CRC/C/PRY/CO/3
(d)
Carry out efforts in order to promote and ensure a better coordination
among the different institutions involved; and
(e)
received.
Establish an effective system for monitoring and follow-up of the calls
Administration of juvenile justice
76.
The Committee welcomes the efforts carried out by the State party to improve the
system of juvenile justice, such as Act No. 1680/2001, which establishes a system of
specialized justice for the treatment of issues concerning children in conflict with the law.
However, it is concerned at the lack of information provided by the State party on the
professionals of the justice system, such as judges and public defenders, specializing in
children and at the wide use of preventive detention for children between 16 and 18 years
of age, as well as the precarious conditions in which adolescents serve sentences.
Furthermore, the Committee is concerned at the lack of an effective policy to implement
socio-educational measures directed towards children in conflict with the law.
77.
The Committee urges the State party to ensure that juvenile justice standards
are fully implemented, in particular articles 37 (b), 39 and 40 of the Convention, as
well as the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of
Juvenile Justice (the Beijing Rules), the United Nations Guidelines for the Prevention
of Juvenile Delinquency (the Riyadh Guidelines) and the United Nations Rules for the
Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty (the Havana Rules). In particular,
the Committee urges the State party to take into account the Committee’s general
comment No. 10 (2007) on children’s rights in juvenile justice. It also recommends
that the State party:
(a)
Undertake efforts to implement the policy on juvenile justice;
(b)
Introduce specialized judges for children in all the regions and ensure
such specialized judges receive appropriate education and training;
(c)
Ensure that all stakeholders involved with the system of juvenile justice
are trained to effectively implement justice, including police officers and prosecutors;
(d)
Develop alternatives to the deprivation of liberty, such as probation,
mediation, community services orders, or suspended sentences, wherever possible;
(e)
Ensure that the deprivation of liberty is used only as a measure of last
resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time, and is reviewed on a regular
basis and that children are separated from adults during such deprivation;
(f)
Seek technical assistance and other cooperation from the Interagency
Panel on Juvenile Justice, which includes the United Nations Office on Drugs and
Crime, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, UNICEF and NGOs.
Protection of witnesses and victims of crimes
78.
The Committee also recommends that the State party ensure, through adequate
legal provisions, procedures, and regulations, that all children victims and or
witnesses of crimes, e.g. children victims of abuse, domestic violence, sexual and
economic exploitation, abduction, and trafficking and witnesses of such crimes, have
effective access to justice and be provided with the protection required by the
Convention and that it take fully into account the United Nations Guidelines on
Justice in Matters involving Child Victims and Witnesses of Crime.
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