A team from the Women’s Support Centre at the Supreme Council for Women (SCW), today paid a visit to the Restorative Justice Court for Children at the Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments Ministry.
The delegation was informed about the building’s equipment and facilities designated to receive children and their families in a manner that suits the interests of children and takes into account the confidentiality and privacy of child-related cases, in accordance with the rights of the child stipulated in international charters and treaties and the relevant national laws.
During the visit, the SCW’s team was briefed about the mechanism for conducting court hearings by the competent judge, and the basic role of the social and psychological experts, who were appointed as per an edict 82 of 2021 issued by the Minister of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments.
The ministerial edict determines the role of experts before the restorative justice courts and the Judicial Committee for Childhood, as well as their work system in studying and assessing the child’s situation and the motives that led to the commission of the crime. The judicial ruling is issued based on their findings.
The restorative justice courts for children were established as per Law 4/2021 on the promulgation of the Restorative Justice Law for Children and Their Protection from Ill-Treatment. They are mandated to adjudicate criminal cases committed by children who are over 15 at the time of the commission of the crime.
The Women’s Support Centre develops policies and coordinates initiatives with the relevant authorities in order to ensure the development, implementation and evaluation of policies and programmes aimed at protecting children even before resorting to courts for the sake of ensuring the interests of the child, in line with the principles embedded in the Restorative Justice Law, and the legal standards in force.
Source: Bahrain News Agency