Georgette Mulheir: The tragedy of orphanages

Prevodilac: Tereza Ivanovic Lektor: Tatjana Jevdjic

Across Europe and Central Asia,

Širom Evrope i centralne Azije

approximately one million children live in large

približno milion dece živi u velikim

residential institutions, usually known as orphanages.

ustanovama poznatim kao sirotišta.

Most people imagine orphanages as a benign environment

Većina ljudi zamišlja da su sirotišta pogodna okruženja

that care for children.

koja brinu o deci.

Others know more about the living conditions there,

Neki znaju više o uslovima života u njima

but still think they're a necessary evil.

pa ipak misle da su sirotišta nužno zlo.

After all, where else would we put all of those children

Na kraju krajeva, gde bi smestili svu tu decu

who don't have any parents?

koja nemaju roditelje?

But 60 years of research has demonstrated

Ali šezdesetogodišnje istraživanje pokazuje

that separating children from their families

da odvajanje dece od njihovih porodica

and placing them in large institutions

i njihov smeštaj u velike institucije

seriously harms their health and development,

ozbiljno šteti njihovom zdravlju i razvoju,

and this is particularly true for young babies.

ovo važi posebno za male bebe.

As we know, babies are born

Kao što znamo, bebe se rađaju

without their full muscle development,

bez potpune razvijenosti mišića

and that includes the brain.

i mozga.

During the first three years of life, the brain grows

Tokom prve tri godine života mozak

to its full size, with most of that growth taking place

dostiže punu veličinu, a najviše raste

in the first six months. The brain develops

u prvih šest meseci. Mozak se razvija

in response to experience and to stimulation.

kao odgovor na iskustvo i podražaj.

Every time a young baby learns something new --

Svaki put kada beba nauči nešto novo -

to focus its eyes,

da fokusira oči,

to mimic a movement or a facial expression,

da podražava pokret ili izraz lica,

to pick something up, to form a word or to sit up --

da podigne nešto, da oblikuje reč ili da sedne -

new synaptic connections are being built in the brain.

izgrađuju se nove sinaptičke veze u mozgu.

New parents are astonished by the rapidity of this learning.

Mladi roditelji su zapanjeni brzinom ovog učenja.

They are quite rightly amazed and delighted by their children's cleverness.

Sa pravom su zadivljeni i ushićeni pameću svoje dece.

They communicate their delight to their children,

Prenose svoju ushićenost na decu

who respond with smiles,

koja im uzvraćaju osmesima

and a desire to achieve more and to learn more.

i željom da postignu i nauče još više.

This forming of the powerful attachment between child and parent

Izgradnjom snažne povezanosti između deteta i roditelja

provides the building blocks for physical, social,

sklapaju se kockice za fizički, društveni,

language, cognitive and psychomotor development.

jezički, kognitivni i psihomotorni razvoj.

It is the model for all future relationships with friends,

Ovo je model za sve buduće veze sa prijateljima,

with partners and with their own children.

partnerima i svojom decom.

It happens so naturally in most families

U većini porodica ovo se dešava tako prirodno

that we don't even notice it. Most of us are unaware

da čak i ne primećujemo. Većina nas nije ni svesna važnosti ove veze

of its importance to human development and, by extension,

za ljudski razvoj i nadalje

to the development of a healthy society.

za razvoj zdravog društva.

And it's only when it goes wrong that we start to realize

Samo kada krene po zlu, počinjemo da shvatamo

the importance of families to children.

važnost porodice za decu.

In August, 1993, I had my first opportunity to witness

U avgustu 1993. imala sam prvu priliku da budem svedok

on a massive scale the impact on children

velikog uticaja institucionalizacije i

of institutionalization and the absence of parenting.

odsustva roditeljstva na decu.

Those of us who remember the newspaper reports

Oni koji se sećaju novinskih izveštaja

that came out of Romania after the 1989 revolution

koji su stizali iz Rumunije posle revolucije 1989.,

will recall the horrors of the conditions in some of those institutions.

setiće se užasnih uslova u nekim od tih institucija.

I was asked to help the director of a large institution to

Zamolili su me da pomognem direktoru jedne velike institucije

help prevent the separation of children from their families.

da se spreči odvajanje dece od svojih porodica.

Housing 550 babies, this was Ceausescu's show orphanage,

Ovo sirotište sa 550 dece je služilo Čaušeskuu za pokazivanje,

and so I'd been told the conditions were much better.

pa su mi rekli da su uslovi bili mnogo bolji.

