Introduction
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Ursula Kilkelly
Abstract
Child detention is a global phenomenon and, according to the United Nations Global Study on Children Deprived of Liberty, up to 250,000 children are deprived of their liberty in the justice system globally every day (Nowak, 2019, p 251). Despite the minimum standards set by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) (Liefaard, 2008), the Global Study reports that children in detention are exposed to breaches of their rights, as a result of little or no education or healthcare and poor regard for their development. While overcrowding and inadequate material conditions are experienced by children in poorer countries, children’s rights everywhere are challenged by the deprivation of liberty, with minority children and children living in poverty disproportionately impacted. The gravity and complexity of the issues documented in the Global Study also highlight a failure – for multiple complex reasons – to protect the rights of children in practice. Despite numerous international instruments setting out children’s rights standards in detention, real challenges in their implementation continue to persist.
In Ireland, significant progress has been made in improving the treatment of children in detention in line with international standards, and the past five years in particular have witnessed the reform of child detention, with a child-centred and rights-based model becoming the standard for everyone aged under 18 years in detention. To enable this process, the national facility – Oberstown Children Detention Campus – has undergone substantial change, developing a modern, purpose-built facility, professionalizing the workforce and embedding new ways of working to ensure that the children enjoy their rights to care and education, healthcare and programmes that prepare them for their return home or for transition to prison on reaching 18 years.
Abstract
Child detention is a global phenomenon and, according to the United Nations Global Study on Children Deprived of Liberty, up to 250,000 children are deprived of their liberty in the justice system globally every day (Nowak, 2019, p 251). Despite the minimum standards set by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) (Liefaard, 2008), the Global Study reports that children in detention are exposed to breaches of their rights, as a result of little or no education or healthcare and poor regard for their development. While overcrowding and inadequate material conditions are experienced by children in poorer countries, children’s rights everywhere are challenged by the deprivation of liberty, with minority children and children living in poverty disproportionately impacted. The gravity and complexity of the issues documented in the Global Study also highlight a failure – for multiple complex reasons – to protect the rights of children in practice. Despite numerous international instruments setting out children’s rights standards in detention, real challenges in their implementation continue to persist.
In Ireland, significant progress has been made in improving the treatment of children in detention in line with international standards, and the past five years in particular have witnessed the reform of child detention, with a child-centred and rights-based model becoming the standard for everyone aged under 18 years in detention. To enable this process, the national facility – Oberstown Children Detention Campus – has undergone substantial change, developing a modern, purpose-built facility, professionalizing the workforce and embedding new ways of working to ensure that the children enjoy their rights to care and education, healthcare and programmes that prepare them for their return home or for transition to prison on reaching 18 years.
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- List of Cases and Instruments iv
- List of Figures vi
- About the Authors vii
- Acknowledgements viii
- Foreword ix
- Introduction 1
- Children’s Rights in Detention 5
- An International Perspective 20
- Irish Youth Justice Law and Policy 35
- Introducing Child Detention in Ireland 50
- Oberstown and the Process of Change 68
- Implementing Children’s Rights in Detention 87
- Children’s Rights to Protection from Harm 105
- Staff Wellbeing and Communication 122
- International and National Influences and Advocacy 139
- Reflections: Enablers and Barriers to Reform 155
- Afterword 177
- References 180
- Index 203
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- List of Cases and Instruments iv
- List of Figures vi
- About the Authors vii
- Acknowledgements viii
- Foreword ix
- Introduction 1
- Children’s Rights in Detention 5
- An International Perspective 20
- Irish Youth Justice Law and Policy 35
- Introducing Child Detention in Ireland 50
- Oberstown and the Process of Change 68
- Implementing Children’s Rights in Detention 87
- Children’s Rights to Protection from Harm 105
- Staff Wellbeing and Communication 122
- International and National Influences and Advocacy 139
- Reflections: Enablers and Barriers to Reform 155
- Afterword 177
- References 180
- Index 203
