In Albania, the under-5 mortality rate is decreasing overall, falling from 45.5 deaths per 1,000 live births in 1989 to 15.1 per 1,000 live births in 2002. Deaths due to violence and poisoning represented a rate of 1.4 deaths per 1,000 live births in 1992, the only data available (TransMONEE 2004 database).
Systems of child protection are not set up to early identify cases of violence of children and this is illustrated by among other things the fact that Albania has only partially prohibited corporal punishment of children as a discipline measure. It is prohibited in schools and in the penal system, but not in care institutions or in the home. This illustrates the fact that violence against children is still considered a private issue and as a result the number of reported cases remains low.
Children
under 5 dying from poisoning and violence compared to all
causes,
per 1,000 live births (graph)
Domestic violence and reprisal killings are symptomatic of a general rise in violence in Albanian society, fuelled by the activities of criminal networks, the large number of illegal weapons on the streets, breakdown in traditionally strong community bonds and a resurgence of patriarchal attitudes. Domestic violence is not new in Albania, but has increased alongside poverty and family stress. Almost 60% of Albanian children witness some kind of violence at home. Parts of the country—particularly in the north—are seeing a revival of the Kanun, a mediaeval code of conduct that allows a husband to beat or kill his wife. There is no effective legal framework to protect women from such violence. Hundreds of children, mostly boys, are threatened by reprisal killings as a result of “blood feuds” that are also codified in the Kanun. These children become prisoners in their own homes, unable to realize their rights to education, play and participation in community life.
Poverty and violence fuel child trafficking, particularly to Greece and Italy. In the 1990s, there were reports of thousands of Albanian street children in Italy and Greece. According to the Greek police, 90% of the 300 children arrested for begging each year on the streets of Athens are Albanian. In 2002, almost 95% of children trafficked from Albania came from minority ethnic groups, such as the Roma, and other marginalized groups. The government is clamping down on the traffickers and latest figures suggest that child trafficking is falling. However, there are fears that the traffickers are going further underground.
Resources
Regional Consultation for the UN Study on Violence Against Children
Online
resource package (English - French - Russian)