Having worked with lots of young children, I expected

Pošto sam radila sa mnogo male dece,

the institution to be a riot of noise,

očekivala sam da ovde bude veoma bučno,

but it was as silent as a convent.

ali bilo je tiho, kao u manastiru.

It was hard to believe there were any children there at all,

Bilo je teško poverovati da je tamo uopšte bilo dece,

yet the director showed me into room after room,

ipak me je direktor sproveo iz sobe u sobu,

each containing row upon row of cots,

u svakoj su bili redovi krevetaca

in each of which lay a child staring into space.

i u svakom je ležalo dete zureći u plafon.

In a room of 40 newborns, not one of them was crying.

U prostoriji sa 40 novorođenih, nijedno od njih nije plakalo.

Yet I could see soiled nappies, and I could see

Ipak, videla sam prljave pelene, videla sam

that some of the children were distressed,

da su neka deca bila uznemirena,

but the only noise was a low, continuous moan.

a jedino što se čulo, bilo je tiho, konstantno jecanje.

The head nurse told me proudly,

Glavna sestra mi je ponosno rekla:

"You see, our children are very well-behaved."

"Vidite kako su naša deca dobra."

Over the next few days, I began to realize

Tokom sledećih nekoliko dana počela sam da shvatam

that this quietness was not exceptional.

da ova tišina nije bila nešto neobično.

The newly admitted babies would cry for the first few hours,

Novoprimljene bebe bi plakale prvih nekoliko sati,

but their demands were not met, and so eventually

ali pošto nisu izašli u susret njihovim zahtevima

they learned not to bother. Within a few days,

na kraju su naučile da ne smetaju,

they were listless, lethargic, and staring into space

bile su bezvoljne, letargične i gledale su u prazno

like all the others.

kao i sve ostale.

Over the years, many people and news reports

Tokom godina su mnogi ljudi i novinski izveštaji

have blamed the personnel in the institutions

optuživali osoblje u ovim ustanovama

for the harm caused to the children, but often, one member

za zlo koje su naneli deci, ali često samo je

of staff is caring for 10, 20, and even 40 children.

jedna osoba brinula o 10, 20 ili čak četrdesetoro dece.

Hence they have no option but to implement a regimented program.

Zato nisu imali drugog izbora nego da primenjuju disciplinovani program.

The children must be woken at 7 and fed at 7:30.

Decu su budili u 7 i hranili u pola 8.

At 8, their nappies must be changed, so a staff member

U 8 sati pelene su morale biti promenjene, pa je jedan član osoblja

may have only 30 minutes to feed 10 or 20 children.

imao možda 30 minuta da nahrani desetoro ili dvadesetoro dece,

If a child soils its nappy at 8:30, he will have to wait

a ako bi neko dete isprljalo pelenu u pola devet, moralo bi da čeka

several hours before it can be changed again.

nekoliko sati do sledećeg presvlačenja.

The child's daily contact with another human being

Dnevni kontakt deteta sa drugim ljudskim bićem

is reduced to a few hurried minutes of feeding and changing,

svodio se na nekoliko užurbanih minuta tokom hranjenja i presvlačenja

and otherwise their only stimulation is the ceiling,

i jedina njihova stimulacija se svela na plafon,

the walls or the bars of their cots.

na zidove i rešetke njihovih krevetaca.

Since my first visit to Ceausescu's institution,

Od moje prve posete Čaušeskuovoj instituciji

I've seen hundreds of such places across 18 countries,

videla sam na stotine takvih mesta u 18 zemalja,

from the Czech Republic to Sudan.

od Češke Republike do Sudana.

Across all of these diverse lands and cultures,

U svim ovim udaljenim zemljama i kulturama

the institutions, and the child's journey through them,

ove institucije i prolazak dece kroz njih,

is depressingly similar.

bile su poražavajući iste.

Lack of stimulation often leads to self-stimulating behaviors

Nedostatak stimulacije često vodi do postupaka samo-stimulacije

like hand-flapping, rocking back and forth,

kao što je pljeskanje rukama, klaćenje napred-nazad

or aggression, and in some institutions, psychiatric drugs

ili do agresije i u nekim ustanovama se koriste psihijatrijski lekovi

are used to control the behavior of these children,

za kontrolu ponašanja ove dece,

whilst in others, children are tied up to prevent them

dok se u nekim drugim ustanovama deca vezuju da bi se sprečilo

from harming themselves or others.

da povrede sebe ili druge.

These children are quickly labeled as having disabilities

Ova deca su ubrzo obeležena kao ometena

and transferred to another institution for children with disabilities.

i prebacuju se u drugu instituciju za decu ometenu u razvoju.

