2021-07-18

Gaza

Gaza / Core Program / position paper

H.E. Respected Deyaa al-Madhoun,

Attorney General - Gaza

Subject: A violation of the rights of the child and a clear violation of the provisions of the law

MUSAWA - The Palestinian Center for the Independence of the Judiciary and the Legal Profession, greets you. In respect of summoning a girl of no more than 10 years old to appear in Jabalia Police Station for investigation, despite the fact that the laws in force prohibit the accountability of children/juveniles under 12 years of age, and since the law has removed them from the circle of accountability and in implementation of the best interests of children and in implementation of the provisions of the Child Law as a special law and in implementation of the legal rule that requires the enforcement of the private law in the event of its conflict with the provisions of the public law, which requires the implementation of its provisions that conflict with the Code of Criminal Procedure, summoning children under 12 years of age for investigation or appearing before law enforcement agencies / the judicial police, including the police or any other security agency, as well as before the Public Prosecution, and since the summons and investigation procedures contradict the laws regulating children’s rights and the principles and provisions of criminal accountability, and since the Public Prosecution and the judiciary police and even the judiciary, did not address this contradiction and did not fill this gap and continued to apply the Code of Criminal Procedures without regard or commitment to the special children’s law and without regard and compliance with the best interests of children. Jabalia police summoned the aforementioned girl for investigation at the police headquarters. Such a violation of the law and orders, which prevents and prohibits summoning children or interrogating them due to the inadmissibility of questioning them, and instructing all law enforcement agencies and the judicial police, including police stations and other security agencies, chiefs and prosecutors, to cancel any procedure that includes summoning, interrogating or questioning them, recalling that the laws regulating juveniles require the presence of the Child Protection counselor and the families of the juvenile before the investigation authorities and the court if the child is over the age of twelve and has not reached the eighteenth, recalling that determining the age is within the reach of the law enforcement agencies and the judicial police as well as the Public Prosecution, and all that is required is to press the button or call Telephone with the Civil Status Department or access its website.

Accordingly, we, MUSAWA - The Palestinian Center for the Independence of the Judiciary and the Legal Profession, ask you to take the immediate legal requirement that is commensurate with the requirements of the legal principle that children under the age of twelve are not held accountable in implementation of the right of children to physical and psychological integrity, in order to preserve their human dignity, and in implementation of the best standards for children, and to inform us of the action taken by you, including obligating law enforcement agencies and judicial police officers by that as per the rules.

With all due respect,

Issued on: 18/7/20121

Enclosed:

A copy of the child's notice document.

MUSAWA