Children’s rights need better protection in Ukraine’s criminal justice system, finds OSCE-supported report

Multiple interrogations, lack of psychological support, lengthy proceedings, these are just a few of the problems children face in Ukraine’s criminal justice system according to a new OSCE-supported report presented on 1 June 2021. The report comprises the results of civil society research conducted upon the initiative of Ukraine’s Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights and with support of the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine (PCU).

The report was presented during an online event to mark International Day for the Protection of Children. More than 250 judges, representatives of state authorities, civil society and human rights activists, and other justice sector stakeholders attended the event. It was streamed live for a general audience (https://youtu.be/sl-HE8Gv2n4).

The results indicate that, on average, the judicial review of a criminal case involving a minor takes 4,5 to 5 years, or even longer, to complete. 71 interviews with judges, advocates, prosecutors, psychologists and guardianship authority representatives, as well as reviews of 53 court judgments and analyses of official court statistics related to criminal cases involving minors took place. Of those interviewed, 70% reported that no attempts were made to speed up or give preference to the review of cases involving children despite both national and international legal frameworks stipulating that judicial disputes involving minors should be prioritized and expedited.

“The findings of this research are impressive, especially taking into account the challenging conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic. The monitoring demonstrated that courts and administrative bodies do not adhere to international principles of child-friendly justice, significantly exceeding deadlines for the review of cases involving minors, and such cases are often heard without involving children and taking their views into account,” said Lyudmyla Denisova, Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights.

The report contains recommendations for improvements, such as adopting uniform procedural guidelines for establishing ‘green rooms’, which provide a safe and friendly environment for interviewing children; recognizing the admissibility of video interrogations collected from child witnesses or victims in ‘green rooms’; establishing children’s hubs within the criminal justice system; and introducing systematic training on child-friendly justice standards for all relevant stakeholders.

“Being in contact and in conflict with the criminal justice system can be very stressful and even traumatic for children. To mitigate these effects, the justice system must be adapted to children’s needs and their vulnerability. We hope that this report and its recommendations will be useful for all professionals in making the justice system more child-friendly,” said Henrik Villadsen, OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine.

The analysis carried out during the study was based on methodologies that the PCU adapted from the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights’ (ODIHR) method of court monitoring for local conditions. The PCU also helped to train monitors to use the adapted approach, as well as provided funding for the research. The monitoring portion of the research was conducted in fall 2020 and covered 41 court hearings throughout Ukraine.