Little humans With Little Rights

he lives of children in Georgia are still largely affected today by a series of historical and Economic trends through which the country has gone over the past decades. While the Soviet legacy has induced a tradition of high and nearly universal educational and social standards, it has also established strong trends of institutionalisation and central State control over children, especially over those in difficult situations. Transition to market economy has radically affected the quality and resources of State provisions and interventions in favour of all children, without eradicating their harshness on the most deprived. At the same time, children’s lifestyles and family situations now reflect the challenges of transition, allowing for more diverse opportunities but also for more risks, such as those induced by poverty, life on the street, child labour, substance abuse, and crime. The socio-economic situation is slightly improving since 1995, but the effects of transition and the gap between rich and poor children is widening, while high levels of corruption are weakening the State and therefore its efforts to protect and promote children’s rights in the country. Children are also affected by post-conflict and present conflict situations. Further to the resurgence of a Georgian nationalist movement at the end of the 80s, a civil war broke out in 1991 when Georgia gained its independence. The nationalist government was replaced by the post-Soviet nomenklatura headed by Edvard Sheverdadze, but separatist groups in South- Ossetia and Abkhazia continued to fight to gain autonomy from Georgia, with some military support and equipment from Russia. These internal conflicts led to serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law, including extrajudicial executions, torture, rape, looting, burning of homes and apartments, expulsions and forced evictions in 1991- 199257 and to renewed armed conflict in 1998. This resulted in the internal displacement of 280 000 persons, mainly ethnic Georgians fleeing Abkhazia, 36% of which were children58. This situation has now stabilised but both conflicts remain unresolved and most internally displaced persons (IDPs) have not returned. Repression of political opposition since has perpetrated a climate of fear that indirectly affects children.