Child Protection Policy

This Child Protection Policy applies to all situations in which the Goethe-Institut is involved as part of the project EU Scholarship Programme for the Turkish Cypriot Community.

This protection policy confirms and reinforces the Goethe-Institut's commitment to protect children from all forms of abuse and suffering.

The Goethe-Institut is committed to ensuring the protection of children, the promotion of their well-being and respect for children's rights in accordance with its internal and external integrity guidelines.

The Goethe-Institut stands behind all of its employees* and has full confidence that they will act in accordance with applicable laws and implement the protection of all minors in accordance with the following guideline and to the best of their ability.

Definitions

For the Goethe-Institut, child protection means going beyond the legal obligation of protecting minors to both prevent the likelihood of a child welfare violation and to adequately investigate incidents after the fact.

For the Goethe-Institut, a child protection incident means an allegation - possibly unfounded - that a child has been abused.

For the Goethe-Institut, abuse means emotional, physical, psychological, linguistic and sexual abuse, violence and exploitation in any form, as well as neglectful and negligent treatment.

For the Goethe-Institut, a child includes all minors who have not yet exceeded the age of 18.

Principles of Child Protection

  1. All children have the same right to protection, regardless of age, gender, caste, origin, color, religion, disability or sexual orientation.
  2. Everyone is responsible for the protection of children. This policy is binding on all those who work for or on behalf of the Goethe-Institut.
  3. As part of its code of conduct, the Goethe-Institut ensures that child protection is followed by its business partners and other third parties with whom it works. 
  4. Situations or statements that can be interpreted or misunderstood sexually must be avoided. Physical contact must be limited to emergency or dangerous situations.
  5. If, in addition to this guideline, there are legal national or local regulations on sexual offences, the stricter regulations shall be applied.
  6. Any report of a possible or actual child protection violation must be taken seriously. Action to protect the child must also be taken in a suspected case.
  7. The Goethe-Institut's guidelines on data protection and confidentiality shall be observed until such time as it is necessary to pass on the data to a prosecuting authority.
  8. Personal rights (for example, the right to one's own image) of all minors must be respected in accordance with international, national or local regulations.
  9. The actions and protective regulations of the Goethe-Institut are derived from international and national guidelines and legislation. Additions and adaptations to this protection guideline may be implemented in light of national, regional as well as local customs, but the level of protection provided by this guideline may not be lowered under any circumstances. Cultural justifications for violating the best interests of the child are not acceptable.
  10. Contact outside of events must be limited as much as possible. No contact or address information may be released to minors without the permission of their legal guardians.
  11. Persons against whom criminal proceedings according to §§171, 174-174c, 176-181a, 182-184e, 225, 232-236 of the German Penal Code are or were pending must inform the Goethe-Institut. The supervisors will decide on eligibility.

Implementation

All adults (employees*, partners, external service providers, or other contractors) of the Goethe-Institut are given special obligations and responsibilities. The prerequisite for their commitment are the Integrity Guidelines and the regulations in the Working Principles for all employees, as well as the Code of Conduct for Business Partners for all external service providers.

Individuals who explicitly work with children as part of their employment with the Goethe-Institut must be made aware of the explicit importance of their work through a safe hiring process and instructed accordingly.

Concerns or possible instances of a child protection violation must be reported immediately to the Integrity Management Officer: integritaesmanagement@goethe.de

Reports as well as the data of the reporting, involved persons and children will be treated confidentially within the framework of the Goethe-Institut's data protection guidelines. Information will only be shared to the extent strictly necessary to ensure that the child involved is safe and that the incident can be handled appropriately.

Given the numerous networks of the Goethe-Institut, incidents may occur which are not covered by this policy or where the correct procedure is not obvious. In such situations, any violation must nevertheless be investigated. The Goethe-Institut's technical departments will accompany this process.

Goethe-Institut Cyprus
21, Markos Drakos Avenue
1102 Nicosia
Tel. +357 22674608
info-nikosia@goethe.de