Most of these children will never leave the institution again.

Mnoga deca više nikad neće napustiti instituciju.

For those without disabilities, at age three,

Ona, koja nisu ometena, sa tri godine

they're transferred to another institution, and at age seven,

se prebacuju u drugu ustanovu, a sa sedam godina,

to yet another. Segregated according to age and gender,

opet u neku drugu. Odvojena su po godištu i polu,

they are arbitrarily separated from their siblings,

proizvoljno su odvojena od svoje braće i sestara

often without even a chance to say goodbye.

često i bez mogućnosti da se oproste jedni od drugih.

There's rarely enough to eat. They are often hungry.

Retko ima dovoljno hrane. Ona su često gladna.

The older children bully the little ones. They learn to

Starija deca zlostavljaju mlađu. Ona uče da prežive.

survive. They learn to defend themselves, or they go under.

Uče da se brane, inače propadaju.

When they leave the institution, they find it really difficult

Kad napuste instituciju, zaista im je teško

to cope and to integrate into society.

da se snađu i integrišu u društvo.

In Moldova, young women raised in institutions

U Moldaviji, mlade žene koje su odrasle u institucijama

are 10 times more likely to be trafficked than their peers,

deset puta su više žrtve trgovine ljudima nego njihove vršnjakinje

and a Russian study found that two years after leaving institutions,

i jedno rusko istraživanje je otkrilo da je, dve godine nakon napuštanja ustanove,

young adults, 20 percent of them had a criminal record,

20 posto tih mladih ljudi imalo kriminalni dosije,

14 percent were involved in prostitution,

njih 14 posto je bilo umešano u prostituciju

and 10 percent had taken their own lives.

i 10 posto je oduzelo sebi život.

But why are there so many orphans in Europe

Zašto ima toliko siročadi u Evropi

when there hasn't been a great deal of war or disaster in recent years?

kad u skorije vreme nije bilo ratova ili nekih katastrofa?

In fact, more than 95 percent of these children have living parents,

U stvari, više od 95 posto ove dece ima žive roditelje,

and societies tend to blame these parents

ali društvo je sklono da okrivi ove roditelje

for abandoning these children, but research shows that

za zapostavljanje dece, ali istraživanja pokazuju

most parents want their children, and that the primary drivers

da većina roditelja želi svoju decu i da su primarni pokretači

behind institutionalization

institucionalizacije

are poverty, disability and ethnicity.

siromaštvo, invalidnost i etnička pripadnost.

Many countries have not developed inclusive schools,

Mnoge države nisu razvile inkluzivne škole,

and so even children with a very mild disability

pa se deca sa blagom ometenošću

are sent away to a residential special school,

šalju u specijalne škole

at age six or seven.

kada imaju šest ili sedam godina.

The institution may be hundreds of miles away from the family home.

Te ustanove mogu biti udaljene na stotine kilometara od porodičnog doma.

If the family's poor, they find it difficult to visit,

Ako je porodica siromašna, teško će posećivati decu

and gradually the relationship breaks down.

i međusobna veza se postepeno gasi.

Behind each of the million children in institutions,

Iza svakog od miliona dece u ustanovama

there is usually a story of parents who are desperate

postoji priča o roditeljima koji su očajni

and feel they've run out of options, like Natalia in Moldova,

i koji osećaju da nemaju više izbora, kao što je i Natalija iz Moldavije,

who only had enough money to feed her baby,

koja je imala dovoljno novca samo za ishranu svoje bebe,

and so had to send her older son to the institution;

pa je morala da pošalje starijeg sina u ustanovu;

or Desi, in Bulgaria, who looked after her four children

ili Desi, u Bugarskoj, koja je pazila svoje četvoro dece

at home until her husband died,

dok joj muž nije umro,

but then she had to go out to work full time,

a zatim je morala da radi puno radno vreme,

and with no support, felt she had no option

bez pomoći, nije imala drugog izbora,

but to place a child with disabilities in an institution;

nego da smesti ometeno dete u ustanovu;

or the countless young girls too terrified to tell their parents

ili stotine mladih devojaka koje se užasavaju da kažu svojim roditeljima

they're pregnant, who leave their babies in a hospital;

da su trudne, pa ostavljaju svoje bebe u bolnici;

or the new parents, the young couple who have

ili mladi roditelji, jedan mladi par

just found out that their firstborn child has a disability,

koji je upravo otkrio da je njihovo prvorođeno dete ometeno u razvoju

and instead of being provided with positive messages

i umesto da ih posavetuju pozitivnim porukama

about their child's potential, are told by the doctors,

o potencijalima deteta, doktori su im rekli:

"Forget her, leave her in the institution,

"Zaboravite na nju, ostavite je u ustanovi,

go home and make a healthy one."

idite kući i napravite jedno zdravo dete."

