{"id":10519,"date":"2021-03-25T16:29:50","date_gmt":"2021-03-25T14:29:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.crj.ro\/?page_id=10519"},"modified":"2023-09-27T10:33:11","modified_gmt":"2023-09-27T07:33:11","slug":"child-friendly-justice-developing-the-concept-of-social-court-practices","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.crj.ro\/en\/advocate-for-dignity\/child-friendly-justice-developing-the-concept-of-social-court-practices\/","title":{"rendered":"Child-friendly Justice – Developing the Concept of Social Court Practices"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Full report in English<\/a><\/p>\n

The goal of this project is to improve criminal justice systems by making them more child-friendly to child victims and children suspected or accused of committing a crime, particularly for those\u00a0 who are in vulnerable situations. There is a lack of understanding on how children should be assessed by criminal justice professionals to identify their social, educational, protection and\/or restoration\/reintegration needs within criminal justice processes. This project will focus on improving\u00a0individual assessments of children in vulnerable situations<\/strong>\u00a0in\u00a0Romania, Italy and Bulgaria<\/strong>. In particular, it will focus on improving the situation for\u00a0children with disabilities, children deprived of parental care and unaccompanied minors<\/strong>. The project will develop a set of specialist tools which will contribute to ensuring access to justice, a child-centred approach and ensuring that appropriate measures are taken to enhance their participation and to protect them from harm throughout the criminal justice process.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Project description:<\/h4>\n

The European Union\u00a0Victims\u2019 Rights Directive(2012\/29\/EU)<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0the\u00a0Children\u00a0Procedural Safeguards Directive (2016\/800\/EU)<\/a>\u00a0aim to assure\u00a0child victims of crime and children who are suspected or accused of committing a crime\u00a0a set of\u00a0rights to\u00a0enable them to\u00a0be supported, protected and\u00a0to\u00a0actively participate in the criminal justice process in line with their needs and\u00a0taking into account their individual\u00a0vulnerabilities.\u00a0These Directives\u00a0emphasise the importance and obligation to understand their needs before any measures are applied\u00a0by criminal justice authorities.\u00a0The means to achieve\u00a0this\u00a0is through an individual assessment,\u00a0where\u00a0the information\u00a0required\u00a0to understand the child\u2019s situation\u00a0is collected\u00a0by trained professionals\u00a0in a\u00a0child-friendly\u00a0manner that enables their participation\u00a0and protection.\u00a0There is limited awareness of how to achieve these goals in practice across criminal justice systems, and how to undertake individual assessments for children with enhanced vulnerabilities, and the the importance of a multidisciplinary approach.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This\u00a0is a\u00a0two-year project which started in July 2020, and is co-funded by the European Union Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme (2014-2020). It\u00a0will\u00a0focus on children in\u00a0particularly\u00a0vulnerable situations\u00a0who\u00a0experience\u00a0multiple barriers\u00a0within\u00a0the criminal justice system and\u00a0who\u00a0are\u00a0often\u00a0side-lined\u00a0or excluded.\u00a0The project\u00a0will take place\u00a0and benefit directly\u00a03 EU countries (Romania, Italy and Bulgaria), with the resulting tools and methods being of relevance more widely across\u00a0the EU.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Background<\/h3>\n

This project builds upon past efforts\u00a0and expertise to enhance\u00a0access to justice for children with mental disabilities<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In terms of the wider international context, the there is a strong normative basis requiring EU Member States to take action to enhance the participation and procedural rights of children with disabilities. This is express in the critical nexus between the obligations\u00a0set out\u00a0in\u00a0the\u00a0Directive\u00a0(2012\/29\/EU)<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Directive (2016\/800\/EU)<\/a>,\u00a0together with the more recent\u00a0EU Strategy on Victims\u2019\u00a0Rights 2020-2025<\/a>,\u00a0the\u00a0EU Disability Strategy 2010 \u2013 2020<\/a>, and the\u00a0United Nations\u00a0Convention\u00a0on the\u00a0Rights\u00a0of\u00a0Persons\u00a0with\u00a0Disabilities\u00a0(UNCRPD)<\/a>,\u00a0United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child\u00a0(UNCRC)<\/a>\u00a0and the\u00a0European Convention on Human Rights<\/a>. Although the EU acceded to the\u00a0UNCRPD in 2010 and the Convention has been ratified by each of the 27 EU Member States, there is a lack of clarity as to how it applies in combination with existing EU law,\u00a0and how this\u00a0applies to\u00a0children with in\u00a0particularly\u00a0vulnerable situations. Further, findings by the European Commission in\u00a0May 2020<\/a>\u00a0illustrate that transposition of the Victims\u2019 Rights Directive has been insufficient\u00a0and not enough\u00a0has\u00a0been\u00a0done\u00a0to ensure\u00a0children in vulnerable situations\u00a0are appropriately assessed, and consequently supported and protected.<\/p>\n

Objectives<\/h3>\n

The project aims to:\u00a0<\/p>\n