Recently, more and more terrible news about the beating and merciless exploitation of orphans has appeared in the media. Behind the high walls of boarding schools hides a reality that is more like a terrible nightmare. Instead of care and safety, these children find themselves in a world of violence where their rights are violated on a daily basis. They live in cramped, cold rooms, where the walls are covered with mold, often without proper nutrition, and the worst thing is under constant pressure from educators who, instead of supporting them, systematically abuse them. Such cases are shocking and make you wonder: how is this possible in today’s world? Why is the activity of children’s institutions not monitored by the Ministry of Education and Science and other regulatory bodies that are supposed to stand guard over children’s rights? Why do these children remain invisible to a society that stubbornly turns a blind eye to their suffering?
How can a teacher or educator, a person trusted by children, use their power to abuse and exploit? Where is the Ministry of Education and Science, which should stand guard over the rights of these children? Why do inspections turn into formal procedures that do not change anything? These questions remain unanswered and the suffering continues.
Defenseless in a world of cruelty
These children lost everything: family, love, home. They feel only loneliness and pain, and when they enter a boarding school, they hope for at least some kind of support. But instead of care, they find themselves in a trap of cruelty, where educators, who should have been their support, turn into real executioners. Within the walls of boarding schools, behind closed doors, these children suffer daily from beatings, humiliations and exhausting work, which is abused by their own teachers. They become slaves in the system that should protect them. Their childhoods are being taken away by a brutal system that seems to have forgotten humanity and basic care.
Children deprived of parental protection end up in boarding schools with the hope of asylum. However, for many of them, these hopes are crushed under the weight of bullying and fear. Dirty basements, cold rooms, insufficient food – only the beginning of what awaits them. Educators, who should be an example for them, abuse them: beatings, insults and humiliation become commonplace. The daily life of these children turns into a continuous horror from which there is no escape.
How can you imagine a teacher or educator who raises a hand on a defenseless child, humiliates him, forces him to work on the farm of a boarding school without any reward? Such people cannot be called teachers – they lose their human form, turning into tyrants who derive pleasure from other people’s suffering. They exercise power over children with impunity, who have nowhere to run and whose voices are not heard.
One of such places of horror was the educational rehabilitation center in Lviv region, where the management of the institution became famous for the fact that instead of care and rehabilitation, it carried out systematic psychological, physical and sexual violence against children who were already in difficult life circumstances. Orphans, children deprived of parental care, children in difficult life circumstances and children with special educational needs found themselves in even worse conditions than they could have imagined.
It is shocking that the abuse of children by their own teachers has continued all this time, while the National Police and local children’s services and the Department of Education have remained blind and deaf to the statements of children and people acting in their interests, who have been trying to attract attention for six months to this terrible abuse.
The Internet appeared on the network video, on which the moment of the beating of the pupil with a rod by the teacher of the rehabilitation center and also in front of other pupils was recorded. The shocking case came to the attention of the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Dmytro Lubinets, who took the case under personal control, and the Minister of Social Policy, Oksana Zholnovich stated about the importance of conducting systematic control over the living conditions of children in similar institutions. And the question arises, is this one such case? It is likely that this incident became a litmus test that revealed how unhealthy the atmosphere is in many institutions where children are forced to live in constant stress with no hope of protection.
Despite the statements of the authorities, the other day it became known about another boarding house in the Transcarpathian region, where the director supplied his pupils as free labor for picking apples for a local enterprise. During the inspection by the representative of the authorities in Zakarpattia Oblast, the facts of the beating of one of the pupils by the director himself also came to light. This act of violence was witnessed by his deputy and one of the pupils who tried to stop the use of physical force.
The director was also not averse to extorting funds from disadvantaged children. Thus, during the review of the documentation, 12 statements were found, allegedly from pupils, written in the same handwriting, in which it was a request to use funds in the amount of UAH 5,100, and the furniture itself was not accounted for in the institution. And this despite the fact that such a case of violations is not isolated. After all, gross violations of children’s rights were discovered in the boarding school before. According to the reports of the monitoring visit to the shelter:
- children of school age are not provided with proper nutrition;
- the right to education of children who are not native speakers of the Hungarian language and are supposed to study in grades 10-11 is violated, they are deprived of the right to education, because in the settlement where the Shelter is located, there is only a general education institution of grades I-III for students of grades 10-11 with the Hungarian language of instruction (distance learning is not organized);
- workplaces are not suitable for full-time training, there is no access to the Internet.
In addition, there are no comfortable living conditions at all. Children’s bedside tables do not contain children’s personal belongings and hygiene products. The walls in the rooms are covered with perennial mold. For children with disabilities, life is completely unbearable, because there are no conditions for their movement. In the conditions of war, when moving to shelters plays a primary role in saving life, the boarding house does not have such a room, and, therefore, the children’s right to life and safety is violated. Childhood should be spent in conditions of joy and constant development. At the same time, no entertainment and educational activities are provided for the residents of this house, except for watching movies and cartoons.
