisposition for successful integration is the ability to speak the language of the host country, which is a process that can take up to couple of years. Secondly, as supported by research, successful integration is also conditioned by including the immigrants into a job market. The population in Europe is aging and it is predicted that in the future there will be a lack of labour force in Europe. Recently, it has been pointed out that refugees can be a solution to this problem. However, many of them lack proper qualification, do not possess the necessary language skills or do not meet other demands of the labour market.

Statistical data show us that in June 2016, there were 665,000 available vacancies in Germany, yet 30 largest companies in Germany were only able to employ just 54 refugees out of more than one million. Another finding was that two thirds of young Syrian refugees in Germany could barely read or write. By the end of July, just about from one tenth to one eighth of refugees looking for a job were able to get one. Unsurprisingly, the biggest problem was the lack of qualification or German language proficiency. 

I mentioned specifically Germany but any other country, which accepts refugees in large numbers in a way that Germany did, will face such challenge. I hope that the recent migration wave was a good lesson for Europe, from which we can learn a lot. People coming from different part of the world can be undoubtedly of benefit to Europe.  At the same time, we have to take into account that migrants alone cannot save the European economy from the lack of labour force. Especially in case, when many of them do not know the language and lack formal qualifications required on the European labour market.

[tomaszdechovskymep]

Islamism in Bosnia should not be ignored

Terrorism and radical Islamism pose a threat to the entire European continent. Nevertheless, hardly anybody realizes that the danger is closer than we may imagine. One of the big seedbeds of terrorism lies in the Balkans and that is why we should not let it out of the sight. In this article, I would like to pay a closer attention to Bosnia and Herzegovina, the country with the longest history of Islamism among the Balkan countries. There is an estimate that Bosnia and Herzegovina hosts up to 3,000 Muslim extremists but in reality, there might be many more. Official authorities state that 160 Bosnian fighters left to battle for militant Islamists, primarily for the ISIS (other sources talk about 340 fighters). Of these 160 fighters, 90% joined the ISIS, 30 of them died and 30 have returned to Bosnia. The figures are not insignificant. Moreover, intelligence services are convinced that there are about 20 terrorist groups active in recruiting and training the Balkan fighters in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The presence of the radical Islam or Islamism in Bosnia manifests itself by many ways. Gornja Maoča for example, an eastern Bosnian village, is known as the Wahhabi centre. And it is not a coincidence that many people who joined ISIS come from this village. People like Nusret Imamović, one of the foreign leaders of al-Qaeda, now on the American list of global terrorists, or Mevlid Jašarević, sentenced in 2012 to 18 years of imprisonment for attacks against American embassies and international organizations headquarters, are among them. During the civil war, the city of Velika Kladusa in western Bosnia represented a logistic base of Imam Bosnić, the former leader of local Mujahideens, recently sentenced to 7 years of imprisonment for inciting terrorist activities and recruiting Jihad volunteers. Bosnić also bought a big estate in an isolated area Bosanska Bojna, one kilometre away from the uncontrolled border with Croatia, to build a Salafi prayer centre. This Croatian border is very important for Islamists, because guns and terrorists can relatively easily cross the frontier of the European Union. What is the root cause of the current situation? There are a few factors: cultural, religious and territorial proximity of other Muslim countries, “fragile” government and enormous economical issues. The very roots of the radical Islam in this area can be found deeper in the history, i.e. more than twenty years ago during the civil war. At that time the radical Islam penetrated into Bosnia along with foreign fighters. Primarily two groups of Muslim fighters operated in the area: Iranians and Afghans (composed of more nationalities, for example Algerians, Egyptians, Tunisians, Libyans etc.). The second group was comprised of about ten thousand fighters, mainly Mujahideens from Afghanistan, loyal to Usama bin Laden. The presence of the fundamentalist fighters in the Bosnian war allowed radicals to put down roots firmly. Later, most of the radicals were granted Bosnian citizenship and could work there without any obstacles.

Bosnia and Herzegovina became one of the Islamist centres and an important part of the so called “Balkan junction” used by the radicals for getting further to Europe. The situation in Bosnia shows us that in order to eliminate terroristic threats, an effective guarding of the external borders is an absolute necessity. At the same time, we should not forget countries lying outside the European Union, but still in Europe and we should pay more attention to them. Otherwise, we could fail to notice a huge problem threatening the peace on the entire continent.

