We must improve on the promotion and protection of children’s rights.

All children have a right to an education which allows them to pursue their dreams and fulfil their potential. It is only during the last few years that importance started being given to the phenomenon of children dropping out of school. These children often end up struggling to access the education they need to progress in their lives and many end up stuck elsewhere. These lack the educational standards of mainstream schools and children there often fall prey to criminal exploitation and get funnelled into a life of crime. Even more shocking about this situation is that it often proves impossible to overturn unfair exclusions.

All children deserve a home where they feel safe and secure. But despite legal obligations to provide suitable homes for children, an unacceptable number of children continue to be housed in inappropriate accommodation for long periods of time. I, personally, encountered more than one such situation.

When it comes to steering children away from violence, much more needs to be done. There is also progress to be made in ensuring that we respond to children in trouble with the law in a way that helps them to escape the strong current of crime. One way to help achieve this is by creating a panel of specialist youth justice lawyers. Criminal legal aid lawyers are talented and skilled advocates but too often they would have never received any training in how to work with children, let alone how to engage with and gain the trust of teenagers. This sets them apart from all other professionals working with children, doctors, teachers and social workers who must have specialist training. Sadly, the lack of specialist youth justice lawyers leads to the lives of children being blighted unnecessarily. Engaging with teenagers is not easy and the children who come into contact with the youth justice system are far more likely to have communication difficulties, mental illness, have undergone trauma or have complex needs.

Let us remember that today’s children will be tomorrow’s society.

 

Dr Mark Said

Msida