The children have the right to take part in assemblies if these are peaceful and if the participation in these events do not pose a threat to the life and health of children and if their dignity is not affected. The children should be mandatorily accompanied by parents/legal representatives or by adults, at their discretion, said ombudswoman for children’s rights Maia Banarescu, IPN reports.

Maia Banarescu calls on the parents/legal representatives and public authorities to fulfill the obligation not to use the children to gain personal advantages or to influence decisions taken by public authorities.

The ombudswoman recommends the Government to add concrete provisions to the Law on Assemblies, the Contravention Code and the Penal Code and institute punishments for the involvement of minors in political events. She also recommends amending the legislation so as to oblige the organizers of mass events, especially parties and public organizations, to prove that the minors who attend public events came to these voluntarily and unforced.

The participation by children in different public events was in the focus of Maia Banarescu in 2016. The given problem was examined through the angle of international standards on the observance of children’s right to the freedom of expression, freedom of association and participation in peaceful assemblies.

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child provides that the parties should recognize the children’s right to the freedom of association and freedom of peaceful assembly, while the exercise of these rights can be prevented only by restrictions that are clearly defined in the law and that are necessary in a democratic society, in the interests of national security, safety or public order.