Juvenile justice in the Pacific

Juvenile justice in the Pacific was addressed at the recent annual meeting of the heads of the South Pacific Council of Youth and Children’s Courts (SPCYCC).

Held in Apia, Samoa, from 7 to 11 July 2008, this meeting brought together magistrates and judges from both developed and developing countries in the Pacific who shared advice and provided support to their counterparts.

“The meeting is a very important initiative in developing and supporting juvenile justice systems in the Pacific,” said Kevin Maguire, Legal Adviser in the Commonwealth Secretariat’s Justice Section.

The Apia meeting was facilitated by Justice Nelson of the High Court of Samoa who prepared a diverse programme which included visits to the new Young Offenders Rehabilitation Centre in Samoa and consideration of the influence of modern technology on today’s youth.

Samoa’s new Community Justice Sentencing Act was also examined followed by an inspection of the Community Justice Village programmes in action, which have been established to reintegrate and rehabilitate offenders into the community taking into account Samoan customs and traditions.

The meeting was supported by the Secretariat, and held at the same time as the Commonwealth Law Ministers Meeting in Edinburgh, Scotland, which considered and approved a ‘Framework for the Implementation of a Functioning Juvenile Justice System’.

This framework includes recommendations that regional groups such as the SPCYCC should be formed to support juvenile justice systems in the Commonwealth.

The UNICEF office in the Pacific was also represented and supported at this meeting.

Key Links:

• Country Profile: Samoa
• Law