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Ability of associations to access financial resources as a vital part of the right to freedom of association & Ability to hold peaceful assemblies as an integral component of the right to freedom of peaceful assembly 2013, para. 46
- Paragraph text
- Article 21 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights recognizes the right to freedom of peaceful assembly to be enjoyed by everyone, as provided for by article 2 of the Covenant and resolutions 15/21 and 21/16 of the Human Rights Council. Article 15 of the Convention of the Rights of the Child recognizes this right for persons below 18 years of age. Unregistered associations should equally be able to enjoy this right.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Children
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Agenda setting of the work of the Special Rapporteur 2015, para. 51
- Paragraph text
- Finally, the Special Rapporteur will be guided by the best interests of the child in all actions concerning trafficked girls and boys, whether undertaken by public or private institutions, courts of law, administrative authorities or legislative bodies. She expects to look into existing identification, protection and assistance gaps in relation to children who have been trafficked for various purposes, with the aim of providing insights on issues such as the procedures for determining the best interests of the children, access to justice, provision of unconditional assistance and effective remedies including compensation for such children.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially in women and children
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Approach, vision and work methods 2014, para. 21
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur will carry out her mandate in compliance with the code of conduct for special procedures mandate holders annexed to Human Rights Council resolution 5/2 and the manual of operations of the special procedures of the Council as adopted at the fifteenth annual meeting of special procedures mandate holders, held in June 2008 (A/HRC/10/24, chap. V.A). The Special Rapporteur will discharge her functions with complete independence and in accordance with the terms of her mandate, through dialogue and cooperation with all stakeholders, with the objective of preventing and combating the sale and sexual exploitation of children from a human rights perspective.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Approach, vision and work methods 2014, para. 22
- Paragraph text
- For the strategic implementation of her mandate, the Special Rapporteur intends to maximize the potential of established methods of work of the special procedures system. Pursuant to the resolutions creating and renewing her mandate, she will present annual thematic reports to the Human Rights Council and the General Assembly, conduct country visits and make recommendations directed at Governments and concerned stakeholders, send communications, including urgent appeals, on allegations of violations and engage with relevant stakeholders, such as children's rights organizations and institutions, for awareness-raising and advocacy activities in order to facilitate the achievement of the objectives of her mandate.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Approach, vision and work methods 2014, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur is aware of the challenge of explaining to interested stakeholders, such as victims and children's organizations and institutions, the terms and scope of her mandate and its specificities vis-à-vis other mechanisms that address children's issues. Consequently, the Special Rapporteur will step up efforts to improve understanding of her mandate in order to avoid confusion and obtain relevant information on allegations of violations and human rights concerns regarding legislation, policies and practices that fall within the scope of her mandate. This will enable her to react to allegations by means of communications to the Governments and other stakeholders concerned. In addition, the Special Rapporteur intends to develop substantive criteria that will govern the taking of action on a case or situation, in accordance with the strategic implementation of the mandate entrusted to her and provided that the admissibility criteria laid out in the code of conduct and the manual of operations are met. The purpose is to maximize the potential of communications as a prevention and protection tool of the special procedures system.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Approach, vision and work methods 2014, para. 31
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur will produce and disseminate, through her web page and other communications tools accessible to children, child-friendly material on the scope of the mandate, the type of allegations that she can address and the working methods available to respond to them. The material will be targeted at actual and potential victims, organizations and institutions working with children and other partners at the international, regional and local levels. The aim is to derive the maximum benefit from the information gathered by these entities in their daily work, to bring violations to the attention of Governments or other stakeholders concerned and to urge them to protect children and their rights.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Approach, vision and work methods 2014, para. 36
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur will also devote advocacy efforts to raising awareness of the fact that, under certain circumstances, the sale and sexual exploitation of children can amount to international crimes, including war crimes and crimes against humanity. In such cases, she will call for perpetrators to be held accountable, through appropriate human rights- compliant justice mechanisms, at the national or international level, with the ultimate goal of bringing them to justice and providing redress to victims. The Special Rapporteur is convinced that ensuring accountability for those crimes can have a deterrent effect and will send a strong signal that such grave crimes deeply shock the conscience of humanity. At the same time, in her advocacy work the Special Rapporteur will insist on the responsibility of States to protect rights holders by adopting preventive measures, including legislation that criminalizes those horrendous acts.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Best practices that promote and protect the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association 2012, para. 13