This state of affairs is neither necessary nor is it inevitable.

Ovakvo stanje stvari nije ni nužno ni neizbežno.

Every child has the right to a family, deserves

Svako dete ima pravo na porodicu, zaslužuje

and needs a family, and children are amazingly resilient.

i treba da ima porodicu i deca su neverovatno otporna.

We find that if we get them out of institutions and into loving

Ako ih rano izvadimo iz ustanova i smestimo u brižne

families early on, they recover their developmental delays,

porodice, ona nadoknade svoje gubitke u razvoju

and go on to lead normal, happy lives.

i nastavljaju normalan, srećan život.

It's also much cheaper to provide support to families

Takođe, mnogo je jeftinije pružiti pomoć hraniteljskim porodicama,

than it is to provide institutions.

nego obezbediti institucije.

One study suggests that a family support service

Jedno istraživanje navodi da podrška hraniteljskim porodicama

costs 10 percent of an institutional placement,

košta 10 posto od smeštaja u ustanovu,

whilst good quality foster care

dok kvaliteno hraniteljstvo

costs usually about 30 percent.

košta obično oko 30 posto.

If we spend less on these children but on the right services,

Ako potrošimo manje na decu, a više na prave usluge,

we can take the savings and reinvest them in high quality

uštedu možemo reinvestirati u visoko kvalitetnu brigu

residential care for those few children with extremely complex needs.

za decu sa izuzetno kompleksnim potrebama.

Across Europe, a movement is growing to shift the focus

Širom Evrope se razvija pokret da bi se pomerio fokus

and transfer the resources from large institutions

i preneli resursi sa velikih institucija,

that provide poor quality care to community-based services

koje pružaju oskudnu brigu, na usluge koje pruža

that protect children from harm and allow them to develop

lokalna zajednica, koja štiti decu od nepravde i omogućava razvijanje

to their full potential. When I first started to work in Romania

njihovog punog potencijala. Kada sam počela da radim u Rumuniji

nearly 20 years ago, there were 200,000 children living

pre skoro 20 godina, 200 000 dece je živelo

in institutions, and more entering every day.

u ustanovama i broj im se povećavao svakog dana.

Now, there are less than 10,000, and

Sada ih ima manje od 10 000

family support services are provided across the country.

i širom zemlje se podržavaju hraniteljske porodice.

In Moldova, despite extreme poverty and the terrible effects

U Moldaviji, uprkos ekstremnom siromaštvu i užasnim posledicama

of the global financial crisis, the numbers of children

svetske ekonomske krize, broj dece u

in institutions has reduced by more than 50 percent

institucijama se smanjio za više od 50 posto

in the last five years, and the resources are being

u poslednjih pet godina, a resursi su

redistributed to family support services and inclusive schools.

usmereni na hraniteljske porodice i inkluzivne škole.

Many countries have developed national action plans for change.

Mnoge zemlje su razvile nacionalne akcione planove.

The European Commission and other major donors

Evropska komisija i drugi značajni donatori

are finding ways to divert money from institutions

pronalaze načine da usmere novac iz institucija

towards family support, empowering communities

ka hraniteljskim porodicama, osnažuju zajednice

to look after their own children.

da brinu o svojoj deci.

But there is still much to be done to end the systematic

Ali još uvek ima mnogo toga da se uradi da bi se

institutionalization of children.

okončala institucionalizacija dece.

Awareness-raising is required at every level of society.

Potrebno je podizanje svesti na svim društvenim nivoima.

People need to know the harm that institutions cause to children,

Potrebno je upoznati ljude sa nepravdom koju te institucije nanose deci

and the better alternatives that exist.

i da postoje bolje alternative.

If we know people who are planning to support orphanages,

Ako poznajemo ljude koji planiraju da pomažu sirotišta,

we should convince them to support family services instead.

trebalo bi da ih ubedimo da umesto toga pomognu hraniteljske porodice.

Together, this is the one form of child abuse

Ovo je jedan od oblika zlostavljanja dece

that we could eradicate in our lifetime.

koji bismo mogli da iskorenimo zajedno.

Thank you. (Applause)

Hvala. (Aplauz)

(Applause)

(Aplauz)