DISCRIMINATION: Children detained for status offences in Panama and Tanzania

As part of CRIN's efforts to highlight 'status offence' laws - laws which permit the detention of children for acts which would not be considered criminal if they were committed by adults - we have received the following information from Panama and Tanzania.

In Panama, hundreds of children are being detained for curfew violations. Panamanian authorities reportedly detained 877 children in January for violating night-time curfews established in July 2009.

The curfew, designed to reduce the potential for children to engage in criminal activity during night-time hours, establishes 9 pm as the curfew hour.  After this time, children must be accompanied by an adult, and first time violators face a fine of 50 dollars.

Panamian authorities appear to ramping up enforcement of the curfew.  Last year, 133 cases out of a total of 161 in which children were detained for curfew violations occurred in December, according to reports by the Police's Department for Children and Young People.  Between December and January, then, over 1,000 children were arrested and detained for being in public spaces in the night-time and early morning hours.

In Tanzania, a court application calling for the repeal of a law permitting municipal authorities to round-up street children has been rejected by the High Court of Tanzania. on the same day that the President approved the new 'Law of the Child Act'. NGO Caucus of Children's Rights, which submitted the application, plans to appeal the decision. For more information, contact: [email protected]

Why should status offences be banned?

Children come into contact with the justice system not only through general crime and delinquency laws, but also through committing special non-criminal "status offences." Status offences are special because they encompass acts that would not be criminal if they were committed by adults. This means that a status offender's conduct is considered unacceptable not because it is harmful, but solely on the basis of age. Status offences take many different forms in countries, states, and localities around the world - examples include curfew violations, school truancy, begging, running away, and even simple disobedience.

Children come into contact with the justice system not only through general crime and delinquency laws, but also through committing special non-criminal "status offences." Status offences are special because they encompass acts that would not be criminal if they were committed by adults. This means that a status offender's conduct is considered unacceptable not because it is harmful, but solely on the basis of age. Status offences take many different forms in countries, states, and localities around the world - examples include curfew violations, school truancy, begging, running away, and even simple disobedience.

Status offenders are neither criminal nor delinquent, yet they are subject to arrest and detention. Once involved in the justice system, status offenders often face a surprising absence of parental or legal support. Since they are children and their offences are not technically criminal, many status offenders are not guaranteed legal representation and may not even have access to interested adults. Moreover, as status offences often come to the attention of the authorities when parents report their children's 'bad' behaviour directly, some status offenders may have little support at home.

Status offence laws also have a disproportionate impact on those with the least resources available. Because they grant police great discretion to stop and question children in public spaces, status offence laws both target disadvantaged or street children who are forced to spend more time outside the home and fuel cultural biases that equate poverty with criminality.

Status offences violate children's rights and should be eliminated. They are also a clear form of age discrimination – status offence laws are directed at activities that adults consider acceptable for them, yet problematic for children. Thus, limits are placed on children's behaviour that are not tolerated by adults. The United Nations Guidelines for the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency denounce such restrictions, stating that they will only serve to stigmatise, victimse, and criminalise young people.1 Both these guidelines and the Committee on the Rights of the Child have further called for the abolition of status offences as a step toward the equal treatment of children and adults.2

Perhaps even more concerning, status offences are not only unfair, they curtail the freedom children need to grow and develop. They prevent children from becoming integrated into adult society. Ultimately, they not only fail to respect children's rights, they are in conflict with children's best interests.

Read CRIN's global report on status offences here.
Send examples of status offence laws in your country to [email protected].

Further information

Please note that these reports are hosted by CRIN as a resource for Child Rights campaigners, researchers and other interested parties. Unless otherwise stated, they are not the work of CRIN and their inclusion in our database does not necessarily signify endorsement or agreement with their content by CRIN.