2007'02.01.Thu
The First Youth Justice Pilot Project in China Successfully Diverts 451 Young Offenders

March 20, 2006

BEIJING, March 20 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- On Mar. 19, a special basketball team was set up in the Gymnastic Studio of Panlong District. The players gave it the name "Sunshine Basketball Team." These children are young offenders diverted from Panlong Youth justice Pilot project. The team leader, Mr. Li, is a police officer from Panlong Public Security Bureau. He is also a staff of the project office. And the coach of the team, a national level coach, is the head of Panlong Gymnastic Studio. He works with the children as a volunteer. The Youth Justice Pilot Project based in Panlong District, Kunming City is a cooperative initiative between the People's Government of Panlong District and Save the Children. The project promotes judicial diversion through inter-departmental cooperation and the establishment of community support system. According to the introduction by Zhang Yue Ru, the director of the project office, "judicial diversion" refers to the process whereby, when a young offender is to be dealt with by administrative or criminal penalties, alternatives to custody with conditions will be granted wherever possible to divert him or her from the criminal justice system, thus to reduce the amount of young people detained in detention centers and youth jails. Young offenders then stay in communities to receive help and support to reintegrate into society. Till now, 451 young offenders have been diverted in Panlong district. With the joint efforts of both sides, the project set up the first judicial Diversion Protocol in China, which regulates the practices of the local Public Security Bureau, Prosecutor's Office, the Court and the Judicial Bureau. In order to promote the practice of judicial diversion, the first full-time "Appropriate Adults" team were set up and the manual for this scheme was issued. This manual defines the working procedure of appropriate adults by requesting them to present from the very first meeting when young offenders enter the judicial process to protect young offender's legal rights. At present, there are ten full-time appropriate adults. As soon as a child in conflict with the law appears in the Public Security Bureau, the appropriate adults will be called in promptly to present in the interview. Besides, full-time appropriate adults work with part-time volunteers; all of them play important roles in the establishment of community support system. In order to carry out the community correction work after diversion, a children's center was set up in Donghua community. It is a place for diverted children to receive training and support, and to have fun. Playing basketball is one of the activities carried out through the center. In the launch of the Sunshine Basketball Team, most team members said playing basketball greatly changed them. They made many friends and learned the importance of friendship, respect and team spirit. Now their greatest hope is to play in a real basketball game. For more information, please contact: Zeng Ming Press/Information Officer Save The Children China Programme Tel: +86-010-6500-4408/6441 x1616 Fax: +86-010-6500-6554 Email: zengming@savethechildren.org.cn SOURCE Save the Children
PR
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