We, the participants of the virtual commemoration of the 2020 Day of the African Child under the theme Access to Child Friendly Justice Systems; after thorough deliberations covering aspects such as international and regional norms and standards on access to child friendly justice system in Africa; obligations of member states in ensuring child friendly justice; good practices and limitations in accessing child friendly justice systems, including limitations for vulnerable groups and role of various stakeholders including civil society organizations, children and media; have resolved the following- statement on access to child friendly justice systems in Africa

 

UPHOLDING Article 17 of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC), which provides that children who are in conflict with the law should be treated in a manner consistent with the child’s sense of dignity and worth and which reinforces the child’s respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms of others. In addition, which further provides safeguarding measures to be followed in relation to children in conflict with the law;

 

AFFIRMING the principles of the ACRWC: the best interest of the child, non-discrimination, life, survival and development and participation and COGNIZANT OF the evolving capacity of the Child;

 

GUIDED BY General Comment No. 1 of the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC) on Article 30 of the ACRWC ‘children of incarcerated and imprisoned parents and primary caregivers’;

 

AFFIRMING the African Union’s (AU) vision in Agenda 2063 (paragraph 53) that ‘African children shall be empowered through the full implementation of the African Charter on the Rights of the Child’ and its elaboration in respect of children as reflected through Africa’s Agenda for Children 2040: which provides in aspiration 8 that by 2040, all children benefit from a child child-sensitive criminal justice system;

 

RECOGNIZING the relevant regional and international norms and standards on access to child friendly justice systems; including Article 37 and 40 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child; General Comment No 24 of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, on Children’s Rights in Juvenile Justice; and the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice;

 

CONCERNED BY lack of comprehensive legislation at national levels on child-friendly justice systems; lack of harmonization of national legislation on children with the ACRWC and other relevant norms and standards on child friendly justice systems such as the setting of minimum age of criminal responsibility below the internationally recognized age of 14 years; imposition of capital punishment on children; the imposition of life sentence on children; and lengthy court proceedings in cases involving children;

 

FURTHER CONCERNED BY the high rate of deprivation of liberty of children as result of prioritization of detention; focus on retribution rather than rehabilitation; lack of psycho-social support to children in conflict with the law; and lack of safeguards for children engaged in civil proceedings;

 

MINDFUL OF the special situation of the girl child and children in vulnerable situations such as children on the move, unaccompanied and separated children, children affected by conflict and crisis, children with disabilities, and children whose mothers or primary caregivers are incarcerated;

 

NOTING WITH CONCERN the advent of COVID-19 global pandemic and its overall impact on the rights and welfare of the Child as well as its specific impact on access to child friendly justice systems, mainly the exacerbation of already existing challenges through measures taken to curb its spread and at the same time the health risk children and their caregivers may face while accessing justice systems;

 

NOTING the importance of traditional justice systems in providing access to justice for children while at the same time NOTING WITH CONCERN lack of codification of customary law and harmonization of traditional justice systems with the ACRWC and other relevant international norms and standards;

 

ACKNOWLEDGING Good practices on child friendly justice systems available such as the Pre-Trial Diversion programs and progressive Child Justice Acts in some Member States;

 

TAKING INTO ACCOUNT the outcome of consultation with children on the theme and their recommendations thereafter;

 

We hereby urge the following stakeholders to take the necessary measures to ensure access to child friendly justice systems:

 

       Member States

 

       To Civil Society Organizations

 

       To Media

 

 

ADOPTED on 16 June 2020