- Paragraph text
- Resolution 15/21 reaffirms that "everyone has the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association" (emphasis added). This provision must be read jointly with article 2 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which stipulates that "each State Party undertakes to respect and to ensure to all individuals within its territory and subject to its jurisdiction the rights recognized in the Covenant, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status"(emphasis added)., and article 26 thereof, which guarantees to all individuals equal and effective protection against discrimination on grounds identified in article 2. This applies inter alia to minors, indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, persons belonging to minority groups or other groups at risk, including those victims of discrimination because of their sexual orientation and gender identity (see Council resolution 17/19), non-nationals including stateless persons, refugees or migrants, as well as associations, including unregistered groups. The rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association are key human rights in international human rights law, which are enshrined in article 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Best practices that promote and protect the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association 2012, para. 62
- Paragraph text
- Newly adopted laws should not request all previously registered associations to re-register so that existing associations are protected against arbitrary rejection or time gaps in the conduct of their activities. For instance, the Committee on the Rights of the Child, in its concluding observations on Nepal, expressed concerns over the wide-ranging restrictions, such as re-registration requirements, placed by the authorities on civil society organizations (CRC/C/15/Add.260, paras. 33 and 34).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Certain forms of abuses in health-care settings that may cross a threshold of mistreatment that is tantamount to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2013, para. 23
- Paragraph text
- The Committee against Torture interprets State obligations to prevent torture as indivisible, interrelated, and interdependent with the obligation to prevent cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment (ill-treatment) because "conditions that give rise to ill-treatment frequently facilitate torture". It has established that "each State party should prohibit, prevent and redress torture and ill-treatment in all contexts of custody or control, for example, in prisons, hospitals, schools, institutions that engage in the care of children, the aged, the mentally ill or disabled, in military service, and other institutions as well as contexts where the failure of the State to intervene encourages and enhances the danger of privately inflicted harm".
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Challenges faced by groups most at risk when exercising or seeking to exercise the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and/or of association 2014, para. 23
- Paragraph text
- In Malaysia, for example, the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012 prohibits people under the age of 21 from organizing a public demonstration. Children under the age of 15 cannot even participate. Migrants and non-citizens may also face undue restrictions on their assembly rights. The same Act explicitly divests non-citizens of their right to organize or participate in a peaceful assembly. Article 33 of the Constitution of Mexico states that foreigners "may not in any way participate in the political affairs of the country", a provision that can be interpreted as prohibiting the rights of non-citizens to engage in peaceful assemblies. Similarly, article 354 of the Constitution of Myanmar extends the right of assembly only to citizens.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges faced by groups most at risk when exercising or seeking to exercise the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and/or of association 2014, para. 24
- Paragraph text
- In the case of youth, including children, the Special Rapporteur acknowledges that there may be safety concerns when young people participate in some public demonstrations. However, he believes that laws such as that of Malaysia are not tailored narrowly enough to specifically address that concern. Rather, a blanket ban on individuals of a certain age eliminates the right to participate in peaceful public assemblies for an entire portion of the population, without exception, contrary to article 15 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Youth
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Child participation 2012, para. 14
- Paragraph text
- While the Convention on the Rights of the Child does not explicitly include a right to participation, it contains a cluster of articles considered to be "participation articles". The term "participation" has been adopted by the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the wider child rights community to describe the realization of the rights enshrined in those articles. Article 12 of the Convention states that every child capable of forming views has the right to express those views freely in all matters affecting him or her and that those views must be given due weight in accordance with the child's age and maturity. This is not only a fundamental right, but also a guiding principle of the Convention. Article 5 points out that, when providing direction and guidance in the exercise by children of their rights, parents and other guardians must take into consideration the evolving capacities of children. Articles 13 to 17 further address the child's right to freedom of expression, thought, conscience, religion, association, peaceful assembly, protection of privacy and access to information and material.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Child participation 2012, para. 21
- Paragraph text
- In addition, children must be provided with child-friendly and accessible feedback on their participation through immediate and clear statements on the impact and value of their contributions, the decisions that they have taken and the next steps. This enables children to understand the outcome and use of their contributions.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Child participation 2012, para. 101n
- Paragraph text