[tomaszdechovskymep]

The Case of Eva Michalakova – An Absurd Norwegian Decision

If the state takes away your children do not complain - a short summary of the twenty-nine-page decision of the Norwegian court in the case of Eva Michalakova’s children.  It is an utter impertinence to complain about the Barnevernet publicly.

If you read carefully the decision of the Norwegian court you do not know what to think about it. If anyone expected the court to decide on the basis of some evidence, he was very wrong. All the court needs are the statements of the foster families and the Barnevernet saying that children are ok in their foster families and that they are simply not going back.

Despite the fact that the decision might seem ridiculous, it is not a bit funny at all. And Norway is asking for the follow-up shame in the case of taking away of children who should have never been taken away from their family at all. Seven sad lessons we can learn from the case of Eva Michalakova:

Lesson one: If the child gets used to his foster family, do not want him back. Lesson two: If you want your child back from his foster family, you upset the foster family and then they upset children. It is all your fault and the court will take away your parental rights. Lesson three: The Norwegian court says: Rule one: The Barnevernet is always right. Rule two: Even if the Barnevernet is not right, the rule one applies. Lesson four: Healthy mother must lose her rights because unlike ill father she complaints to media. Lesson five: The grand-father who did not do anything to anybody cannot see the children, because the biological grand-father is not a member of the foster family. Lesson six: If the foster parents say that the children do not want to see their mother, it is an absolute true and it is not necessary to inspect it any further. Lesson seven: Do not look for any logic in the decisions of the Norwegian committees or courts, there is simply not any.

[tomaszdechovskymep]

Michalakova is the most known victim of the Barnevernet´s injustice

Latest developments have shown that the efforts aiming at changing the issues related to the Norwegian Barnevernet are fully justified and have meaning. In last two years we achieved many changes. In the past, the cases of the unauthorized taking of children in Norway had only very small public attention and the Norwegian authorities shown only little willingness to solve the problems.

The situation seemed to be hopeless but nowadays it is slowly (but certainly) changing. External political pressure, demonstrations taking place all over the world and damage of the international reputation of Norway did the job. I am immensely happy that today we can observe first tangible results!

The proof of the ability to solve the issues is the case of the Bodnariu family. The parents lost five of their children to the social services allegedly due to a strict religious upbringing and violence. Nevertheless, no evidence for the allegations was found. Massive international pressure and demonstrations all over the world triggered a large wave of solidarity and resistance against the terrifying practices of the Norwegian social system.

Norway was thus indirectly forced to admit its fault. Firstly, a little, few months old boy Ezekiel was returned and this week the other four children were given back as well.  The case of the Bodnariovi family had its happy ending and is a proof of justice!

However, the fight with injustice is far from over. Eva Michalakova still did not get her children back, while she is the most known victim of the injustice caused by Barnevernet. The road to full remedy is long and it is not possible to relax in the fight. I no longer want to watch the atrocities of Barnevernet, which is destroying entire families and children´s childhood.  

[tomaszdechovskymep]

European politicians necessarily need to come closer to the citizens

The European Union is currently facing many important challenges which include not only external attacks and problems, but also criticism from within the European Union, from the European citizens themselves. It needs to deal with disputes between the Member States, while its very existence is jeopardized by the possibility of losing some of the Member States.

What I see in the history of the European project is that the very existence of the European Union is defined by a constant struggle. Struggle against external enemies or internal circumstances, nevertheless a struggle.  We can look at it in two ways: either as an impossible challenge or - and this is a view that we all here share and it is also the reason why we are here today - we can view it as a mission. Because the EU was created to face challenges, fight enemies and mitigate crisis.

And the more challenges we face, the more raison d´etre is given to the European Union. Today, I would like to highlight several concrete issues, which I think are the most pressing ones and which pose the largest challenge but which - in my view - are only a confirmation for the necessity of the united Europe.

Maybe paradoxically, the largest challenge is the loss of trust in the European project and the open resistance of the European citizens against the European Union. The results of the European elections in 2014 have shown that the disillusion affects all EU countries. If we want the European Union to remain strong and keep its touch of glory, we cannot ignore or trivialize this problem. We need to understand the depth of the resistance against the European project and instead of imposing rules and threats, we must offer an alternative solution that will bring the Europeans back together. This is the only way that the EU will become attractive and legitimate once again. The basis of the EU lies on democratic values and such structure will not be able to run without a full support of its citizens.

