Foreword
By Caleb Mutandwa: Director Justice for Children
Juvenile Justice Handbook is the title of the handbook prepared by Justice for Children. The issues
addressed in the handbook were noted by Justice for Children lawyers and paralegals as they were doing
their daily work of providing free legal services to children in Zimbabwe. The Handbook shades light on the
international and national legal framework so that those who work with children in the justice system will be
aware of the legal provisions that should guide them as they carry out their work. Besides the legal
framework, the key stakeholders and their roles and responsibilities were spelt out as most child rights
practitioners and the stakeholders themselves do not know what they are supposed to do to ensure that the
rights of children who are in conflict are protected. The Handbook makes practical proposals on how
children who are in contact with the law can be assisted using the current legal framework.
The Handbook highlights the international treaties with standards that guide the treatment of children in
conflict with the law, some of which have been signed and ratified by the government of Zimbabwe.
Reference has been made to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Rights
and Welfare of the Child. If the standards set in these international treaties are adopted and followed then
the justice delivery system will work for the betterment of our children.
In 2013, Zimbabwe adopted a new Constitution (Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No. 20) Act 2013)
which includes children’s rights, including the rights of children in conflict with the law in the Bill of
Rights. Following the adoption of the Constitution, efforts have and are still being made to align subsidiary
laws to the Constitution. This handbook therefore takes cognizance of the fact that some laws are still yet to
be aligned to the Constitution and there are also efforts to come up with a Child Justice Act, with a Draft Bill
having been drafted.
Implementation of laws in Zimbabwe still remains a challenge, with some laws not being applied at all. For
instance, through our work in providing legal services to children in conflict with the law, we have noted
that provisions in the Children’s Act which provide that some cases of children in conflict with the law
should be referred to the Children’s Court are not being used as children’s cases are handled by the
mainstream criminal Courts.
In handling cases of children in conflict with the law, some of the critical questions which should be asked
are; what should the society do with children who violate the law? Treat them like other criminals?Impose
the sanctions of the law commensurate with the crimes they commit? Mix them with adult offenders? The
Handbook thinks otherwise. It posits the view that among other things stakeholders within the justice
system, the children's families and the community in which they live need to get their act together to help
children restart their lives and become useful members of the society as early as possible. It is urged that
reform minded government authorities, legislators and students of law and justice read and benefit from the
insights so that we restart the lives of children in conflict with the law rather than destroy them.
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