legal aid and education

1. Child-friendly legal aid and
their impact in advancing the
rights of children in conflict
with the law, including
diversion
Mr. Sk. Humayun Kabir
Joint Secretary (District Judge), Law and Justice Division
Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs
Government of Bangladesh

2.  Karim (not real name), a 17-year-old boy, was caught red-handed by
villagers for stealing parts from a local sawmill. He was beaten by the
villagers.
 The Child Affairs Police Officer (CAPO), on receiving the information,
rescued the child from the agitated villagers and brought him to the police
station. CAPO inquired whether he needed first aid also extended
psychological support to him.
 The Probation Officer (PO) and Karim's father were promptly notified of the
arrest.
 In a joint assessment, CAPO and PO delved into the circumstances
surrounding Karim's actions. Consulting with Karim, his father, and local
representatives, they agreed that he could be granted diversion from the
police station
STORY OF AN ACCUSED CHILD

3.  The probation officer formulated a care/ treatment plan in association with
the child and his father. Karim was counseled about the consequences of
future transgressions and reintegrated into his family under carefully
monitored conditions.
 A dedicated social worker was engaged to ensure compliance with the
conditions and provide the necessary support to prevent a recurrence of
criminal behavior, in alignment with the reintegration and support
provisions.
 As he was diverted by the police, the probation officer sent progress reports
of the child to the CAPO at regular intervals.
STORY OF AN ACCUSED CHILD

4.  The Children Act 2013, the principal legislation in Bangladesh, aims to
ensure the rights to protection of children in Bangladesh. It provides for a
variety of non-custodial measures for children in conflict with the law. For
example, after arresting the child
 There is a provision to release the child from the police station and also to
grant diversion.
 There is even a provision to grant bail to the accused child from the police
station.
 If the Police Station is unable to undertake such measures, there is a provision
to organize alternative dispute resolution for the accused child on the very day
of the first appearance by the Children's Court.
 The dispute resolution and diversion will be carried out by non-judicial
bodies i.e. probation officers.
NON-CUSTODIAL MEASURES

5. The right to appropriate legal representation of the children is a paramount
consideration under the Children Act 2013. It provides that
 No court shall proceed with its trial in any case without legal representation on
behalf of the child in conflict with the law and the child in contact with the law.
 The lawyer appointed on behalf of the child shall mandatorily remain present in
every hearing of the concerned case
 If the lawyer designated to represent the child consistently neglects court
without a valid reason or if his carelessness is evident, the Children's Court will
remove him from dealing with the case and will consider this as misconduct.
The duties of the probation officer are to ensure legal representation of the child,
including legal aid, if necessary, through the District Legal Aid Committees;
LEGAL REPRESENTATION OF CHILDREN

6. To enhance the capacity of the juvenile justice actors, the Ministry of Law with the
technical assistance of UNICEF Bangladesh identified key areas for intervention.
Those are as below:
Capacity Building
To develop trained and specialized professionals, we organized sectoral
training on the UNCRC and Children Act 2013 for the
 Panel lawyers enlisted in the District Legal Aid Committee (DLAC) and 345
lawyers (Female: 75 & Male: 270) took part in the training.
 Judges and a total of 203 Judges (Female: 41 & Male: 162) took part in
these trainings.
We also organized multi-sectoral training on child-sensitive justice
procedures where judges, lawyers, police officers, and probation officers jointly
attended in the same session.
GOVT EFFORT TO STRENGTHEN JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM

7. Multi-sectoral
Training

8. Multi-sectoral Coordination meeting
 Child-friendly legal aid involves collaboration with actors from various
departments, such as Judges, Child Affairs Police officers, probation officers, social
workers, and legal aid lawyers. This interdisciplinary approach helps address the
holistic needs of the child.
 We organized multi-sectoral coordination meeting on the effective implementation
of the Children Act 2013. These were organized under the leadership of the
judiciary, aiming for a more child-sensitive and less adversarial process and taking
effective measures on how to release, divert, and grant bail to children in conflict
with the law from police stations.
 Administrative steps are being taken through this coordination meeting, to send all
information on children's cases to the office of the District Legal Aid Officer every
month to ensure legal assistance to children.
GOVT EFFORT TO STRENGTHEN JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM

9. Multi-sectoral
Coordination
Meeting

10. Child Sensitive Children’s Court
 The physical spaces of the Children’s Court should be child-friendly, creating a
comfortable and non-intimidating atmosphere.
 We are in the process of establishing 11 spaces in 9 districts on a pilot basis where
there will be a round table type seating arrangement for the judges, lawyers,
probation officers, child/guardian, and victims.
 The judges, lawyer, police, or other employees of the court shall not wear their
professional or official uniform in the courtroom during the trial.
 These spaces will allow 21 Children’s Court to facilitate child-sensitive justice.
 Considering the importance of privacy and confidentiality, these courts, are
expected to ensure that the child's personal information is handled with care and
that discussions are conducted in a way that respects the child's privacy rights.
GOVT EFFORT TO STRENGTHEN JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM

14. Initiation of Virtual Children’s Court System
 The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the justice system digitalization.
 Bangladesh started conducting judicial proceedings through ‘virtual courts’ in May
2020. The advent of virtual courts ushered in a new era for the judicial system of
Bangladesh.
 The virtual court system including the virtual Children’s Court is initiated as part of
the regular system from this year. 102 Children’s courts, 3 Child Development
Centres, and 6 Safe Homes will be transformed and equipped with the digital
system.
 This system will expect to benefit the children in the justice system to
- Get speedy redress by expediting the trials and hearings.
- Minimize the risks and harms associated with the transportation of the children
from the Child Development Centres to the pertinent courts in faraway districts.
GOVT EFFORT TO STRENGTHEN JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM

15. Initiation of Virtual Children’s Court System
- Minimize the costs of transportation, maintenance of protocols, and logistical
arrangements.
- Minimize the duration of stay of the children languishing in the detention
centers.
- Promote diversion and other non-custodial measures during the pre-trial, trial
and post-trial stage.
- Prevent adverse exposure to the traditional Criminal Courts.
GOVT EFFORT TO STRENGTHEN JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM

16.  Implementing child-friendly legal aid requires a commitment to child rights and a
willingness to adapt legal processes to meet the specific needs of children.
 The Children Act 2013 has been enacted taking the principles of UNCRC into
consideration which guarantees the commitment of the State towards its children
despite having challenges in terms of trained human and financial resources,
adverse mindset regarding children in conflict with the law, and soliciting legal aid
for them along with others.
 We are progressing gradually to reach the standard set out by the Children Act
2013.
CONCLUSION

17. THANK YOU