Children to be removed from family if they refuse to cooperate with welfare specialists, says minister

Children will be removed from the Žlabių family in the Ukmergė district if they refuse to cooperate with child welfare services, according to Social Protection and Labor Minister Inga Ruginienė. The minister emphasized that the state's primary goal is to provide comprehensive support to the family, but safety remains the top priority.

The situation gained public attention after reports surfaced about the State Child Rights Protection and Adoption Service's decision to remove six children from the family, including an infant who had died. The decision was reportedly based on a combination of circumstances indicating a need to ensure the children's safety, not solely on the infant's critical condition. Initially, the family agreed to cooperate, but recent reports suggest they have changed their minds.

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The Child Rights Protection Service is trying to establish contact, as there were indications that the family would engage and accept help. Our main goal is for the family to accept help and for the children to grow up in as safe an environment as possible. (...) But if the family refuses to accept help, then appropriate decisions will have to be made.

Ukmergė District Mayor Darius Varnas noted that the family is refusing medical services and holds anti-vaccination views. A preliminary investigation has been launched by the Vilnius Regional Prosecutor's Office into suspected abuse of parental rights or duties. Ruginienė reiterated that while the state prefers to keep families together, it will take necessary measures to protect children if the parents consistently refuse assistance and cooperation.

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The decision has been made that the children must be taken, but the state's goal is not to take children away from the family. The state's goal is for the family and children to have comprehensive support. That is what we are offering the family, and there is great hope that the family will accept this help. But if the family completely refuses this help, then, as I have said, our priority is the safety of the children.