Minister of Justice Toni Gogu proposed four measures on Friday to the National Council for the Rights and Protection of the Child to strengthen procedural guarantees for minors who come into contact with law enforcement bodies.
The proposals are:
– a rights form written in language that is understandable to children, given to them before they are questioned;
– lawyers without delay for the minor being questioned, in accordance with the guarantees provided by law;
– early notification of the child protection officer;
– shared inter-institutional data on how these guarantees are implemented.
The minister presented these measures as part of the government’s approach to the violence of recent weeks: “Peaceful protest is protected. Violence has consequences. In this response, the Ministry of Justice has a special focus: the child.”
Gogu announced that the draft Cross-Sectoral Justice Strategy for Minors 2027–2030, prepared with the technical assistance of UNICEF, is open for public consultation until 22 November. He proposed that the children themselves be heard in the consultation around 20 November, Children’s Rights Day.
The Ministry is also working on transforming the juvenile institution into a model that strengthens education, rehabilitation and reintegration into the family. Together with the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Health and Social Protection, it is drafting prevention plans in schools.
