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Title | Date added | Template | Original document | Paragraph text | Body | Document type | Thematics | Topic(s) | Person(s) affected | Year |
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Inter-American Convention on International Traffic in Minors 1994, para. undefined | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | A request for locating and returning a minor may be lodged without prejudice to the annulment and revocation actions provided for in Articles 18 and 19. | Organization of American States | Regional treaty |
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| 1994 | ||
The implementation of the rights of the child during adolescence 2016, para. 46 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The right to privacy takes on increasing significance during adolescence. The Committee has repeatedly raised concerns about violations of privacy in respect of, for example, confidential medical advice; space for and belongings of adolescents in institutions; correspondence and other communications, either in the family or other forms of care; and exposure of those involved in criminal proceedings. The right to privacy also entitles adolescents to have access to their records held by educational, health-care, childcare and protection services and justice systems. Such information should only be accessible in compliance with due process guarantees and to individuals authorized by law to receive and use it. States should, through dialogue with adolescents, ascertain where breaches of privacy have taken place, including in relation to personal engagement in the digital environment and the use of data by commercial and other entities. States should also take all appropriate measures to strengthen and ensure respect for the confidentiality of data and the privacy of adolescents, consistent with their evolving capacities. | Committee on the Rights of the Child | General Comment / Recommendation |
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| 2016 | ||
Working methods, thematic priorities and vision for a meaningful anti-torture advocacy 2017, para. 21 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In all his endeavours, the Special Rapporteur will promote adherence to, and ratification of, core relevant human rights treaties. At the same time, the Special Rapporteur will also promote so-called soft-law standards such as, but not limited to, the Nelson Mandela Rules, the Body of Principles for the Protection of all Persons under Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment, the Bangkok Rules, the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice (Beijing Rules), the United Nations Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty, the Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials, the Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials and other relevant instruments. Ultimately, the Special Rapporteur will prioritize results-based pragmatism rather than formalism without, however, compromising on applicable norms, terms and standards. Therefore, the primary focus of the Special Rapporteur will not necessarily be to achieve universal ratification of relevant treaties, but rather to advocate for the implementation, in actual practice, of norms, procedures and mechanisms for the effective prevention of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. | Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2017 | ||
The death penalty and the prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment 2012, para. 62 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The death penalty cannot be applied for crimes committed by persons under 18 years of age. In Michael Domingues v. United States (2002), the Inter-American Commission canvassed international legal and political developments and State practice concerning the execution of juveniles and reached the conclusion that the state of international law had evolved so as to prohibit, as a jus cogens norm, the execution of persons who were under 18 years of age at the time of committal of their crimes. This is in line with the jurisprudence of the Human Rights Committee. In Roper v. Simmons (2005), the United States Supreme Court held that under the evolving standards of decency test, it was cruel and unusual punishment to execute a person who was under the age of 18 years at the time of the murder. Remarkably, in January 2012, the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, one of the most persistent retentionist countries, adopted the Islamic Penal Code which established new measures to limit the sentencing to death of juveniles (A/HRC/21/29 and Corr.1, para. 8). The abolition of the death penalty for juveniles is based on the fact that their limited capacity has a direct impact on their effectively benefiting from the right to a fair trial and that it is inherently cruel to execute children and would therefore amount to a violation of the prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. | Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2012 | ||
Solitary confinement 2011, para. 29 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In the same year, the General Assembly adopted resolution 45/113, the United Nations Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty. In paragraph 67 the Assembly asserted that "All disciplinary measures constituting cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment shall be strictly prohibited, including ... solitary confinement or any other punishment that may compromise the physical or mental health of the juvenile concerned". | Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2011 | ||
