E/CN.4/1995/91/Add.1 page 30 The Spanish Constitution recognizes a further fundamental right, which is the right to effective judicial protection. In the present case, several judicial bodies interceded, namely, the fourth examining court of Sabadell, the nineteenth court (domestic court) of Barcelona and the Court of Appeal of Barcelona, to which the appeal lodged by the parents of the children concerned was referred. One of the judges, serving on the bench of the nineteenth court (domestic court) of Barcelona, fixed the schedule of visits for the parents and indeed ordered them to spend their holidays together, with supervision being exercised through a weekly visit by social workers. Appended to this document is a report by the Generalitat of Catalonia (Social Welfare Department, Directorate of Child Welfare), which answers point by point the allegations made by the aforementioned sect to the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on the question of religious intolerance. REPORT BY THE DIRECTORATE OF CHILD WELFARE (DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL WELFARE OF THE GENERALITAT OF CATALONIA) TO THE COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS In reply to the communication received from the Special Rapporteur, based on information brought to his notice concerning the movement ’Children of God’ or ’The Family’, the Directorate of Child Welfare has the honour to transmit the following information and comments: 1. The fourth examining court of Sabadell, ’following the measures (file No. 100/90) taken by virtue of the report drawn up by the ’Mozos de Escuadra’ (autonomous police) of the Generalitat of Catalonia and the request by the Public Prosecutor’s Department, which showed that at least 20 children under the age of 11 were living in the property situated at Castellar des Vallés (Avda. Can Piñol, No. 45, sector D, Urbanización ’Airesol’), who, according to investigations, were clearly in a situation presenting a danger to their physical and mental health, such as to make it necessary for them to be immediately admitted to an appropriate reception centre; and having taken note of the report by the Public Prosecutor’s Department and the information provided in the report drawn up by the Catalan police concerning the residence and way of life of the aforesaid minors in that property, under the authority of persons believed to belong to the destructive sect known as ’Children of God’ or ’Family of Love’, whose activities as a sect might rank among various offences covered and punished by the Penal Code; and having regard, in addition, to the obvious risk that an extended stay in the property might entail for the physical and mental health of the aforesaid minors; taking into account the provisions of article 172 of the Civil Code and other such provisions; authorizes the police force to seize the minors immediately and to have them admitted to the appropriate reception centre and the competent child welfare agency (in Catalonia, the Directorate of Child Welfare) will of its own motion assume custodial responsibility for those children, so long as other measures have not been taken, in accordance with the law’.

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