A research conducted after the elections (in early 2015) revealed that only half of the European citizens (51 %) considered the EU membership to be a positive thing. This means that the European project does not come from an overall consensus of the European public. We need to understand that half of the European citizens are indifferent or negative towards the membership in the EU. Many voiced concerns across the continent call for restriction of the European integration - and I can manifest this on the example of the United Kingdom or even my homeland the Czech Republic, both countries being massively critical of the European Union.

Now - what solution is there? European politicians necessarily need to come closer to the citizens. Indeed, this is a phrase that we hear far too often but what does it really mean? From my own experience, the solution is communication: giving information, explaining, debating, respecting opposing opinions, giving insights - this all can be done via media and through personal contact. Helping people with their concerns and decreasing their fears is a way to go. We must not be deaf to the problems of the ordinary citizens. Quite the contrary, we politicians need to take the responsibility for a presentation of the positive benefits of the EU Membership to the public. I wish that the European citizens are able to identify with the EU project and this will be possible only with politicians capable of understanding the deepest concerns within the society. And that will also lead towards legitimization of further and much deeper integration because we can influence people to identify with the EU.

Secondly, the European Union is facing threats from the outside. Even today, 15 years after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, we experience the political claims of the large and powerful actor on our eastern border. Russia still poses a threat to the peace on the old continent. Strengthening of the unity of the European Member States should be a priority of the European leaders because unity is our most important defensive mechanism against the destructive Russian tactics. The EU and NATO must play its part in ensuring the EU security and safety of the European citizens.

Russian propaganda is one the main threats to the European peace. It is its inconspicuous character which spreads within the European public and Europe has not been until now well prepared to deal with it. Russian propaganda is especially aimed at post-communistic countries that were once under its sphere of influence. Their democracies are still fragile because they need to fight a higher rate of domestic dissatisfaction and a lower level of trust in democracy.  Therefore, Russian propaganda is more successful and some of the newer Member States are not immune against its influence.

The Russian political approach capitalizes on current crises within the EU: the threat of Brexit, migration crisis or financial crisis and economic situation in Greece. Russia spreads its influence through support of extremist political parties, especially in their right wing. It is now proven that for instance, the French Front National accepted money from Russian resources. This is a cross-border issue that calls for a united action and that can be delivered only if the Member States deepen their cooperation mechanisms.

Finally, the third principal problem is also an external factor, which has a massive impact on the EU policies. The migration crisis is one of the most influential phenomenon that is shaping the current European political scene and that will have also an immense influence on the future of the EU. On one hand, right-wing and extremist parties are abusing the situation and benefiting from the weak migration policies in Europe and they are gaining valuable political points. On the other hand, the chaos accompanying the refugee crisis is only evidence that more integrated European policies are needed in order to successfully address very complex, transnational issues that are not solvable on national level.

What we need to achieve deeper integration are clear, comprehensible and consistent policies that will be understandable also to the wide public. Therefore, we need an open, public debate about up-to-date issues that affect regular citizens. Avoiding such a solution would be a tragedy for the future of Europe. All of us politicians need to take a personal responsibility and communicate better with those, who will have the final say in shaping of the European future.

[tomaszdechovskymep]

Beaten and Raped Children in Norwegian Institutions – Barnevernet Remains Silent

If a parent beats up his child it means a huge problem for the Barnevernet, but if a Barnevernet’s officer or an employee of a social institution beats up a child nothing happens. Ranks of parents whose children were and/or are beaten up and raped in Norwegian institutions decided to speak.

Another taboo in Norway is off. And that is the situation in Norwegian institutions where children and teenagers with disciplinary and family issues are being temporarily placed. Unfortunately, instead of help these institutions cause children unpleasant experiences and traumas for the rest of their lives. Children are repeatedly beaten up and some of them are even molested or raped.

Until recently it applied that what happened in institutions could not be investigated. Even though parents repeatedly complained about the terrible practices in institutions, they were mostly ignored and told that it was not possible. The police usually questioned employees of given social institution and then dropped the case.