- [A mapping and assessment of child participation must be carried out, in accordance with the relevant principles and standards, with a view to identifying the remaining achievements and gaps. The mapping process must involve all the principal stakeholders in child protection (public and private sectors, national human rights institutions, non-governmental organizations), including children and communities, with a view to ensuring effective and sustainable child participation. If necessary, legislative changes should be introduced to protect and promote child participation rights in order:] To ensure regular and independent monitoring of the quality, permanence, accountability and follow-up activities of child participation mechanisms, practices and activities: children's participation must be systematized in all monitoring activities and children must have the opportunity to provide feedback on processes and make suggestions for possible improvements, thus ensuring that their views are taken into consideration.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 18
- Paragraph text
- For the above reasons, the Special Rapporteur has chosen to dedicate his thematic report to the unique forms of protection due to children deprived of their liberty and the particular obligations of States with regard to preventing and eliminating torture and ill-treatment of children in the context of deprivation of liberty.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 21
- Paragraph text
- For the purpose of the present report, "deprivation of liberty" denotes any form of detention or imprisonment or the placement of a child in a public or private custodial setting where that child is not permitted to leave at will by order of any judicial, administrative or other authority (A/68/295, para. 27). Deprivation of liberty involves more severe restriction of motion within a narrower space than mere interference with liberty of movement: it includes police custody, remand detention, imprisonment after conviction, house arrest, administrative detention, involuntary hospitalization and institutional custody. It also includes children deprived of their liberty by private individuals or entities that are empowered or authorized by a State to exercise powers of arrest or detention.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 24
- Paragraph text
- In its general comment No. 2, the Committee against Torture interpreted States' obligations to prevent torture are indivisible, interrelated and interdependent with the obligation to prevent cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment (ill-treatment) because conditions that give rise to ill-treatment frequently facilitate torture (CAT/C/GC/2, para. 3). The Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Havana Rules have extended this protection to children deprived of their liberty, specifying that no member of the detention facility or institutional personnel may inflict, instigate or tolerate any act of torture or any form of harsh, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, punishment, correction or discipline under any pretext or circumstance whatsoever.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 36
- Paragraph text
- The imposition of the death penalty on children is forbidden under international law and has been accepted so universally as to reach the level of a jus cogens norm (A/67/279, para. 62).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 37
- Paragraph text
- Similarly, life sentences without the possibility of release for children are expressly prohibited by international law and treaties, including article 37(a) of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Committee on the Rights of the Child, in its general comment No. 10 (CRC/C/GC/10), and the Human Rights Committee, in its general comment No. 21, confirmed that life imprisonment without the possibility of release is never an appropriate punishment for an offence committed by a juvenile offender. The vast majority of States have taken note of the international human rights requirements regarding life imprisonment of children without the possibility of release. Significantly, the United States of America is the only State in the world that still sentences children to life imprisonment without the opportunity for parole for the crime of homicide.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 38
- Paragraph text
- With regard to life imprisonment of children, the Human Rights Council, in its resolution 24/12, and the Committee on the Rights of the Child, in its general comment No. 10, urged States to ensure that no one is sentenced to life imprisonment for an offence committed by persons under 18 years of age.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 39
- Paragraph text
- Although the Convention on the Rights of the Child requires States to ensure that detention or imprisonment of children should only be used as a measure of last resort, in exceptional circumstances, for the shortest possible period of time and only if it is in the best interests of the child, in reality, detention is often used as the first response to perceived problems. During his country visits, the Special Rapporteur observed that, although alternative or non-custodial measures are provided by law, in a high percentage of cases, detention is the preferred option and not the last resort (see A/HRC/22/53/Add.3, para. 53).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 40
- Paragraph text
- In many instances, the worst situations for children arise at the time of arrest by the police, and during transportation or subsequent questioning in police custody (see A/HRC/16/52/Add.5, para. 43 and A/HRC/22/53/Add.1, para. 73). During the period immediately following apprehension, children are at particularly high risk of physical, verbal and psychological violence, such as verbal abuse, threats and beatings, and they are too often not provided with information on their human rights and the allegations brought against them in a manner that they can understand. Following their arrest, children often do not have prompt and private access to legal assistance or notification of their parents or caregivers, which makes them even more vulnerable and subject to a higher risk of being subjected to torture or other ill-treatment.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 41
- Paragraph text
- Despite the international legal framework in place, the majority of children deprived of their liberty are held in pretrial detention, often for prolonged periods, and for minor offences, often in unsuitable premises. In many countries, the excessive use of pretrial detention leads to overcrowded facilities.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 42
