Administration of child justice
Recommended measures (6)
Recalling its previous recommendations and its general comment No. 24 (2019) on children’s rights in the child justice system, the Committee urges the State Party to bring its child justice system fully into line with the Convention and other relevant international norms. In particular, the Committee urges the State Party:
(a) To further strengthen legislative and administrative measures taken to ensure specialized justice for all children alleged as, accused of or recognized as having infringed criminal law, including through differentiated criminal proceedings, and accessible information on their rights.
(b) To prioritise local prevention and, in case a child is accused of having committed a crime, strengthen diversion measures.
(c) To abolish preventive sentencing orders for crimes committed before the perpetrator has reached the age of 18.
(d) To ensure that children are not held together with adults, such as in the Eidsberg Unit of Indre Østfold Prison.
(e) To ensure that isolation is avoided to the greatest extent possible and that decisions regarding solitary confinement and the use of coercive measures against children explicitly state how the child’s best interests and the requirement for the child to be heard have been addressed.
(f) To strengthen legal safeguards and ensure that forensic mental health assessments of children facing criminal charges are conducted by experts who have been trained on the particular needs and rights of children.