CANCELLOR OF JUSTICE AS OMBUDSMAN FOR CHILDREN A seminar to introduce the results of the monitoring was organised in the Office of the Chancellor on the International Day for the Protection of Children. The results were widely reported by the television, radio, printed and online media. The summary of the monitoring survey is available on the website of the Ombudsman for Children also in English and Russian alongside the full reports in Estonian. 2. PART II Although the majority of society does not support corporal punishment of children, almost four in ten parents find that in certain situations corporal punishment of children would be conceivable. One in four parents noted that during the past year they had rarely felt happy for their children. One fifth of the parents noted that they were often in stress. All this shows that parents need guidance and support in their role as parents. It is also necessary to make parents more aware of how to raise a child without violence and what consequences corporal punishment can have on the development of the child. PART III The monitoring also showed that both children and parents felt that they did not have sufficient time to be together with each other. It was also found that a quarter of the children do not live with their father. A child needs the care and closeness of both parents. Therefore, it is particularly important that parents should find time to talk to their children, to listen to them and spend time together. It is also important to support the relationships between a child and a parent living apart, except in cases where communicating with the parent living apart is not in the best interests of the child. PART I who notices a child in need of assistance should notify the child protection workers or the police about it. Advisory body to the Ombudsman for Children An advisory body to the Ombudsman for Children was established in 2011 to involve children in the work of the ombudsman. Participation in the work of the advisory body provides children an opportunity to express their views on issues which they find important and draw the attention of society to problems about which children are concerned. The work of the advisory body is regulated by a statute. Members of the advisory body are children under 18 years old, representing different children’s and youth organisations. The advisory body includes representatives from the following organisations: youth assembly of the Estonian Guides Association, the Estonian National Youth Council, the Estonian Scouts Association, Eesti 4H [Estonian 4H], Kodutütred [Girls’ corps of the Estonian Defence League], youth assembly of the Estonian Union for Child Welfare, Young Eagles, the Assembly of Student Councils, the Association of Pupils’ Representative Bodies, and the association Ühise Eesmärgi Nimel [For a Joint Cause]. In 2012, members of the advisory body met four times. At the meeting in January, discussions with advisers to the Ombudsman for Children were focused on the substance and principles of the rights of the child. The advisory body participated in preparing the questionnaire for the monitoring of the rights of the child and parenting in January, as well as in commenting the results of the monitoring in May. Members of the advisory body together with advisers of the Children’s Rights Department helped to select films for the programme of the spring youth films festival Just Film. In May the advisory body had a discussion with child psychiatrist Anne Kleinberg about the reasons, effects and consequences of corporal punishment. At the meeting in September, members of the advisory body expressed their opinions on the possibilities of raising children without violence, offering their solutions for supporting parents and raising awareness. 25

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