Parents of Sochi kindergarten pupils complain about formal reply from Russian Ministry of Education

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The Russian Ministry of Education left the demands of parents of pupils of one of the Sochi kindergartens to install video cameras and punish the staff for improper treatment of children unanswered, limiting itself to a formal reply.

As "Kavkazsky Uzel" wrote, in early March, the mother of a pupil of one of the kindergartens in Sochi accidentally filmed a video showing that the teacher was treating the children in a rude manner. She grabbed one of the girls and dipped her face into a plate, after which she passed the food to another child. The video was first posted in a parent chat, then it was published, in particular, by the Kub Mash Telegram channel. After the incident in the Sochi kindergarten, the parents of the pupils accused the institution's management of concealing facts of child abuse and inaction in response to complaints. At the same time, the prosecutor's office drew up administrative protocols against the parents themselves, accusing Irina Yatsko and Elena Baranetskaya of insulting the director and her daughter. On May 29, the court fined Yatsko five thousand rubles, and on June 3, Elena Baranetskaya was fined the same amount.

On July 21, the parents of the pupils of kindergarten No. 121 received a response from the Russian Ministry of Education, where they had sent their collective complaint more than a month ago. However, the parents were upset by the response, because the main department limited itself to a formal formal reply, the mother of one of the children, Elena Baranetskaya, told a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

In the response, a copy of which is at the disposal of the "Caucasian Knot", the Ministry of Education sent the parents' appeal to the administration of the Krasnodar Territory and recommended that regional officials "ensure an objective consideration" of complaints about the improper treatment of children. "The procedure for disciplinary measures is the competence of the institution itself, and video cameras can be installed only with the consent of all parents and employees," says N. Kostyuk, Deputy Director of the Department of State General Education Policy and Development of Preschool Education of the Ministry of Education of Russia.

The letter also states that "the complaint about "cruel treatment" was sent to the regional Ministry of Education; video surveillance in groups can only be installed with the consent of all participants and the presence of a “purpose for collecting data”; control and disciplinary measures against employees are the responsibility of the kindergarten management and the municipality; The Ministry of Education is not authorized to give a legal assessment of the actions of officials."

Parents indignantly commented on the department's response to a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

The ministry simply signed that it would not interfere

"The ministry simply signed that it would not interfere. Not a word about dismissal under the article, no talk of initiating a case," said Alina, the mother of a three-year-old kindergarten student, adding: "It turns out that the teacher left without being punished, and we were left without guarantees that something like this would not happen again."

Ruslan, the father of a three-year-old kindergarten student, called the letter "classic "formula": "The entire document is about the autonomy of the kindergarten. But where is the protection of the child's rights then? The Ministry of Internal Affairs fines the parents, the kindergarten sues us - and the Ministry of Education considers all this the norm," he is perplexed.

"The parents insisted on cameras after the March video, where the teacher dipped the girl's face in a plate, and then passed it to the boy. We are told about "extra personal data", although online surveillance works in other regions," said the mother Maria.

Irina recalled that the parents had previously contacted the prosecutor's office, but were faced with reports of insulting the headmistress and her daughter. "Now the ministry is shifting responsibility in the same way. It feels like children's rights are the last ones here," she concluded.

Lawyer Denis Vladimirov, who advises parents, believes that "the department actually ignored Article 156 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (failure to fulfill obligations to raise a minor) and Article 51 of the Law "On Education", which oblige to ensure the safety of children.

Administrative autonomy does not exempt from liability for violence

"Administrative autonomy does not exempt from liability for violence. The Ministry of Education could have initiated an inspection through Rosobrnadzor, which is directly provided for in paragraph 1 of Article 7 of the law. "Forwarding a complaint without control violates the parents' right to an effective remedy guaranteed by Article 46 of the Constitution," he told a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

As for installing cameras, according to Vladimir, the argument about protecting personal data "is often applied formally." "When it comes to the safety of children, the balance in favor of the public interest is confirmed by judicial practice if the recording is not broadcast publicly, but is stored by a limited circle of legal representatives and can be requested if necessary," he noted.

Currently, the parents of the kindergarten students are preparing new complaints to the prosecutor's office and the regional department of Rospotrebnadzor, demanding: renew the investigation into the presence of criminal elements in the actions of the former teacher; cancel the fines issued to the parents; install internal cameras with access through a secure portal. “We will take part in the parents’ council that the ministry is writing about, but we will seek mandatory broadcasting for families,” Elena Baranetskaya emphasized.

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