– It is absurd that children are forced to spend time with a person they should actually be protected from. During contact, there is a great danger of the child revealing his new identity, says professional leader Kristin Stokke at Stine Sofies Stiftelse. On Tuesday, they handed over a recent report, which has been named “Children’s Accident Investigation Board”, to the Storting politicians. It is the first time the foundation has published such a report. It deals with topics about children at a secret address, contact with perpetrators of violence and notification rules. Today, it is the case that children who live on “Code 6” can spend time with the perpetrator of violence. The foundation wants to put an end to that. Kristin Stokke is professional manager at Stine Sofies Stiftelse in Grimstad. She hopes the accident reports can contribute to learning. Photo: Heidi Ditlefsen / news Was killed by the father In Sweden, the debate about the rights of children is now raging. The background is the murder of eight-year-old Tintin. The district court decided that the boy should have two hours of contact with his father, despite the fact that the mother had warned. According to the mother, the ex-husband has been violent towards both her and her son. When the 8-year-old did not come home as agreed, the mother notified the police. The boy was found dead in his father’s home. At the weekend there were demonstrations in Sweden, where the demonstrators are demanding a change in the law, writes VG. They fight to ensure that children do not have to be forced to spend time with a parent who can harm them physically or psychologically. – No one has taken responsibility Stine Sofie’s Foundation is fighting for a change in the law here in Norway as well. The foundation believes that it is wrong for children who live on the run from one or more perpetrators to have contact with them. And especially the fact that the child must then watch out for everything that is said so that the new identity is not blown. – Placing that responsibility on a child is unreasonable and goes against all common sense, says Stokke. Endre Bendixen is legal advisor at the foundation. He says that it was a judgment that made them shed light on the Code 6 problem in the report. In the judgment last year, a mother had to appeal all the way to the Supreme Court to stop contact between her child and the person who wanted to take her mother. – We believe that, as a general rule, there cannot be coexistence between the person who carries out the threat and those who are protected by the Code 6 measure, says Bendixen. Legal adviser at Stine Sofies Stiftelse Endre Bendixen believes that the reverse violence alarm is used far too little. Photo: Per-Kåre Sandbakk / news The Minister for Children: – Very useful Now the foundation hopes that the annual reports will lead to a change. – We hope the politicians take this to heart and continue to work on it. We will not give up until the politicians have understood how important it is, says Bendixen. Already in 2018, the foundation, which works to prevent and uncover violence and abuse against children, asked the politicians to establish such a measure. – Since no one has taken on that responsibility, we will do it ourselves, he says. Minister for Children and Families Kjersti Toppe believes it is very useful that the foundation prepares reports on children’s legal security. In an e-mail to news, she writes that she has just received it and has not had time to familiarize herself with it yet. – There are important inputs in the work of the ministries, but it is too early for me to comment on the findings, says Toppe. Minister for Children and Families Kjersti Toppe (Sp) says they have started work on an escalation plan on violence and abuse against children and violence in close relationships. Photo: Tom Balgaard 750 children at a secret address Today, around 750 children live on this strict protection measure and, according to the foundation, are “on the run in their own country”. – They have to leave everything they have at short notice and are not allowed to tell their friends and family. Prior to this, they have experienced a lot of pain, says Stokke. The foundation believes that the reverse violence alarm should be used instead of Code 6. This means that the convicted person is prohibited from staying near the victim’s home. The person wears an electronic anklet that triggers an alarm with the police if the person breaks the prohibited zone. – We think the reverse violence alarm will solve a lot. Then you shift the responsibility onto the perpetrator while the family and children are protected. – Why is the reverse violence alarm not used in these cases today? – It is probably a mixture of the fact that the regulations are not there and that there are technical challenges. We believe that when you have a solution that can work, the politicians must invest in it, says Bendixen. Endre Bendixen and Line Duesund Svendsen are legal advisers at Stine Sofie’s foundation. They say that togetherness after violence is one of the topics they are often asked about. Photo: Heidi Ditlefsen / news
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The Children’s Accident Investigation Board will strengthen children’s legal security – news Sørlandet – Local news, TV and radio
