Romania’s minister of family announces intention to close orphanages, a 16-year unfulfilled promise

Romania’s minister of family Gabriela Firea announced the Government’s intention to close all orphanages and move children to family-style homes, a project that is almost two decades in the making.

“Closing all placement centers, the so-called orphanages, in the country is our primordial interest, so that children left in the care of the state will have a better, warmer, friendlier life in [the care of] foundations or in family-style homes,”said Gabriela Firea, Romania’s minister of family, youth and equal opportunities. She added that there are currently nearly 47,000 children in orphanages throughout the country, out of which six thousand are up for adoption.

Romania has a dark past when it comes to orphanages. In the aftermath of the 1989 revolution that toppled the communist dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu, a series of pictures came out showing the squalid conditions in orphanages. Subsequent investigations estimated that between 1966 and 1989 there were up to 20,000 unnecessary deaths of children left in the care of the state. The vast majority of those who died were disabled.

“Roughly 70% of the registered deaths were from pneumonia. They were dying of external causes that were preventable and treatable,” said Florin Soare, an investigator, quoted byThe Guardian.

Firea’s recently announced intention, however, has been part of the Government’s commitments for years.

The orphanages began to close prior to Romania’s accession to the European Union. In 2006, officials at the Child Protection Authority,cited by The Irish Times, were saying that only “30 childcare centers with over 100 children each” were still operational, and that they would be soon modernized or closed.

Years later, some communist-era orphanages were stillup and running, despite constant reassurances regarding their closing. In 2014, Romania had promised to improve conditions for abandoned minors by 2020, following a recommendation from the EU, the World Bank and UNICEF. The Government formulated a programme titled the