Mei 2007
UNICEF TO HELP SET UP CHILDREN'S COURT IN ACEH
Banda Aceh, Aceh Province - The United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF)'s Restorative Justice Working Group is assisting the Aceh Police in a plan to set up a children's court in the province.
Alternative court procedures were required to intensify the protection of children facing legal processes, said a spokesman of UNICEF in Aceh, Anna Stechert, here on Wednesday.
As part of the program, UNICEF held a workshop on the children's court. Participants of the workshop included Aceh's prominent religious and traditional leaders, Aceh administration officials and police officers.
She explained that the workshop, which was organized on Tuesday (April 14) was aimed at increasing public awareness of the legal process for children involved in criminal cases,
Based on the situation analysis of the children's court system in Indonesia, more than 5,000 children were sent to jails throughout the country in 2003, according to the UNICEF official.
She said that because the children were put in the same jails as adult criminals, the children were prone to harassment as well as physical, sexual and emotional trauma.
Usually the age limit of those who could get legal sanction was around 18 years old, but in Indonesia the limit was too low, namely 12 years old, she said.
In 2005, UNICEF organized two training sessions on the children's court for around 17 judges and prosecutors in Aceh. In March 2007, UNICEF again held a training session for trainees on restorative justice. About 25 policemen and 28 judges and prosecutors participated in the training.
Restorative justice is a theory of justice that emphasizes repairing the harm caused or revealed by criminal behavior. It is best accomplished through cooperative processes that include all stakeholders. Practices and programs reflecting restorative purposes will respond to crime by identifying and taking steps to repair harm, involving all stakeholders, and transforming the traditional relationship between communities and their governments in responding to crime. (Antara, 18/4/07)
Embassy of the Republic Indonesia in Canberra