A recent UNICEF report calls for urgent improvements in judicial systems for children and young people in East Asia and the Pacific.

The report, "Justice for children: Detention as a last resort", notes that children
behind bars face inhuman conditions and treatment. They are denied basic rights,
such as decent healthcare and education, and are highly vulnerable to drug abuse,
sexual exploitation and HIV/AIDS.

"The vast majority of children in conflict with the law have suffered a history of
abuse, including violence at home and at school, sexual exploitation, drug addiction
and poverty. They need care and support services, such as drug rehabilitation and
family counselling, rather than punishment in a criminal justice system designed for
adults," said Mehr Khan, UNICEF's Regional Director for East Asia and the Pacific.

Many children in detention in East Asia and the Pacific have been convicted of only
petty crimes or are awaiting trial, sometimes for extended periods. Many of these
are guilty only of being homeless or stateless; or they are the victims of child
trafficking and other forms of abuse.

The UNICEF report says that over 1 million children are in detention worldwide.
Although 90% of all children who come into contact with the police are first-time
offenders, they are often held with adult criminals, in breach of international law.
Exposure to adult criminal influence and the prison environment can have a powerful
and negative effect on children at a highly impressionable stage of their
development, says the UNICEF report.

The report calls for alternatives to imprisonment for children, including
non-custodial sentences and community-based programmes designed to reintegrate
juvenile offenders into society and to deal with the multiple root causes of
delinquency. These include dialogue between victims and offenders, which has been
demonstrated to reduce repeat offending and increase children's sense of
responsibility for their actions.[Source: CRIN]

For more information, contact:
Robert Few, UNICEF EAPRO
Tel: +662 356 9499 ext. 9518 or +661 746 3048
Website: http://www.unicef.org/media/media_21061.html