The terrible situation exists not only in boarding schools. It became known how lawless children in detention centers are. This is confirmed by Kryvyi Rih Penitentiary No. 3. Being in such places, children do not correct themselves, but even more plunge into the world of darkness, left to their own devices. There, children can wait years for a trial. The cells are overcrowded, and there isn’t even a bed for everyone. Teenagers are forced to sleep on the floor, in conditions of eternal cold or heat. Hygiene is a luxury they can rarely afford. Instead of hot water, there is a cold shower once a week, and the toilets are often not separated from the common space.
Minors often become victims of abuse by adult inmates, because the administration of the pre-trial detention center does not always follow the rules of distribution by age. Fights, humiliation, psychological pressure – all this becomes part of their daily reality. The state of nutrition remains terrible. If the child has health problems or bans on any products for other reasons, then he can only rely on relatives or cellmates, if they agree to help them. They usually give balanda, which stinks of sauerkraut. In institutions such as detention centers, there is no control over the educational process at all. All premises have a high level of unsanitary conditions. No one takes care of children’s leisure time in these institutions, there is a complete lack of medical and psychological assistance. Juveniles who have spent years behind bars do not receive proper education, do not have the skills to integrate into society, and systemic indifference only deepens their isolation. Even after release, they remain prisoners of their past.
But are children left defenseless only in boarding schools and detention centers? The case in Kharkiv region proved that even in an ordinary school, a place where children should be safe, a threat lurks. Thus, law enforcement officers exposed a former physical education teacher who, according to the investigation, committed sexual acts of a violent nature against boys aged 12-14 years while working as a teacher in various educational institutions of the city. He became the personification of betrayal of the teaching profession. Instead of teaching children not only the strength of the body, but also the spirit, he chose the path of humiliation and satisfaction of his painful needs hiding behind the mask of authority. In his hands was not only health, but also the trust of children, which he easily destroyed. Such acts show contempt for the sanctity of the teaching profession, which requires not only knowledge, but also morality, sensitivity and love.
It is difficult to understand that people who should stand guard over children’s souls, called to the most sacred work – education and upbringing, are capable of cruelty. Teachers and educators, who should be the light in children’s lives, can become a source of pain and humiliation. They forget that every child, every student is an individual who deserves respect and support, regardless of their abilities or weaknesses. Every student comes to school with the hope of support, understanding and knowledge, but it happens that they are met with indifference or, even worse, aggression.
But the question is not only for the so-called teachers. Where was the Ministry of Education and Science and other regulatory bodies when such arbitrariness was taking place under their watch? Are you so immersed in the process of devising destructive reforms that you have lost sight of the most important thing – the safety of our children? The answer may lie on the surface – the system is closed, and even those with the right to inspect often turn a blind eye to the atrocities taking place within. Reports that remain only piles of papers, negligence of officials, bribery – all this allows crimes against children to continue for years.
Attitude towards orphans and the image of a teacher in foreign countries
In general, orphans are not considered “forgotten” or “second-rate” in foreign countries. Much attention is paid to the fact that educators are not just supervisors, but real mentors and protectors. Therefore, in these countries, the moral image of the educator is associated with empathy, responsibility and professionalism.
In many foreign countries, the moral image of an educator has a completely different basis, based on the principles of respect, care and responsibility. Caregivers are seen as people who not only ensure the physical safety of children, but also help them develop emotionally and socially. This approach is based on the understanding that orphans are the most vulnerable members of society and deserve special attention.
In foreign countries, educators and teachers are held to high ethical standards and professionalism. Educators in many countries must undergo special training, which includes the study of child psychology, emotional support techniques and ethical norms. This training is aimed at ensuring that caregivers can provide not only care, but also psychological support to children who have lost their families.
In Europe and the USA, orphans are often raised in small groups or foster families, where an individual approach is preferred. This means that each child receives attention according to their needs. This approach helps children feel more protected and important. In most countries of Western Europe and North America, the state supports a program of social integration for orphans, where special attention is paid to the development of social skills, psychological rehabilitation and education. Educators play a key role in helping children find themselves in society, restore emotional balance and develop self-confidence.
Educators themselves are subject to strict control by the state, social services and public organizations. In the case of violations of the child’s rights, in particular abuse or neglect of duties, educators face serious legal consequences, and children are immediately moved to safe conditions. Educators in countries such as Canada, the Netherlands, and Sweden often work with psychologists and other professionals to help children overcome psychological trauma. They not only control children’s behavior, but also help them resolve internal conflicts through therapy and communication. In most Western countries, educators strive to create an atmosphere in which children can feel safe. Orphans here are not perceived as a burden, but as those who need special attention and love.
Abuse of children in Ukrainian children’s institutions is a shameful fact that has no excuses. State bodies, which are supposed to ensure the safety and protection of the most vulnerable, demonstrate inaction and indifference to these problems, sometimes creating the appearance of frenetic activity. Every case of violence is a failure of the entire system, which is called to stand guard over childhood. The lack of proper control and punishment of guilty persons undermines trust in the institutions that should ensure the safety of children. Such inaction not only allows these crimes to continue, but also makes the state complicit in this process.
