CRC/C/CYP/CO/3-4
at risk at an early stage by using alternative measures to detention such as diversion,
probation, counselling, community service or suspended sentences, wherever possible;
(c)
Ensure that children, including those between the ages of 14 and 18
years, are not subject to the adult justice system, regardless of the nature of the
offence committed.
Child victims and witnesses of crimes
56.
While noting that the State party does have a child victim and criminal witness
protection programme, the Committee is concerned at the absence of information on, inter
alia, the age of the victims, type of crimes and details of offenders. It further notes that in
the absence of such information, an evaluation on the efficacy of this protection programme
is not feasible.
57.
The Committee recommends that the State party systematically collect data,
including on victim age, offence committed and offender demography with a view to
including this in its next periodic report and utilizing it to evaluate the effectiveness of
its current criminal witness or victim protection programme. In doing so, the
Committee recommends that the State party ensure, through adequate legal
provisions and regulations, that all children victims and or witnesses of crimes, for
example, children victims of abuse, domestic violence, sexual and economic
exploitation, abduction and trafficking and witnesses of such crimes, including those
perpetrated by State and non-State actors, are provided with the protection required
by the Convention and that the State party take fully into account the United Nations
Guidelines on Justice in Matters involving Child Victims and Witnesses of Crime in
the drafting and enactment of such legal provisions and regulations.
H.
Ratification of international human rights instruments
58.
The Committee encourages the State party to sign the Optional Protocol to the
Convention on the Rights of the Child on a communications procedure and
encourages the State party, in order to further strengthen the fulfilment of children’s
rights, to accede to the Optional Protocol and all core human rights instruments,
including the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant
Workers and Members of Their Families.
I.
Cooperation with regional bodies
59.
The Committee recommends that the State party cooperate with the Council of
Europe for the implementation of the Convention and other human rights
instruments, both in the State party and in other Council of Europe member States.
J.
Follow-up and dissemination
60.
The Committee recommends that the State party take all appropriate measures
to ensure that the present recommendations are fully implemented, inter alia, by
transmitting them to the members of the Government, the Parliament, regional bodies
and other local governments, when applicable, for appropriate consideration and
further action.
61.
The Committee further recommends that the combined third and fourth
periodic report and written replies submitted by the State party and the related
13