Foreign experts say Georgia’s Juvenile Justice Code is “innovative”

Georgia’s new Juvenile Justice Code is being applauded by international experts for its innovative ways to address youth crime and rehabilitate young offenders.

Delegates from seven nations and foreign experts are in Tbilisi to learn about the new, positive approaches to the Juvenile Justice Code of Georgia, introduced as amendments this year.

A number of officials from nearby nations and international agencies gathered in Georgia’s capital for the one-day conference, including Georgia’s Minister of Justice Thea Tsulukiani, head of the Supreme Court  of Georgia Nino Gvenetadze,  officials from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and a judge to the Special Court for Sierra Leone and family law expert Renate Winter. Georgian officials and representatives from Ukraine, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Moldova, Kazakhstan and Belarus also participated in the event.

Georgia's Justice Minister Thea Tsulukiani opened a conference in Tbilisi. Photo by Ministry of Justice. 

In her opening remarks, Tsulukiani stressed through the new Juvenile Justice Code, the Georgian Government had established "the best European standards” regarding youth offenders where arrest would only be made in "extreme situations.” 

She added from January 2016 Georgia will have a specialised staff of prosecutors, judges and lawyers who are assigned to cases of juvenile offenders. 

We have made our law to be corresponding with the UN Convention and European standards. … We have presented what did not exist in Georgia. This is a right of one mistake for children, which will be improved with the support of professionals, including social workers, psychologists and relevant state service staff,” Tsulukiani said. 

She thanked Georgia’s Supreme Court chair, UNICEF and other foreign and local bodies for supporting the successful adoption of the amended Juvenile Justice Code. 

Following on from this Supreme Court chair Gvenetadze said the amended Code was "in the best interests of juveniles,” and was a good mixture of European legislation with Georgian legal traditions and experience. 

Head of the UNICEF representation to Georgia Sascha Graumann stressed the Juvenile Justice Code of Georgia was "innovative” and offered the best experiences to young offenders. He noted practical implementation of the Code would be "crucial”. 

The same vision was shared by Winter, a family law expert, who said the amended Code was a "very modern document based on international principles and legislation”. 

The Code is in line with all international standards, principles and rights,” the Sierra Leone judge said. 

Representatives from seven different countries attended the conference. Photo by Ministry of Justice. 

Under the Juvenile Justice Code amendments, adopted in June this year, all criminal cases in Georgia involving minors will be handled by police officers, investigators, prosecutors and judges who specialised in juvenile offending.

The main changes related to the youth offender's criminal record and prison terms.

The amended law stated youth offenders will now have a reduced pre-trial detention period from 60 to 40 days. A youth offender's conviction status will be removed as soon as their sentence period has finished. The period of being classed as an accused will be extended up to six months.

Changes in penalties also came into force with the amendments. Life imprisonment was replaced by house arrest; imprisonment as a form of punishment will be used only when strictly necessary, particularly for severe crimes where a youth is sentenced to a maximum sentence of 10-15 years imprisonment. Under the new law, life imprisonment for juveniles was prohibited.