Gouzel Udachina: "Alcoholism and antisocial lifestyle are the main reasons for children becoming orphaned in Tatarstan"

On May 31, at Tatarstan Government House, speaking at a briefing on activities to protect children’s rights and interests in the best possible way in the republic, Children’s Rights Ombudsman in Tatarstan Gouzel Udachina said that alcoholism and antisocial lifestyle are the main reasons for children becoming orphaned in Tatarstan.

According to her, the problem of orphaned children is topical for Tatarstan. Since 2011 the republic has been implementing the Video-passport project, which gives an additional opportunity to find families for orphans.

Another project aimed at preventing orphanhood is the Point of Sobriety. According to Udachina, 75 per cent of 12,000 orphans are orphaned with their parents being alive. Eight per cent of them received the status of orphans because their parents were deprived of parental rights due to alcohol abuse and antisocial lifestyle. These are the main reasons for children becoming orphaned in Tatarstan. Each year, about one thousand people are deprived of their parental rights. At the same time 2015 saw a decrease in the number of such parents.

As many as 45 alcohol-addicted women from Tatarstan cities and regions having under-aged children were selected to take part in the project. They were offered an innovative treatment which lasted for six months. According to Udachina, 36 of 45 women underwent the complete course of treatment. As a result, 98 children who could become orphans continue to live with their families.