By: Sanzhar Aitkulov & Beatrice Serra /GICJ
In 2020, UNICEF strongly urged countries to release children from detention due to the conditions of the Covid-19 pandemic. During Covid-19, many minors were detained for violating curfew orders or Covid-19 restrictions. The detention of children is not only in breach of international law and principle, it also represents a great danger in the context of the current health crisis. Indeed, detained children face a higher risk of contracting COVID-19 due to deteriorating conditions in detention centers. UNICEF urged all member states to build a child-friendly justice system, in compliance with the rights of the child, which would include provisions to raise the age of criminal responsibility, expand free legal aid and prioritize early prevention. Most importantly, detention for children should always be a tool of last resort. Alternative measures should be occur instead.
Over the past years, states increased their efforts for implementing these recommendations. According to UNICEF, authorities in at least 84 countries have safely returned dozens of detained teenagers to their families since April 2020. Countries in Western and Central Africa released 79 percent of the detained children since the start of the pandemic. That is, approximately 45,000 juveniles worldwide have been freed. Commenting on this situation, the UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore pointed out that ”by protecting children from conditions that could have exposed them to grave illness, these countries were able to overcome public resistance and spur innovative, age-appropriate justice solutions”.
Releasing children from detention and reducing the age of criminal responsibility is not enough to deal with the matter. The core issue remains child abuse and other circumstances that push children to commit crimes. Experts note several reasons that push children to commit crimes such as school-related issue, economic situation, substance abuse, physical abuse at home and lack of adult support, among others.
Geneva International Centre for Justice (GICJ) urges all States to eradicate the practice of child detention. States must develop and implement a legal framework having the best interest of the child as a cornerstone. Further to this GICJ encourages jurisdictions to raise the age of criminal responsibility. Where detention is non avoidable, conditions within detention center must be improved and health care guaranteed for all children. Such improvements are deemed necessary to counter the current health crisis, considering how low hygienic conditions speed up the spread of COVID-19.
Justice, Human rights, Geneva, geneva4justice, GICJ, Geneva International Centre For Justice
