SRSG on children and armed conflict: Annual report 2017, para. 17
Paragraph- Paragraph text
- When a child who has been recruited and used is alleged to have committed clearly defined crimes under international or domestic law, the specific circumstances and best interests of the child must be taken into account. However, it is more commonplace that children are sent before courts and are accorded few safeguards or none. In this regard, the use of military or special courts is an acute concern for the Special Representative, as they frequently fail to apply fair trial standards or basic juvenile justice safeguards. In particular, instances of death sentences being handed down by these mechanisms have been documented in situations of armed conflict, notwithstanding the prohibition of capital punishment for offences committed by persons below 18 years of age, under the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Special Representative urges Member States to ensure that the best interests of the child are a primary consideration in the administration of juvenile justice and that military or special courts are avoided in all circumstances. Moreover, additional special considerations for children should also be in place in regular justice systems. For example, in conflict and post-conflict settings, justice systems are often stretched to their limits: the processing of cases involving children should always take priority.
- Legal status
- Non-negotiated soft law
- Body
- Special Representative of the Secretary-General for children and armed conflict
- Document type
- SRSG report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2017
- Paragraph type
- Other
- Paragraph number
- 17
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