Lawyers, psychologists and activists fighting with the Barnevernet started to systematically collect the cases showing the doubts about the Norwegian institutional care. They collected many cases and proves showing how children were brutally treated in institutions and in foster cares (for more details see the article from the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten from 2011. Parents now ask for those cases to be opened and investigated again.

Monika is one of the parents not afraid to talk openly about the situation in Norway. Her daughter was repeatedly molested, brutally beaten up and raped in an institution, where she was placed because she reported that her step father molested her. All evident signs of the violence were refused by the institution and described as “self-harm” as the reaction to the bad influence of her family. The institution and the Barnevernet downplayed the case and started to threaten the mother with the ban of seeing her daughter. The case has not been closed yet.

Another mother during a visit secretly took photos of her teenage daughter to prove that she had been brutally strangled. The daughter claims that she has been repeatedly physically punished for any offence and that she was recently molested by a sixteen years old inmate of that institution. The Barnevernet claims that the evident bruise on the daughter’s neck is only an allergic reaction and refuses to deal with the case anymore. The Barnevernet refuses the sexual attacks as well and claims that the daughter had made everything up.  

About two years ago when I heard about the cases of beaten and raped children in Norwegian institutions and foster homes I did not want to believe them. And that is why I tried to verify all claims and spent many hours reading the cases and looking at the photos. I had a chance to meet with the abused children and their parents and I became confident that many of those cases were true.

When I asked Norwegian politicians about those cases, they mostly kept silent or said that nothing like that could be possibly true. Some responded that it was all about the “Russian propaganda” against Norway, because Russia hated Norway because with Norwegian crude oil and gas Europe was not dependent on Russia. This statement usually fades away with first photos of victims and records of cases. Then they fell silent or said that it had to be an isolated malpractice.

I am glad that they are Norwegians who documented cases of stealing children, their torture and abuse by employees of the Norwegian social services. This way it is not possible to claim that somebody from the outside made the cases up, that it is the “Russian propaganda”.

The sooner would be Norway able to look in the mirror regarding the Barnevernet and admit its mistakes, the sooner would be possible to do something with the malpractices of this organization. It is necessary that Norwegian politicians wake up and decide to take control over everything what has really happened with the “protection of children” in their country in recent years.

About the physical punishment in one institution in the document of the Norwegian television: https://tv.nrk.no/serie/brennpunkt/mdup11000214/04-03-2014#

Announcement about the closure of one institution because of the physical violence: https://www.fylkesmannen.no/Oslo-og-Akershus/Barn-og-foreldre/Barnevern/Varsel-om-palegg-om-nedlegging-av-driften-ved-korttidsavdelingen-ved-MK/

Articles about the violence and abuse of children in institutions and foster homes: http://www.barnasrett.no/fosterforeldre_tiltalt.htm

An article from the Norwegian newspaper Dagbladen called “Foster care is not the best”: http://www.dagbladet.no/2016/04/28/kultur/meninger/debatt/barnevern/fosterhjem/44023033/

Another article of the newspaper Aftenposten about a study describing those 42 punished employees of the Barnevernet who allowed 52 children to be abused. The study was necessary because Norwegian authorities do not keep statistics about “foster parents abusing children”. http://www.aftenposten.no/norge/52-barnevernsbarn-utsatt-for-grove-overgrep-172168b.html

[tomaszdechovskymep]

Illegal Weapons from the Balkans Threaten European Safety

The European Union, after the criticism from the side of the Members of the European Parliament, must strengthen its cooperation with South-East Europe. The aim of this intensive cooperation should be the reduction of the illicit trafficking of weapons which are more often getting to the western countries of the European Union through black markets and threaten the safety of its citizens.

The illicit trafficking of weapons is very well developed in the Balkan countries. These weapons are getting illegally to Western Europe and are used in terrorist attacks. The European Union should take the advice of police experts and buy up illegal weapons on the Balkans to decrease the availability of these weapons and thus reduce their price on black markets. We repeatedly and harshly criticize the adopted measures related to amnesties of illegally possessed weapons within the EU, primarily when negotiating with candidate countries from the Balkans.

The European Union accepted an action plan for 2015–2019 period. The aim of this action plan is to develop the information exchange and deepen the cooperation in the field of operative law enforcement and harmonization of legal regulations with the Balkan countries. According to the Members of the European Parliament the present plan is insufficient. The European Union should, in the manner of the Czech Republic, get illegal weapons under control.  However, the European Commission does not agree with that.

