Institutional violence is a form of violence against children contained in the United Nations in its Global Report on violence against children. Violence is any physical, mental or emotional damage caused to a child, by action or omission, in any field, also in justice.
Not long ago we talked to you about the treatment of sexual abuse of children by our Judicial System, and today Save the Children claims that there are no adequate mechanisms to guarantee the rights of children in Spanish courts, especially the right to be heard and informed. The Administration of justice in Spain It is not adapted to the needs of children. In the light of international human rights norms and international standards in matters of justice and childhood, Spanish justice suspends the examination on the respect and guarantee of the rights of children.
Violation of children's rights in the judicial system
In its report “Children and justice: a matter of rights,” Save the Children warns that sometimes children are subjected to repeated and inappropriate interrogations, statements or explorations that expose them to painful revictimization. The children They are not always treated according to their age or maturation status, which can generate confusion, fear or even guilt in them.
The right of children to be duly heard during the proceedings, both judicial and administrative, and in the processes in which they participate it is not guaranteed sufficiently and in many cases it is not respected.
The actions of professionals in the psychological assessments of boys and girls are particularly concerned
Too often there are children who are unprotected and sometimes exposed to violence, in large part due to ignorance of children's rights by legal operators, as well as to the lack of specialized and adequate resources to respond to judicial situations involving children, either in the condition of victims or witnesses of a crime, as violators of the law, in cases of marital crises or homelessness or with respect to immigration laws, among other situations .
Most obvious shortcomings
Lack of adequate and accessible legal advice for boys and girls.
The lack of means, both material and human, to address with all guarantees the participation of children in judicial proceedings and respect their right to be heard.
The lack of monitoring and reporting mechanisms for the actions of legal operators.
Reforms in the judicial field in times of crisis?
Boys and girls need to go to or face the justice system for different reasons and personal and legal circumstances. Access to justice for boys and girls should go through respect and guarantee of their rights, But it's not always like this
They are needed more human, material and legal means to properly care for boys and girls in the judicial field and guarantee your rights. In particular, it is urgently necessary to physically adapt the spaces in the courts where the interviews should take place and where the children should wait, as well as to have the technical and audiovisual material that allows the participation of the child in the processes without having to see his assailant or having to give a statement in a room full of unknown adults.
It is equally urgent to strengthen the number of specialized prosecutors, judges and technical staff and ensure their specific training in children's rights. The Minister has announced a battery of reforms and measures that will profoundly affect the functioning of justice in Spain and that children cannot forget, because they will be even more unprotected and mistreated.
In its report, Save the Children makes a series of recommendations to the legislative, executive and judicial branches so that they provide sufficient means to the justice system so that the rights of all children who come or are involved are respected and protected. in some judicial process.
