A/HRC/43/40/Add.1 by the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe in 2015, 16 and the Committee on the Rights of the Child recommended the State party to reform the Juvenile Delinquency Act and the Penal Procedure Code with a view to withdrawing the notion of anti-social behaviour (CRC/C/BGR/CO/2, para. 69 (b)). Furthermore, as noted by the European Court of Human Rights, Bulgarian law does not contain a precise definition of “anti-social behaviour” or an exhaustive list of acts characterized as such.17 36. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the amendment in 2017 to the Penal Procedure Code following the need to transpose Directive 2012/29/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 establishing minimum standards on the rights, support and protection of victims of crime, including conducting the interrogation of child witnesses in specialized facilities called “blue rooms”. Despite these measures, the issue of child victims has not been fully integrated in the Penal Procedure Code and the legal safeguards of children’s human rights are not fully protected. 37. Bulgaria has harmonized its legislation on adoption, but concerns remain regarding the provisions outlined in article 3 of the Optional Protocol concerning all elements relating to the sale of children for adoption. The Family Code does not give due consideration to a child’s opinion in adoption proceedings, and the consent of a child under the age of 14 years is not required for adoption. The Child Protection Act (art. 15 (1)) provides for a mandatory hearing if the child is aged 10 years or over, unless it violates their best interests. However, if the child is under the age of 10 years, there is no legal requirement to consider his or her opinion. Parents under the age of 14 years who are involved in adoption proceedings are not required to give consent. Although there have been some developments in legislation on the legal representation of the child, this opportunity is rarely used. When the best interests of the child are opposed to parental will, legal safeguards are hardly applied. 38. The Special Rapporteur is concerned that there is no comprehensive regulation of commercial surrogacy arrangements. The lack of detailed regulation, in particular the commercial aspects and the lack of control over clinics that provide surrogacy services, has led to irregularities and protection gaps. B. Institutional framework 39. The main responsibility for the assessment of a child’s situation and protection measures lies with child protection units, which are the local departments within the Social Assistance Agency under the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy. There are approximately 150 units all over the country, comprising 9 in Sofia and 1 in almost every city or municipal centre. Each of the 265 municipalities, through a children’s commission chaired by the municipality’s mayor, has advisory functions in the coordination of child protection initiatives. Each unit works with children in its territory, and cases are referred to another unit when a child moves, often leading to loss of information. The Social Services Act (2019) envisages the creation of an agency for the quality of social services, with monitoring functions over the State Agency for Child Protection and the Social Assistance Agency. 40. Efforts to prevent the sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of children are coordinated by two national mechanisms: the coordination mechanism for cooperation in cases of children who are victims of or at risk of violence and in cases of crisis intervention; and the coordination mechanism for the referral, care and protection of unaccompanied children and child victims of trafficking returning from abroad. The former, adopted as an interministerial cooperation mechanism, supplements the Child Protection Act. Its aim is to ensure prompt action and a multidisciplinary approach in cases of violence against children, and to assign and regulate the specific responsibilities of protection actors. Given the 16 17 Council of Europe, “Report by Nils Muižnieks, Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, following his visit to Bulgaria from 9 to 11 February 2015”, document CommDH(2015)12, para. 61. European Court of Human Rights, Case of A. and Others v. Bulgaria. 9