A/HRC/35/25/Add.3 services for their care. Children should be kept with their families or close to those with whom they have a familial bond. 68. As determined by the Committee on the Rights of the Child, administrative detention based on the immigration status of the child or of his or her parents can never ever be in the best interest of the child. Given the incalculable detrimental effects that detention has on children’s mental and physical health and development, it is utterly unacceptable for children to be detained simply because of an administrative status. 69. Against their best interests, many children are however still kept in the regional processing centres and settlements in Nauru in detention-like conditions. The regional processing centres resemble military barracks, are fenced, are guarded by security officers, and their inhabitants have to sign in and sign out each time they leave or enter the camp. Children in settlements also feel the effect of forced confinement. Children held in Nauru show signs of post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression, and exhibit symptoms such as insomnia, nightmares and bed-wetting. Feelings of hopelessness and frustration can lead to acts of violence against themselves or others. The Special Rapporteur heard of suicide attempts and self-harm, mental disorders and development problems, including severe attachment disorder. Many of the parents despair over the impossibility of offering their children a promising future, and feel guilty, which manifests itself in severe depression and poor parenting. 70. An accurate and effective individual assessment mechanism would prevent vulnerable groups, such as children, especially if unaccompanied, from being transferred to offshore detention centres. Regardless of detention conditions, detention itself has a profound and negative impact on child health and development. Even short periods of detention can undermine the child’s psychological and physical well-being and compromise cognitive development. The threshold at which treatment or punishment may be classified as cruel, inhuman or degrading is therefore lower in the case of children, and in particular in the case of children deprived of their liberty. 71. The appropriate mental health care that is required, due to the damage caused by their prolonged detention and that of their families, is available neither in the regional processing centres nor in the community. In order for them to live a normal life in any country capable of offering them adequate opportunities to build a future, prolonged mental health care — way beyond the administration of antidepressant or anxiolytic medication — will be necessary. B. Regional processing centres in Nauru and Papua New Guinea 72. All detention centres and detainees — whether onshore or offshore — fall under the responsibility of the Government of Australia. 73. All persons who are under the effective control of Australia — because, inter alia, Australia transferred them to regional processing centres, which are funded by Australia, and with the involvement of private contractors of Australia’s choice — enjoy the same protection from torture and ill-treatment under the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. This is not only the Special Rapporteur’s own analysis but also that of the 2015 Australian Senate inquiry on Nauru,4 as well as that of a number of United Nations human rights mechanisms, including the Committee against Torture. The Government of Australia is ultimately accountable for any human rights violations that occur in the regional processing centres based in Nauru and Papua New Guinea. The combination of the harsh conditions in Nauru or on Manus Island, the protracted periods of closed detention and the uncertainty about the future reportedly creates serious physical and mental anguish and suffering. The Special Rapporteur observes that regarding human rights issues, the system cannot be salvaged. 4 14 See www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Regional_processing_Nauru, para. 5.7.