Beatrice Ask - tal vid öppnandet av Europarådskonferens om barnets rättigheter
Beatrice Ask - Tal vid öppnandet av Europarådskonferens om barnets rättigheter - Beatrice Ask
Your Majesty,
Ministers,
Deputy Secretary General,
Commissioner,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Children are valuable. This may be a truism, but it is true. Children hold an immense value to us as individuals, and to society as a whole. If we fail to take care of our children, we will almost certainly fail to build a good society.
Children need special consideration in an adult-oriented world. This becomes particularly evident when they come in contact with the justice system.
In today's Europe, children grow up in an environment which in many ways differ from the one I grew up in. One important example is that many children live a large part of their lives in the virtual world. They have access to markets and meeting-places on the Internet that most adults don't understand - and many of us have never even heard of them. I consider myself as rather confident with modern information technology. I have used it every day for at least 25 years. But I must admit that I have never been given so much insight into the world of my children as when I joined Face book and became their virtual friend. It is quite an eye-opener!
Other children live under dreadful conditions where crime and the struggle to meet basic needs is predominant. It is inevitable that many of these children come into contact with the justice system at one time or another - often as victims, but also as young offenders. The challenge for us, as policy-makers and legislators, is how to adapt our justice system to fit their specific needs.
Much has been done, both nationally and internationally, to better the rights of children within the justice system. But there are still many unsolved issues. That is why I am so pleased to see You gathered here today. It is of great value that the actors concerned have the opportunity to meet and to discuss ideas and best practices.
I would like to take this opportunity to elaborate on a few aspects of justice and the rights of the child that I find important.
The justice system is built by and for adults. Children do not think, behave or react like adults. All of us who have children know this. Consequently, when the justice system deals with children, the level of legal certainty is to some extent reduced. We need to adapt the justice system so that the different needs and the level of maturity of each child are taken into account. This can greatly increase the level of legal certainty. It can also help lessen the traumatic experience of legal proceedings for the child. In order for this to be successful, it's very important that everyone working within the justice system receives adequate training.
Children who face an adult justice system are vulnerable. They need special attention and access to professional help and support. Whether they are victims, witnesses or perpetrators of crime, or involved in civil or administrative proceedings, they depend on us as adults to understand them and to take appropriate action. The younger the child, the more important it is that the adults closest to her or him take their responsibility.
The Government and Society has another kind of responsibility to take; and that is to allocate resources to help children at risk. We must focus on these children in order to help them abstain from delinquency and petty crime, and to choose a better path towards a good life. If we are to succeed in preventing the recruitment of children and adolescents to criminal gangs and serious criminality, the Police and other authorities within the justice system must cooperate with all parts of society. This includes schools, the Social Services, sports associations and other relevant organisations. I am confident that such a strategy will save enormous suffering and costs, both for the children and for society as a whole. Proven, effective methods of crime prevention amongst children is cost-effective, it is humane, and it is smart.
Children who are convicted of a crime or placed under institutional care, must be offered high-quality treatment, education and support. Such programmes must be meaningful and specially designed to help the child grow and change. To increase the possibilities of a good life, it is also important that investigative authorities don't keep records regarding suspicions and convictions for too long. Criminal records make it harder for these children to make a place for themselves in society. Everyone should get a second chance, and this is especially true for children and young people.
The government feels very strongly about crime prevention. For the past two years I have had the pleasure of presenting the Stockholm Prize in Criminology. This is an excellent way of rewarding those who do research and come up with fresh ideas in the area of crime policy. It is a joy to meet these people and to listen to their ideas.
I cannot stress enough the importance of basing all policy decisions on scientific studies and evaluations. Our work must be based on research that shows short and long term consequences for the child and for the society as a whole. It is not enough to make educated guesses where children are concerned: Policy decisions, as well as rules and methods used by the authorities, need to be based on scientific knowledge where possible. We need to be absolutely clear over the effects that different policies, rules and methods have on both the child and the judicial procedure.
Universities and other research institutions can be of great help in this matter.
Final remarks
I am pleased to see so many prominent people gathered here in Stockholm to discuss this important subject. I wish you good luck. It is my sincere hope that this conference will lead to concrete and important results in our common effort to strengthen the rights of the child in Europe.
Thank you!
