Justice Health Unit contributes to WHO COVID-19 guidance for young people deprived of liberty
As part of its on-going collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) Health in Prisons Programme, the Justice Health Group at CAH, MCRI and the University of Melbourne, led a multi-institutional consortium of experts that contributed to development of a Factsheet on responding to COVID-19 response in the WHO European Region, in the context of children and adolescents deprived of liberty.
Led by Professor Kinner, the consortium included research and clinical leaders from The University of Melbourne, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Burnet Institute, and Stanford University.
The Factsheet is available for download in English and Pусский.
Key principles
- Any response should be consistent with best evidence and ensure that children are involved.
- Basic human rights of children must not be breached; isolation in response to COVID-19 should not be used as solitary confinement or punishment.
- Detention should be recognized as harmful to children’s health and development, and that there is an ongoing need to invest in alternative measures to formal judicial proceedings.
