At a sitting chaired by National Assembly Speaker and Working Group Chairperson Prof. Dr Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic, the Children’s Rights Working Group discussed its 2010 Activity Plan. The Head of the UNICEF Serbia Office Judita Reichenberg took part in the proceedings.

At the beginning of the sitting, the National Assembly Speaker estimated that the Working Group’s activities so far have justified its creation adding that due to the relevance and importance of the issues it deals with, with the drafting of the new National Assembly Rules of Procedure it should be transformed into an assembly committee.

Assembly Speaker Djukic-Dejanovic stressed that this year’s Activity Plan sets a semimonthly meeting schedule for the Working Group to analyse laws from the sphere of children’s rights protection currently in assembly procedure, in the presence of representatives of competent ministries, experts and independent bodies. The Working Group members are expected to take part in the debate on the new law on social care in March, and, in cooperation with the Children’s Rights Deputy Ombudsman, discuss a new, comprehensive law on children in May. The drafting of the law was said to be preceded by an exhaustive analysis of the enforcement of existing laws from the aspect of children’s rights.

Seminars, conferences and public hearings shall also be organised in order to raise awareness among the deputies and Government representatives on the situation in this sphere. The UNICEF Serbia Office shall aid this effort with its expertise and funds for the organisation of gatherings.

The Working Group members emphasised the importance of the National Assembly’s oversight role over the enforcement of adopted laws, to which end they would forward a request that the competent ministries submit reports on the effect of the implementation of laws and strategies dealing with children’s rights protection. Several visits to local self-governments will be organised with this in mind.

The Working Group members’ study visit to the German Bundestag was also discussed at the sitting.

At the sitting, the Working Group members also adopted the Information on the action they implemented, viz. the donation of a day’s wage to assist the 11 April pre-school institution in New Belgrade.