The implementation of the rights of the child during adolescence 2016, para. 88 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | States parties are urged to introduce comprehensive juvenile justice policies that emphasize restorative justice, diversion from judicial proceedings, alternative measures to detention and preventive interventions, to tackle social factors and root causes, consistent with articles 37 and 40 of the Convention, and the United Nations Guidelines for the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency. The focus should be on rehabilitation and reintegration, including for those adolescents involved in activities categorized as terrorism, in line with the recommendations in general comment No. 10 (2007) on children's rights in juvenile justice. Detention should be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time, and adolescents should be detained separately from adults. The Committee emphasizes the imperative to ban the death penalty and prohibit life imprisonment for anyone convicted of a crime committed when under the age of 18 years. The Committee is seriously concerned at the number of States seeking to lower the age of criminal responsibility and encourages States to raise progressively the age of criminal responsibility to 18 years. | Committee on the Rights of the Child | General Comment / Recommendation |
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| 2016 | ||
The implementation of the rights of the child during adolescence 2016, para. 87 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Adolescents may come into contact with justice systems through conflict with the law, as victims or witnesses of crime or for other reasons, such as care, custody or protection. Measures are needed to reduce adolescents' vulnerability both as victims and perpetrators of crimes. | Committee on the Rights of the Child | General Comment / Recommendation |
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| 2016 | ||
Article 9: Liberty and security of person 2014, para. 37 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The second requirement expressed in the first sentence of paragraph 3 is that the person detained is entitled to trial within a reasonable time or to release. That requirement applies specifically to periods of pretrial detention, that is, detention between the time of arrest and the time of judgment at first instance. Extremely prolonged pretrial detention may also jeopardize the presumption of innocence under article 14, paragraph 2. Persons who are not released pending trial must be tried as expeditiously as possible, to the extent consistent with their rights of defence. The reasonableness of any delay in bringing the case to trial has to be assessed in the circumstances of each case, taking into account the complexity of the case, the conduct of the accused during the proceeding and the manner in which the matter was dealt with by the executive and judicial authorities. Impediments to the completion of the investigation may justify additional time, but general conditions of understaffing or budgetary constraint do not. When delays become necessary, the judge must reconsider alternatives to pretrial detention. Pretrial detention of juveniles should be avoided, but when it occurs they are entitled to be brought to trial in especially speedy fashion under article 10, paragraph 2 (b). | Human Rights Committee
| General Comment / Recommendation |
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| 2014 | ||
Article 24: Rights of the child 1989, para. 2 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In this connection, the Committee points out that the rights provided for in article 24 are not the only ones that the Covenant recognizes for children and that, as individuals, children benefit from all of the civil rights enunciated in the Covenant. In enunciating a right, some provisions of the Covenant expressly indicate to States measures to be adopted with a view to affording minors greater protection than adults. Thus, as far as the right to life is concerned, the death penalty cannot be imposed for crimes committed by persons under 18 years of age. Similarly, if lawfully deprived of their liberty, accused juvenile persons shall be separated from adults and are entitled to be brought as speedily as possible for adjudication; in turn, convicted juvenile offenders shall be subject to a penitentiary system that involves segregation from adults and is appropriate to their age and legal status, the aim being to foster reformation and social rehabilitation. In other instances, children are protected by the possibility of the restriction provided that such restriction is warranted of a right recognized by the Covenant, such as the right to publicize a judgement in a suit at law or a criminal case, from which an exception may be made when the interest of the minor so requires. | Human Rights Committee
| General Comment / Recommendation |
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| 1989 | ||
Inter-American Convention on International Traffic in Minors 1994, para. undefined | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Each State Party may, at the time of signature, ratification or accession to the present Convention or at any time thereafter, declare that it will not entertain in any civil suit a challenge to the existence of the facts of the crime or the guilt of the person convicted when a conviction has been handed down for this crime in another State Party. | Organization of American States | Regional treaty |
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| 1994 | ||
Inter-American Convention on International Traffic in Minors 1994, para. undefined | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The actions taken in accordance with the provisions of this chapter shall not prevent the competent authorities of the State Party where the minor is located from ordering, at any time, said minor's immediate return to the State of his or her habitual residence, bearing in mind the best interests of the minor. | Organization of American States | Regional treaty |
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| 1994 | ||
Children deprived of their liberty from the perspective of the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2015, para. 84c | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | [With regard to legislation, the Special Rapporteur calls upon all States:] To adhere to the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice, the United Nations Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty and the United Nations Guidelines for the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency. | Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2015 | ||
