{"id":4382,"date":"2025-05-19T05:59:04","date_gmt":"2025-05-19T05:59:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/unsr.albertbarume.org\/site?p=4382"},"modified":"2025-05-23T06:44:25","modified_gmt":"2025-05-23T06:44:25","slug":"youth-justice-systems-across-australia-in-crisis-un-experts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unsr.albertbarume.org\/site?p=4382","title":{"rendered":"Youth justice systems across Australia in crisis: UN experts"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"\"GENEVA\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Two independent human rights experts on torture and indigenous peoples respectively* today sharply criticised state and territory youth justice systems in Australia, where disproportionately large numbers of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children continue to be jailed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe various\u00a0criminal legal systems operating in Australia appear to be in crisis nationwide,\u201d<\/em> said Alice Jill Edwards<\/strong>, the Special Rapporteur on torture and Albert K. Barume,<\/strong> Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples. \u201cChildren are suffering undue harm to their safety and well-being, as well as to their educational and life prospects as a result of short-sighted approaches to youth criminality and detention.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

In a letter to Australian authorities, the experts expressed considerable concern about a bill proposed in Queensland that is due to be adopted this week.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany new or proposed state laws, including Queensland\u2019s\u00a0Making Queensland Safer<\/a> (Adult Crime, Adult Time)\u00a0Amendment Bill, are incompatible with basic child rights,\u201d<\/em> the experts said. \u201cIf passed, the Queensland bill would result in additional adult penalties being applied to children for a wide range of offences. This would have an especially negative impact on the lives of indigenous children, who are already disproportionately represented in the criminal legal system. We urge members of the Queensland Parliament to vote against the bill.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The experts propose a child-centred approach that reflects international law and best practice. This should involve more comprehensive strategies in tackling young people’s anti-social and criminal behaviour.<\/p>\n

The age of criminal responsibility in most Australian states and territories is 10. This is younger than in most other industrialised countries. Australia has been widely criticised for not adhering to international recommended standards.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first goal should always be keeping children out of prison. We are extremely concerned that present approaches are creating a future under-class of Australians,\u201d<\/em> the experts said. \u201cJuvenile facilities should prioritise education and rehabilitation to support childhood development. Criminal justice reform alone does not result in fewer anti-social or criminal behaviours.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The experts stressed that the allegations constitute violations of Australia\u2019s international obligations with regard to children, including the obligation to protect them from torture and other forms of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, treat them humanely and with dignity at all times, and prioritise their best interests in all decisions affecting them.<\/p>\n

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Alice Jill Edwards,<\/strong>Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment<\/a>;\u00a0\u00a0Albert K. Barume<\/strong>,\u00a0Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Special Rapporteurs\/Independent Experts\/Working Groups are independent human rights experts appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council. Together, these experts are referred to as the\u00a0Special Procedures<\/a>\u00a0of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. While the UN Human Rights office acts as the secretariat for Special Procedures, the experts serve in their individual capacity and are independent from\u202fany government or organization, including OHCHR and the UN.\u00a0Any views or opinions presented are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the UN or OHCHR.<\/span><\/p>\n

Country-specific observations and recommendations by the UN human rights mechanisms, including the special procedures, the treaty bodies and the Universal Periodic Review, can be found on the Universal Human Rights Index\u00a0https:\/\/uhri.ohchr.org\/en\/<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0For inquiries and media requests, please contact:\u00a0hrc-sr-torture@un.org<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

For media inquiries related to other UN independent experts please contact Maya Derouaz (maya.derouaz@un.org<\/a>) or Dharisha Indraguptha (dharisha.indraguptha@un.org<\/a>)<\/span><\/p>\n

Follow news related to the UN\u2019s independent human rights experts on X:\u00a0@UN_SPExperts<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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PRESS RELEASES<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\n
\n
 Queensland Government under fire over human rights violations <\/a><\/p>\n
The Queensland Government faces criticism for implementing youth justice policies that may violate human rights, particularly affecting Indigenous communities. Experts and advocacy groups express concern over the potential negative impacts of these measures.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\nUN urges Queensland to reject ‘adult crime, adult time’ youth justice laws
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UN human rights experts criticize proposed youth justice laws in Queensland, saying they breach international rights standards and would disproportionately harm Indigenous children.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\nUN delivers scathing criticism of Australia\u2019s youth justice system
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In a damning report, UN special rapporteurs condemn Australia\u2019s youth justice practices, highlighting violations of children’s rights and the disproportionate impact on Indigenous children. They particularly criticize Queensland\u2019s laws that subject minors to adult punishments, calling them incompatible with international standards.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
GENEVA\u00a0\u00a0\u2013 Two independent human rights experts on torture and indigenous peoples respectively* today sharply criticised state and territory youth justice systems in Australia, where disproportionately large numbers of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children continue to be jailed. \u201cThe various\u00a0criminal legal systems operating in Australia appear to be in crisis nationwide,\u201d said Alice Jill Edwards,\u2026 Read More »<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":327,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[45,348],"class_list":["post-4382","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-press-releases","tag-australia","tag-youth-justice"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unsr.albertbarume.org\/site\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4382","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unsr.albertbarume.org\/site\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unsr.albertbarume.org\/site\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unsr.albertbarume.org\/site\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unsr.albertbarume.org\/site\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4382"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/unsr.albertbarume.org\/site\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4382\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4402,"href":"https:\/\/unsr.albertbarume.org\/site\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4382\/revisions\/4402"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unsr.albertbarume.org\/site\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/327"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unsr.albertbarume.org\/site\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4382"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unsr.albertbarume.org\/site\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4382"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unsr.albertbarume.org\/site\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4382"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}