"The European Commission is working on even bigger restrictions of illegal flows of weapons towards the European Union, for example by the way of common measures, exchange programs for officials, and also by the extension of the activity of the program for illegal explosives.,“ replied Johannes Hahn, Austrian commissioner for neighbour policy, to my interpellation.

Johannes Hahn also says that apart from this initiative the European Union supports actions related to disarming and controlling of weapons in Western Balkans via SEESAC (The South Eastern and Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons).  "A lot of operative actions take place in this area and they have real and measurable results, for example co-ordinated destruction of small arms and light weapons in the whole region, better marking and tracking of these weapons and a campaign with the aim to collect and register illegal possession of such weapons in the region,” added Hahn.

The Members of the European Parliament definitely do not agree with that. According to the counter-terrorism experts there are up to three millions automatic weapons and grenades among people left after the Balkan war. I think that it is a huge risk. And that is why we would like this to be taken into account in the budget for 2017 and why we want the Commission to give the Balkan countries money to buy up the weapons.

[tomaszdechovskymep]

Germans Finally Understood the Threat of Islamism and Terrorism

Germans Finally Understood the Threat of Islamism and Terrorism

The spread of radical ideologies is one of the risks brought by the massive migration wave. Nevertheless, we should not blame the recent uncontrollable influx of refugees for everything, because the spread of the militant Islamism is a phenomenon which has been in Europe for some time already.  So what are the biggest risks brought by the present migration wave?

If we look at the list of offenders of the November attacks in Paris we find out that at least two of them came as “false” refugees from Syria. Insufficient checks at the EU borders eased the offenders’ activities. That is the impact of the problem I have been pointing out constantly, and it is that Greece must start to guard its borders consistently otherwise the consequences of its inactivity will be far-reaching for the whole Europe.   

“Imported” threat of Islamism?

Even Germany starts to realize the problem with radical Islamists. They are not always newcomers from the line of refugees, but activities of radicals in refugee facilities are quite well known already. Followers of the Salafi movement (an ultra-conservative Muslim movement aiming towards the fundamentals of Islam) are trying to use the religious ignorance of the coming refugees and win them over.

Joachim Zeller (CDU), MEP and the former mayor of Berlin, confirmed that Berlin is becoming a bastion of the radical Islamism, Salafism in particular. According to the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution there are 680 followers of Salafism in Berlin now and that is twice as much as in 2010. An insignificant 360 of them should be able to use violence or make a suicide attack. Moreover, an estimated 700 Salafists from Germany (100 from Berlin) left for Syria or Iraq to fight for the so called Islamic State.

These numbers are not very comforting. The other way around, it is clear that we should be alert against the expansion of the radical Islamism.

Antisemitism terrifies Europe again

In this context it is also necessary to mention Antisemitism. The radical Islamists (same as the majority of other radicals) tend to spread hatred for other people and for Jewish population as well. The radical Islamists are one (but not the only one) of the main participants having a share in attacks against Jews in Europe. Nevertheless, this phenomenon has been in Europe since before the uncontrollable influx of refugees.

Let’s remember the first series of the last year’s attacks in Paris or the attack on the Jewish museum in Brussels.  Many Jews are very frightened and intend to leave for Israel. Last year almost 8 000 Jews left France. Some Jews in other countries are afraid as well. For example in Sweden, Jews were the targets of anti-Semitic attacks made by Muslim immigrants six years ago already. In 2009, Swedish authorities registered 79 attacks of that kind.

Even though the phenomenon of anti-Semitic attacks is not new, Leo Pavlat, the director of the Czech Jewish Museum, says that the present increase of the anti-Jewish atmosphere is given by the fact that refugees often come from a Jew-unfriendly environment.  And I would like to add that I would consider it a tragedy if the radical Islamism caused the end of Judaism in Western Europe.

Europe is facing two threats

Europe must react to its inner and outer threats. For one thing it is the danger brought by the radical Islamism itself and for another it is the threat in the form of rising extremism. So the European Union has to face safety risks both from the outside and inside as well, and it is necessary to unconditionally prevent from both to keep Europe free. However, the success depends on the political courage to call real issues real names. And the fact that it is what politicians usually cannot do should be considered the biggest threat.