The death penalty and the prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment 2012, para. 64 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Not only is the enforcement of the death penalty in these cases considered a violation per se of the prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and punishment but the related State practice has led to the emergence of a jus cogens provision regarding the execution of juveniles. | Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2012 | ||
Prevention of racial discrimination in the administration and functioning of the criminal justice system 2004, para. 25 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | [Formulates the following recommendations addressed to States parties:] Lastly, as regards the questioning or arrest of persons belonging to the groups referred to in the last paragraph of the preamble, States parties should bear in mind the special precautions to be taken when dealing with women or minors, because of their particular vulnerability. | Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination | General Comment / Recommendation |
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| 2004 | ||
Article 10: Humane treatment of persons deprived of liberty 1982, para. 2a | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Subparagraph 2 (b) of the article calls, inter alia, for accused juvenile persons to be separated from adults. The information in reports shows that a number of States are not taking sufficient account of the fact that this is an unconditional requirement of the Covenant. It is the Committee's opinion that, as is clear from the text of the Covenant, deviation from States parties' obligations under subparagraph 2 (b) cannot be justified by any consideration whatsoever. | Human Rights Committee
| General Comment / Recommendation |
|
| 1982 | ||
Inter-American Convention on International Traffic in Minors 1994, para. undefined | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The judicial or administrative authorities of the State Party of the minor's habitual residence, or those of the State Party where the minor is or is assumed to be retained, shall be competent to hear the request for the minor's location and return, at the option of the complainants.
When in the complainants' view there are urgent reasons, the request may be submitted to the judicial or administrative authorities of the State Party where the wrongful act occurred. | Organization of American States | Regional treaty |
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| 1994 | ||
Pathways to, conditions and consequences of incarceration for women 2013, para. 83 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | These rules supplement the standards of the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners and the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for Non-custodial Measures (the Tokyo Rules), which afford protection to all prisoners and offenders, respectively. Other applicable international standards include the Body of Principles for the Protection of All Persons under Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment; the Basic Principles for the Treatment of Prisoners; the United Nations Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty; the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice; and the Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials. Although these rules are non binding instruments, they constitute authoritative guides to the content of binding treaty standards and customary international law. | Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2013 | ||
Review of the standard minimum rules for the treatment of prisoners 2013, para. 61 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The Rules should prohibit the use and imposition of indefinite solitary confinement either as part of a judicially imposed sentence or a disciplinary measure, and alternative disciplinary sanctions should be introduced to avoid the use of solitary confinement. The Rules should also prohibit prolonged solitary confinement and frequently renewed measures that amount to prolonged solitary confinement. The Rules should establish a maximum term of days beyond which solitary confinement is considered prolonged. The Rules should explicitly prohibit the imposition of solitary confinement of any duration for juveniles, persons with psychosocial disabilities or other disabilities or health conditions, pregnant women, women with infants and breastfeeding mothers (see the United Nations Rules for the Treatment of Women Prisoners, rule 22, and the United Nations Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty, rule 67). No prisoner, including those serving life sentence and prisoners on death row, shall be held in solitary confinement merely because of the gravity of the crime. | Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2013 | ||
The death penalty and the prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment 2012, para. 80a | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | [Whether or not a customary norm prohibiting the death penalty has crystallized, the Special Rapporteur calls upon all retentionist States to observe rigorously the restrictions and conditions imposed by article 7 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and article 1 or article 16 of the Convention against Torture. The Special Rapporteur calls upon retentionist States:] To abolish the use of the death penalty for juveniles, persons with mental disabilities and pregnant women and give further consideration to abolishing the death penalty for persons over the age of 70 years and for recent mothers; | Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2012 | ||
