UPR Sexual Rights Database

National Report:
Para 78) The National Agency against Trafficking in Persons (NATIP) and its public and private institutional partners focused on prevention work and on improving the protection of the rights of children vulnerable to trafficking. In the period 2012-2016 the trafficking prevention activity aimed to cover a wide spectrum of phenomena (sexual exploitation, labour exploitation and begging), the element of unity and coherence being represented by focusing the message on the risks associated with trafficking.

UN Compilation:
Para 26) The Committee against Torture was concerned that Romania remained a country of origin, transit and destination for human trafficking, in particular for sexual and labour exploitation and forced begging.
Para 53) CRC The was concerned at the general tolerance of different forms of violence against children; the limited capacity of the public system to identify, report and address cases of violence, abuse and neglect of children, as well as sexual exploitation and abuse in a cross-sectoral manner; …

Stakeholder Summary:
Para 38) JS1 noted an increase in incidents of sexual abuse against children and of sexual exploitation of children. Children had been increasingly at risk of being subject to online child sexual exploitation and child pornography. JS1 reported on legal amendments made to combat child sexual exploitation. Penalties had increased for sexual assault and rape for victims who were younger than 18 (previously 16) years old. The use of child prostitution was explicitly criminalised. The Penal Code was amended to introduce definition for child pornography. However, JS1 reported on a lack of specialised services and support for child victims of sexual exploitation.

National Report:
Para 88) In the field of domestic violence, the Ministry of Labor and Social Justice, through the National Agency for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men (NAEO), exercises the functions of strategy, regulation, representation and State authority and has attributions in the elaboration, coordination and implementation of the strategies and policies of the Government.
Para 89) In order to strengthen public policy for eliminating gender based violence, including domestic violence, in 2012, the Romanian Government approved Government Decision no. 1156/2012 for the approval of the National Strategy for prevention and combating of family violence and the Action Plan for implementing the national strategy for prevention and combating of family violence for the period 2013–201726 .
Para 90) By Law no. 30/2016 Romania ratified the Istanbul Convention imposing concrete measures on States Parties to prevent and combat violence against women and domestic violence. The Istanbul Convention proposes creating mechanisms to guarantee the protection of victims, raise awareness of the effects of the phenomenon, and prevent and combat all forms of violence.
Para 91) In order to carry out the complex legislative steps required by the implementation of the Istanbul Convention, NAEO elaborated the necessary legislative package for the implementation of the Istanbul Convention, which includes the modification of the legislation regarding equal opportunities for women and men, on the prevention and combating domestic violence, the modification of the Criminal and Criminal Procedure Codes.
Para 92) At the same time, the Governance Program for the period 2017–2020 provides a series of measures aimed to preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, and has as a prerequisite the adoption of the draft laws necessary for the harmonization of national legislation with the provisions of the Istanbul Convention and it will be transposed into secondary legislation, as well as the development of social services for victims of domestic violence and aggressors by implementing projects from European funds.
Para 93) Another important task of the NAEO is to finance and/or co-finance programs of national interest in the field of gender equality and prevention and combating domestic violence. A number of projects were and are to be developed in order to raise awareness on this phenomenon.
Para 95) Aspects related to domestic violence are being approached in the framework of the family law organized for the judicial trainees and for the continuous training by the National Institute of Magistracy.

Stakeholder Summary:
Para 19) [ACTEDO] noted that despite existing legislation on domestic violence, programmes and services to prevent and combat domestic violence were scarce and poorly funded.