Transcript No Slide Title

JUSTICE FOR CHILDREN
Looking after the interests of victims,
witnesses and offenders
Anne Grandjean
Justice for Children Seminar, St. Lucia
26 July 2007
Justice for Children
• What is it ?
• Why is it a useful approach?
• How to use it? – some implications for policy makers and
practitioners
The Justice for Children approach…
• … aims at ensuring that all children are better served by
justice systems that provide greater protection to them as
victims, witnesses and offenders
• … also aims at providing children with access to the
justice system in order for them to seek and obtain
redress in criminal and civil matters
•  … includes (1) juvenile justice; (2) children victims and
witnesses; (3) access to justice issues
Justice for Children approach:
Context & Rationale
Rule of law, peace & security
• Increasing global commitment to an international order
based on rule of law — including a functioning justice
system
• Increasing understanding of importance of rule of law in:
– promoting peace and security
– restoring confidence and stability following a period
of conflict
– reducing poverty
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
• Child protection is a pre-requisite to the realization of the
MDG (poverty, health, education, gender, etc.)
 Children going through the justice system are particularly
vulnerable to violations of their rights & often forgotten
 Justice systems can play a crucial role in reinforcing child
rights by:


promoting children’s (victims, witnesses and
rehabilitation and reintegration into society
providing them with a avenue to claim their rights
offenders)
 Therefore, particular attention to Justice for Children is a
must to achieve the MDGs
UN Reform
• After 2005 World Summit the UN stepped up its reform
efforts including greater coherence to its work (“UN
delivering as one”)
  UN Reform provides UN agencies with opportunities to
enhance their cooperation, e.g.:


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Joint country/situation assessments on rule of law & justice
sector reform
Joint rule of law programming and projects (capacity building,
technical assistance, institutional & legislative development)
Developing joint UN policy and guidelines (including JfC)
Rationale for Justice for Children approach
• Increased interest, commitment and support for RoL,
justice sector reform & realisation of MDGs is an
opportunity to
– leverage support with partners working on these broader
agendas and
– integrate justice for children issues in these agendas
• Increased UN coherence brings agencies together &
creates synergies
• Comprehensive & systemic vs. piecemeal  more
effective
• All in all: greater results for children (ultimate goal)
Rationale for Justice for Children approach
Cont’d
 Children may come into contact with the justice system as
alleged offenders, victims and witnesses; or for other
reasons involving their care, custody, maintenance or
protection
 Often, all these children are being dealt with by the same
institutions and professionals  these therefore need to
be trained and equipped accordingly
 Child offenders are frequently also victims  institutions
and professionals to be able to address all children
International legal framework for
children victims & witnesses
Guidelines on Justice in Matters involving Child Victims
and Witnesses of Crime
• The guidelines set out principles and rights of child victims
and witnesses
• Examples of principles: dignity, non-discrimination, best
interests of the child and participation, protection
• Examples of rights:
– to be treated with dignity and compassion
– to be informed
– to effective assistance
– to privacy
– to be protected from justice process hardship
– to reparation
Other international instruments relevant
to children victims & witnesses
•
CRC Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and
child pornography
•
CRC Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed
conflicts
•
Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons,
Especially Women and Children, Supplementing the United Nations
Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime
•
Convention concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the
Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour (ILO 182)
Practical implications of the Justice for
Children approach:
Integration into broader development
strategies
• Rule of Law
• Poverty Reduction
• Safety & Security
• Transitional Justice
Integration of children’s issues
in Rule of Law strategies
Some practical examples:
•
Integration of child rights standards & norms in law & policy reform
•
Institutional capacity building of law enforcement, justice and social
sectors on children’s issues (e.g. Police Child Protection Units)
•
Development of diversion mechanisms & alternatives to deprivation of
liberty
•
Support to traditional, community-based justice and dispute resolution
mechanisms in line with HR
•
Development of knowledge base & awareness raising on the nature &
extent of crimes by and against children
Integration of children’s issues
in Poverty Reduction/Access to justice strategies
• Link between access to justice and poverty reduction: lack
of access to justice as
– a defining attribute of poverty and
– an impediment to poverty eradication
• Some practical examples:
– (Free) legal aid for children
– Awareness raising in communities (including building trust)
– Capacity building for all relevant professionals on special
needs of children
– Promote traditional justice mechanisms – when in line with
children’s rights and human rights
Integration of children’s issues
in Security Sector Reform strategies
• Security requires well-managed and competent personnel
operating within an institutional framework defined by law
• Security sector personnel – including justice and law
enforcement – are essential duty bearers of children’s
rights.
• Some practical examples:
– Build the capacity of police and judiciary on how to deal with
children
– Strengthen constitutional and legal frameworks so that roles
and mandates of security forces are clear and provisions
applied effectively
Integration of children’s issues
in transitional justice strategies
• = Full range of processes and mechanisms associated
with a society’s attempt to come terms with a legacy of
large-scale past abuses – accountability, justice,
reconciliation
–
–
–
International Criminal Court (ICC) and international/mixed tribunals
Non-judicial mechanisms, such as Truth and Reconciliation
Commissions and traditional practices
Prosecution in national courts
• Children increasingly affected and targeted by warfare 
calls for greater accountability & more importance placed
on the prosecution of crimes against children
Integration in transitional justice strategies
Cont’d
•
 integration of child-friendly procedures in transitional justice
processes
•
All guidelines apply – Some examples (ICC statute):
– avoiding children’s participation as witnesses when possible
– provide investigators with guidelines to support questioning in a
safe and child-friendly manner
– obtaining the consent of parents or guardians
– undertaking a security assessment
– conducting a psycho-social pre-interview of the child’s wellbeing
– providing assistance of a psychologist during the interview &
presence of an accompanying person – if requested by the
child
Inter-Agency Cooperation
Interagency Panel on Juvenile Justice
• Goal: facilitate and enhance country level coordination on
technical advice and assistance in juvenile justice
• Members: UNICEF, UNDP, UNODC, OHCHR, DPKO,
DCI, PRI, OMCT, TdH.
• Key objectives of the Panel in 07-08:
– Increase visibility
– Increase availability of existing technical resources on juvenile
justice
– Develop common tools and document good practices
– Develop common positions
– Inform Panel members about technical assistance requests
Development of tools – latest developments
•
Child-friendly UN Guidelines on justice for child victims and witnesses
of crime – UNICEF, UNODC and IBCR
•
Implementation handbook for the guidelines, including training tools
and model law (in progress) – UNICEF, UNODC
•
Manual for the Measurement of Juvenile Justice Indicators (UNICEF,
UNODC)
•
Juvenile Justice Training Manual for policy-makers and practitioners –
UNICEF, PRI (2006) – a CD version will be available by end July
•
New worldwide estimate of children in detention (children in detention
and children in pre-trial detention) in progress – UNICEF