Clearly there is a need for more of the small "care in the community" type homes for some of the children, particularly those with less severe disabilities. I wonder if there is potential for some of us in western Europe to get involved in this? What I have in mind is perhaps working with UK based charities, building or adapting largish houses for use as childrens homes.
These would be in villages and would employ local people, suitably trained as carers. Numbers of children at a home would be limited, perhaps 6 or so in each home. Whilst fund raising would probably be from outside Bulgaria, villagers could be encouraged to donate surplus fruit & veg from their gardens. Perhaps with a proper balanced diet the children would not be the stick insect, malnourished scraps of humanity seen in the early part of the film.
Do you think this is a crack-pot idea or could it work? I've seen films about famine in Ethiopia and other crises but usually the problems seem too big for for an individual or small group of people to make a difference. This case seems different somehow. Bulgaria is not a war zone and does not suffer from shortages of food, fuel etc so the potential exists to vastly improve the lives of these children.
Hi,
I saw both of these docs and can now see that once this kind of information is passed onto the rest of the world things do seem to improve. I will support any venture that will help these children,but can i point out that the idea of Bulgaria joining the EU is to stamp out this poverty and lack of humane care for the children that are abandoned by there parents, Bulgaria needs to bring its people into the 21st century (can i ask) how a parent can turn there backs on a child that needs medication & love, is it lack of money or is it the parents that do not care a fig at the end of the day the parents need locking up .
there are numerous organisations working in bulgaria with the goal of eliminating institutions, all well before blewett shot her first film.
one such organisation is the tulip foundation http://www.tulipfoundation.net/
if you're thinking of doing anything here, why not get advise from organisations like them, that have years and years of experience?
I just want to add few details that usually can not be seen behind any documentary, leaflet or anything else that provokes our wish to change something, to take part in a charity initiative.
Yes, you are right, it's almost impossible for an individual with one-time aid or activity to change anything and moreover it's not even good for the children /many examples of this in BG/.
I used to work for a British charity /that operates in more than 10 countries in the world/ before Bulgaria joined the EU. Since 2007 /when Bg became part of the EU/ it no longer operates here BUT has local organisation, Bulgarian one, that has inharited its know-how and expertise to support the most vulnerable children in Bulgaria. With all this I am not trying to advertise one or another charity, just trying to say that in the basis of all is the problem of how sustainable one charity method or activity is. In order to influence and build the basis of any change you have to include the local authorities, the state social workers in these insitutions, etc.
I remember we had Children's house in Plovdiv, which was temporary home for the children we were trying to bring out from the institutions and place in families. And the project existed even after the British organisation withdrew from Bulgaria just because all the relevant local authorities were part of the project. Of course it makes the work sometimes much difficult but so far I don't think there is any other way....
I am sure the way out of this huge problem with institution is not making them look nicer and more comfortable ....... what is part of the most people "charity", but if you decide to do something ...which of course would be great, please ask first what the children in the particular insitution most need ... and may be inform if there are any nongovernmnet organisations that work with this institution and may be you could support their project.
Greetings!
r.
there are numerous organisations working in bulgaria with the goal of eliminating institutions, all well before blewett shot her first film.
one such organisation is the tulip foundation http://www.tulipfoundation.net/
if you're thinking of doing anything here, why not get advise from organisations like them, that have years and years of experience?
I read the relevant information on the Tulip Foundation site and was not impressed. They place a limitation on projects of 24 to 27 months, after which they presumably do their own abandoning act. So many charities seem to just provide help on a short term basis. I think in many cases this does more harm than good.
Of course it will be up to 27 months as there has to be certain goals for certain period of time not in general. Another reason is that its against the mission of the charities to make people dependent on their work. And most of all because for 2 years or even less the situation with one child changes, the needs of the child are completely different and the project must be adequate to the childrens needs.
And as I said one of the missions of the so called NGOs, charities, is to spread, implement the good practices and teach the local people state, municipalities how to practice them. All the childrens institutions are related to either the Ministry of education or the Ministry of health and ofcourse the local municipality. The role of the charity is to improve their work with good practices so it gives better result for childrens life. And when the project is over, then the activieties continue under the management of the municipality, like regular activities,no longer "project", means the project has sustainable results Or if the project hasn't achieved its goals then there is probably need for a different project.