- Paragraph text
- Many States continue to hold children and adults in the same facilities, in particular those in pretrial detention and police custody, but also during transportation or in the context of immigration detention. Moreover, the continuous trying and sentencing of children as adults and the lack of specialized juvenile facilities have resulted in numerous children being placed in adult prisons. Disciplinary and other administrative rules and procedures are often applied, regardless of child status.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 44
- Paragraph text
- In many States, solitary confinement is still imposed on children as a disciplinary or "protective" measure. National legislation often contains provisions to permit children to be placed in solitary confinement. The permitted time frame and practices vary between days, weeks and even months. In accordance with views of the Committee against Torture, the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and the Committee on the Rights of the Child, the Special Rapporteur is of the view that the imposition of solitary confinement, of any duration, on children constitutes cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment or even torture (see A/66/268, paras. 77 and 86, and A/68/295, para. 61).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 72
- Paragraph text
- The deprivation of liberty of children is intended to be an ultima ratio measure, to be used only for the shortest possible period of time, only if is in the best interests of the child, and limited to exceptional cases. Failure to recognize or apply these safeguards increases the risk of children being subjected to torture or other ill-treatment, and implicates State responsibility. Therefore, States should, to the greatest extent possible, and always using the least restrictive means necessary, adopt alternatives to detention that fulfil the best interests of the child and the obligation to prevent torture or other ill-treatment of children, together with their rights to liberty and family life, through legislation, policies and practices that allow children to remain with family members or guardians in a non-custodial, community-based context. Alternatives to detention must be given priority in order to prevent torture and the ill-treatment of children. This includes access to counselling, probation and community services, including mediation services and restorative justice. Furthermore, if circumstances change and the reclusion of children is no longer required, States are required to release them, even when they have not completed their sentences.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 73
- Paragraph text
- With regard to children deprived of their liberty within the context of the criminal justice system, the Special Rapporteur recalls that children should be charged, tried and sentenced within a State's system of juvenile justice, affording them adequate forms of protection, and never within the adult criminal justice systems. In addition, laws, policies and practices that allow children to be subjected to adult sentences are inherently cruel, inhuman or degrading because they fail to consider any of the special measures of protection or safeguards that international law requires for children. Children should never be treated as if they were adults. Because children are less emotionally and psychologically developed, they are less culpable for their actions and their sentencing should reflect the principle of rehabilitation and reintegration.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 74
- Paragraph text
- In this context, the Special Rapporteur recalls that the death penalty for children amounts to a violation of the prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment. Other punishments considered grossly disproportionate also amount to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Life imprisonment and lengthy sentences, such as consecutive sentencing, are grossly disproportionate and therefore cruel, inhuman or degrading when imposed on a child. Life sentences or sentences of an extreme length have a disproportionate impact on children and cause physical and psychological harm that amounts to cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment. Similarly, the Special Rapporteur finds that mandatory sentences for children are similarly incompatible with the State's obligation regarding children in conflict with the law and the prohibition of cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment. Mandatory minimum sentences may result in disproportionate punishments that are often overly retributive in relation to the crimes committed, particularly in relation to the child's individual circumstances and the opportunity for rehabilitation. In the light of the unique vulnerability of children, including the risk of torture or ill-treatment in detention and States' obligation of due diligence to afford children heightened measures of protection against torture and other forms of ill-treatment, children must be subject to sentences that promote rehabilitation and re-entry into society.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 75
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur believe that there should be a formal obligation to notify a relative or another adult trusted by the child about his or her detention regardless of whether the child has so requested, except if this would not be in the best interests of the child. Parents or adults trusted by the child should furthermore be allowed to be present with the child during interrogation and any court appearances. An essential issue is the manner in which children are questioned. Interrogation should be age-sensitive and individualized, and undertaken by authorities that are skilled in interviewing children. Video recording should be given due consideration in certain circumstances, to avoid causing distress to children because of repeated questioning, and numerous visits to courts. Children should also have immediate access to a lawyer and a health professional. A specific information sheet setting out the above-mentioned safeguards should be given to all children taken into custody immediately upon their arrival at a law enforcement establishment, and this information should be verbally explained to children in terms that they understand.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph