UNICEF Calls on Authorities to Ensure Children’s Rights in Juvenile Justice System

In response to the suicide attempt of a 15-year-old minor due to alleged psychological pressure from the police, UNICEF Georgia (United Nations Children's Emergency Fund) calls on the authorities to ensure children’s rights in the juvenile justice system more competently.

“The Convention on the Rights of the Child obliges the state to ensure that no child be compelled to give testimony or to confess guilt and be subjected to torture or other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment”, reads the official statement by UNICEF.

The Juvenile Justice Code of Georgia establishes a child-friendly approach and demands all professionals to deal with individual children’s cases with special diligence. Inasmuch as the police are the first contact with the justice system, it is vital that they have the right motivation, knowledge and skills to be sensitive towards children’s issues.

UNICEF puts forward the following recommendations for the betterment of the Georgian juvenile justice system:

• Create special units or designate specialized professionals who will work only on children’s cases in the police system and in all agencies involved in the administration of juvenile justice
• Specialized professionals should be selected carefully and monitored regularly
• Familiarize and sensitize mid-level management on child rights
• Provide all child witnesses of crime with legal assistance at any stage of contact with the justice system.

UNICEF will continue to assist the Georgian government in carrying out reforms designed to implement a child-friendly juvenile justice system pursuant to international standards.

By Elene Dzebisashvili