There are examples of charities that work for ages on the same project, tight with the institution, and you can't actually feel a big change for the childrens life. It's even worse, the institution gets so dependent on the NGO, that the purpose and the goals have completely changed with the time.
It's such a complex problem ....... and yes there are many negative examples but there are many good ones as well.
If you get involved with the idea you will see that wherever you "touch", you will have to face a problem. And in order to solve it you have to get involved lots of people, institutions and also the local community.You have to have focus and realistic aims for particular deadline /as what the project does/.
First step - visit the institution, see how it operates, talk to the children. Understand who works with them, how many people .... And sometimes there are many children, not 10, 20, sometimes 100 and you have to have a project and work case by case. As even when there are 100 it's all about individual approach to every single child so you really make a difference with the institution.
By the way many NGOs have volunteers department.
I read the relevant information on the Tulip Foundation site and was not impressed. They place a limitation on projects of 24 to 27 months, after which they presumably do their own abandoning act. So many charities seem to just provide help on a short term basis. I think in many cases this does more harm than good.
fido, it is quite obvious that you are not familiar with their projects, many of which outlive the 24-27 month period because they have become SUPPORTED BY THE LOCAL COMMUNITY.
there is nothing sillier than for a country at the other end of the continent to spend years and years, pumping money into a project that can not create enough local support with its own local community to make it sustainable after an initial startup period.
additionally, as radish pointed out, needs change over time, so even if certain projects close after the two year period expires, that may not be because there was no local support. it may very well be that the original need no longer exists - in which case REAL CHANGE has been achieved, instead of foreign-funded bandaid applied.
Hi ya,
If these charities have been working in BG for many years why and how did the institutions get to this sad and sorry condition,is it only now that its been on BBC going to improve these childrens sorry lives.
Hi ya,
If these charities have been working in BG for many years why and how did the institutions get to this sad and sorry condition,is it only now that its been on BBC going to improve these childrens sorry lives.
.... hey, these institutions have existed for more than 60 years and still do ....... Can you count how many generations have been raised there?! And after the fall of the communist regime, it wasn't possible to just suddenly close all of them. Then were would more than 35 000 children have been placed, on the street?! When there weren't any alternative services. Unfortunately it's a complicated process and there is no NGO that could make the reform on its own... It's the whole child care system that has been changed ad is still changing ...... so that now the legislation is in line the EU laws. But you can't do anything without changing the law, you can't even enter in the institution to visit the child. I don't know why I write so much ....... but it really is not that easy ........ and many NGO's haven't done well but nothing can be done without failure. But also there were and are so many who changed the life of many children. Many of them, many foreign experts, came to Bulgaria to teach many Bulgarians what is actually social work, to show the good practices. You know how hard it is to change mantality and the whole state system, to CLOSE institutions. But on the other hand are the people who work there and will be left without jobs... Lets say we don't care about them but we need families who will do foster care and look after these children. Bulgarians haven't heard about foster care before about 10 years. Someone has to explain to them, train them so they can look after a child .....
It's really so hard.
Try, your way, your ideas and you will see, it will be great experience. And if the NGO's are wrong, then share it, as I am sure everyone want good future for the children.It's so much more than the awful trueth shown on the movies. It's so much more than bricks and walls. As even the children who live in the most ""comfortable"" institutions, are not at all happy. Why!? Simply because they are no individuals there, they don't get individual care, they are no individual case........ As there is one social worker per, lets say, 60 children... Can you imagine this with teenagers?!
By the way while we are discussing here, wondering if it's worth trying, it's another day more for an abandoned child in an institution...
Because of this I am happy there are NGOs as they are trying... at least... pushing the state to change...at least...
Tomorrow we will forget about the BBC movie but these children will still be there...
Excuse my emotionality.
P.S.If anyone is interested in the subject, try to find more information on how Romania closed all their institutions. It was a drastic change and see what came after that. Now they are very good example for foster care but it's interesting to get informed about the process....and who was involved in that.
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