Civil Rights and Freedoms
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4.1. The Right to Preserve Identity (Article 7) Under the national legislation requirements for the registration of a child immediately after birth are satisfied in Ukraine. According to the Article 144 of the Family Code42 it is upon parents’ responsi bility to record the birth of the child in a civil registry office within a month’s period. A child acquires citizenship at his/her birth. Under the Law of Ukraine “On Citizenship”43 citizenship is also granted in cases of a child’s adoption. Human rights defenders show serious concerns relating to the right of a child to preserve identity in the context of adoption44 in Ukraine. Provisions of the Family Code45 regarding secrecy of adoption to meet the best interests of the child contradict Articles 7 and 8 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. In adoption the name and the family name of the child may be changed even though a child might be aware of what he or she was called before. Their date and place of birth may also be changed in adoption proceedings. If best interests of the child are met the court decides to introduce these changes when granting the adoption order. In this view not only the right of a child to preserve identity is limited, such proceedings affect child’s right for contact with their birth parents and other birth relatives (brothers, sisters etc.). At the same time there are no legal provisions to ensure the
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42 Family Code of Ukraine, Bulletin of the Verkhovna Rada, 2002, N 21-22, p. 135. 43 The Law of Ukraine «On Citizenship», Bulletin of the Verkhovna Rada, 2001, N 13, p.65.
44 Human Rights in Ukraine — 2006. The Annual Report by Human Rights Organisations. Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union. 45 Family Code of Ukraine, Bulletin of the Verkhovna Rada, 2002, N 21-22, p. 135.