The death penalty and the prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment 2012, para. 58 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In addition, and especially relevant to the emergence of a customary norm to consider the death penalty as running afoul of the prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, is evidence of a consistent global practice by States that reflects the view that the imposition and enforcement of the death penalty in breach of those standards is a violation per se of the prohibition of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. This conclusion originates from the fact that international law does not attribute a different value to the right to life of different groups of human beings, such as juveniles, persons with mental disabilities, pregnant women or persons sentenced after an unfair trial, but considers the imposition and enforcement of the death penalty in such cases as particularly cruel, inhuman and degrading and in violation of article 7 of the Covenant and articles 1 and 16 of the Convention against Torture. | Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2012 | ||
Solitary confinement 2011, para. 81 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Considering the severe mental pain or suffering solitary confinement may cause when used as a punishment, during pretrial detention, indefinitely or for a prolonged period, for juveniles or persons with mental disabilities, it can amount to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. The Special Rapporteur is of the view that where the physical conditions and the prison regime of solitary confinement fail to respect the inherent dignity of the human person and cause severe mental and physical pain or suffering, it amounts to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. | Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2011 | ||
Solitary confinement 2011, para. 32 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment has pointed out that prolonged solitary confinement may amount to an act of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and recommended that solitary confinement should not be used in the case of minors or the mentally disabled (CAT/OP/PRY/1, para. 185). The Subcommittee has also recommended that a medical officer should visit prisoners held in solitary confinement every day, on the understanding that such visits should be in the interests of the prisoners' health. Furthermore, prisoners held in solitary confinement for more than 12 hours should have access to fresh air for at least one hour each day (CAT/OP/PRY/1, para. 184). In view of the condition of solitary confinement, the Subcommittee has pointed out that beds and proper mattresses should be made available to all inmates, including prisoners held in solitary confinement (CAT/OP/HND/1, para. 227 (a), and CAT/OP/PRY/1, para. 280). | Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2011 | ||
The right of the child to freedom of expression 2014, para. 45 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The effects of limits on children's right to freedom of expression spill out of the school gates into public life. Children, just as adults, may be subject to excessive violence or arbitrary detention for expressing political views. For example, the Committee on the Rights of the Child recently highlighted such violations to the Syrian Arab Republic in relation to the arrest and incommunicado detention of a group of children between 8 and 15 years of age accused of painting anti-government graffiti on a school wall in the southern town of Dara'a (see CRC/C/SYR/CO/3-4, para. 46). It also expressed its concern to Belarus about the detention of adolescents during demonstrations held in the context of presidential elections in December 2010 (see CRC/C/BLR/CO/3-4, para. 35). | Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
The right of the child to freedom of expression 2014, para. 12 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | There is no reference in article 13 to the child's evolving capacities, nor is a minimum age or a certain degree of maturity for the exercise of the right to freedom of expression fixed. In this sense, freedom of expression has been regarded as having a developmental aspect, since its aim is to enable children to develop their minds and themselves in society with others and grow into citizens participating in public life. Children's freedom of expression does not - and cannot - start when children become capable of expressing their views autonomously or become teenagers; they cannot be expected to develop as autonomous beings and participants in society at the magical age of 18 years without having had the opportunity beforehand. | Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
The implementation of the rights of the child during adolescence 2016, para. 42 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Article 13 of the Convention affirms that children have the right to freedom of expression and that the exercise of that right may be subject only to the restrictions set out in article 13 (2). The obligation of parents and caregivers to provide appropriate guidance in accordance with the evolving capacities of adolescents should not interfere with adolescents' right to freedom of expression. Adolescents have the right to seek, receive and impart information and ideas and use the means of their dissemination, including spoken, written and sign language and such non-verbal expression as images and objects of art. Means of expression include, for example, books, newspapers, pamphlets, posters, banners, digital and audiovisual media, as well as dress and personal style. | Committee on the Rights of the Child | General Comment / Recommendation |
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| 2016 | ||
The implementation of the rights of the child during adolescence 2016, para. 41 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The lack of birth registration can result in significant additional complications during adolescence, such as the denial of basic services, the inability to prove nationality or receive an identification document, a heightened risk of being exploited or trafficked, a lack of necessary safeguards in the criminal justice and immigration systems and the underage conscription into the armed forces. Adolescents who have not been registered at birth or immediately after should be provided with free late birth certificates and civil registration. | Committee on the Rights of the Child | General Comment / Recommendation |
