Children's rights must not prevent rehabilitation in child protection institutions

Reforms to child protection laws should empower institutions to better safeguard children's lives, even if it requires increasing restrictions on their self-determination, argues a reader in Helsingin Sanomat. Nearly five thousand children are placed in institutions annually, with costs reaching approximately one billion euros each year.

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I hope that the reform of the child protection law will give institutions the means to secure the child's life, even if it means increasing restrictive measures on children's self-determination.

The author questions whether these placements are an effective solution, suggesting current laws fail to truly save children. The proposed reforms aim to give child protection institutions more authority to intervene in children's physical integrity and to retrieve runaways without police involvement. The piece also advocates for limiting the freedom of movement for children who cannot adhere to established rules.

Each child on a runaway excursion faces risks of becoming a victim or perpetrator of crime, and is vulnerable to exploitation without safe housing. The author believes new laws should also address the daily routines of institutionalized children, particularly concerning sleep patterns disrupted by phone use. This can hinder school attendance and the fulfillment of compulsory education.

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Every institution's youth is at risk of becoming a victim or perpetrator of crime on their runaway trips.

Drawing on experience as a teacher in a children's home from 1987 to 2012, the author recalls strict rules that were necessary for children with self-destructive or boundaryless pasts. These rules, however, fostered respect and care from the children towards the adults. The author notes that many former residents still maintain contact, expressing gratitude for the boundaries set and the care they received.

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The rules in institutions were thus strict, and they should have been for young people whose lives had been self-destructive and limitless before coming to the institution.