The Romanian Police and the Kid's Hotline Association, with the support of the U.S. Embassy in Bucharest, kicked off a national campaign to prevent minors from intentionally going missing, respectively to reverse children's intentions to run away from home for various reasons.
"Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a sharp rise in children's intention to leave home voluntarily, as well as in child decisions to leave home, with kids seeking counseling from the psychologists of the Kid's Hotline Associatio, at 116111. According to data with our organization, in over 31.25 percent of the psychological counseling sessions offered, children saw running away from home as a solution to their problems, mainly amid problems in the child-parent relationship (41.3 percent), family abuse (35.7 percent), sentimental problems (15.2 percent), with girls' woes accounting for the highest share (83.5 percent)," executive director of the Kid's Hotline Association Catalina Surcel said on Monday.
The project, which runs under the motto "Leaving home is not a solution", is mainly aimed at raising awareness of the phenomenon of the minors' voluntary disappearance and the negative effects of this form of going missing.
The organizers of the campaign said that 3,277 minors were searched between January 1 and May 19 and 3,318 were found, some of the cases being reported previously and solved during this period.
"Preventing child victimization is a national priority of the Romanian Police. Disappearances of minors are handled in a fast-track procedure, as a child's departure from family or from the protection center causes a strong, highly impactful emotion among the community, with the focus being on the hypothetical situations of them being a victim," said police quaestor Virgil Spiridon, Romanian Police deputy inspector general.
The initiative is financed by the U.S. Embassy to Romania and will run until June 30, 2024.
Embassy security attaché Christopher Gruber said that protecting vulnerable people is a complex mission, which requires integrated strategies and joint efforts based on courage, altruism and determination, and remarked that the strength of a community is measured by the attitude towards its most vulnerable members and it is our duty as parents, guardians or law enforcement officers to always be dedicated to our children and to support educational and investigative initiatives for their best interests. AGERPRES
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