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| 2016 | ||
The implementation of the rights of the child during adolescence 2016, para. 24 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The Committee emphasizes the importance of participation as a means of political and civil engagement through which adolescents can negotiate and advocate for the realization of their rights, and hold States accountable. States should adopt policies to increase opportunities for political participation, which is instrumental in the development of active citizenship. Adolescents can connect with peers, engage in political processes and increase their sense of agency to make informed decisions and choices, and therefore need to be supported in forming organizations through which they can participate in a variety of means, including digital media. If States decide to lower the voting age to under 18 years, they should invest in measures that support adolescents to understand, recognize and fulfil their role as active citizens, including through citizenship and human rights education and by identifying and addressing barriers to their engagement and participation. | Committee on the Rights of the Child | General Comment / Recommendation |
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| 2016 | ||
Children’s rights in juvenile justice 2007, para. 88 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The Committee draws the attention of States parties to the United Nations Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty, adopted by the General Assembly in its resolution 45/113 of 14 December 1990. The Committee urges the States parties to fully implement these rules, while also taking into account as far as relevant the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (see also rule 9 of the Beijing Rules). In this regard, the Committee recommends that the States parties incorporate these rules into their national laws and regulations, and make them available, in the national or regional language, to all professionals, NGOs and volunteers involved in the administration of juvenile justice. | Committee on the Rights of the Child | General Comment / Recommendation |
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| 2007 | ||
Children’s rights in juvenile justice 2007, para. 40 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Article 40 (2) of CRC contains an important list of rights and guarantees that are all meant to ensure that every child alleged as or accused of having infringed the penal law receives fair treatment and trial. Most of these guarantees can also be found in article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which the Human Rights Committee elaborated and commented on in its general comment No. 13 (1984) (Administration of justice) which is currently in the process of being reviewed. However, the implementation of these guarantees for children does have some specific aspects which will be presented in this section. Before doing so, the Committee wishes to emphasize that a key condition for a proper and effective implementation of these rights or guarantees is the quality of the persons involved in the administration of juvenile justice. The training of professionals, such as police officers, prosecutors, legal and other representatives of the child, judges, probation officers, social workers and others is crucial and should take place in a systematic and ongoing manner. These professionals should be well informed about the child's, and particularly about the adolescent's physical, psychological, mental and social development, as well as about the special needs of the most vulnerable children, such as children with disabilities, displaced children, street children, refugee and asylum-seeking children, and children belonging to racial, ethnic, religious, linguistic or other minorities (see paragraphs 6-9 above). Since girls in the juvenile justice system may be easily overlooked because they represent only a small group, special attention must be paid to the particular needs of the girl child, e.g. in relation to prior abuse and special health needs. Professionals and staff should act under all circumstances in a manner consistent with the child's dignity and worth, which reinforces the child's respect for the human rights and fundamental freedoms of others, and which promotes the child's reintegration and his/her assuming a constructive role in society (art. 40 (1)). All the guarantees recognized in article 40 (2), which will be dealt with hereafter, are minimum standards, meaning that States parties can and should try to establish and observe higher standards, e.g. in the areas of legal assistance and the involvement of the child and her/his parents in the judicial process. | Committee on the Rights of the Child | General Comment / Recommendation |
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| 2007 | ||
Prevention of racial discrimination in the administration and functioning of the criminal justice system 2004, para. 26c | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | [Formulates the following recommendations addressed to States parties:] [Bearing in mind statistics which show that persons held awaiting trial include an excessively high number of non nationals and persons belonging to the groups referred to in the last paragraph of the preamble, States parties should ensure:] That the guarantees often required of accused persons as a condition of their remaining at liberty pending trial (fixed address, declared employment, stable family ties) are weighed in the light of the insecure situation which may result from their membership of such groups, particularly in the case of women and minors; | Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination | General Comment / Recommendation |
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| 2004 |