The children in conflict with the law - more questions than answers?

On July 9th, Tuesday, at 4 p.m. at the Community Support Centre /CSC/ - Sofia was presented the project "Social Inclusion of Children in Conflict with the Law - New Models and Practices" of the Social Activities and Practices Institute /SAPI/ in partnership with  Associazione di promozione sociale „Il Fiore del deserto”  from Italy and  “Include Youth” from Northern Ireland.

According to the acting Bulgarian legislation the main instrument for work with children in conflict with the law are the instructive-educational measures based on the LFASAMU. Their efficiency is a subject of many discussions. One of the measures that is often applied is, for example, the placement of children in socio-pedagogical internats /SPI/ and Instructive-Educational Schools-Internats /IEI/, which is defined as an "educational measure", but in essence it bears the characteristics of a punishment procedure. According to the data from the SACS for 2009 only from the profile documents of the children placed in SPI and IEI it is apparent that  8,4% of them have been victims of some kind of crime or violence. "In a part of the cases the children need psychological support ot treatment, and not a placement in an internat. The practice reveals the lack of studies of the individual cases, lack of competence for such studies and for "diagnosis" of the real problems that are hidden behind the deviant behaviour of the children." According to the assessment of the SACS there is also a lack of a methodology for corrective and educational work, as well as various kinds of activities to contribute to the social inclusion of the child and to protect the child's best interest. Most often the duration of the stay of the children in SPI/IEI is between 2 and 3 years (39.7% and 38.24% for 2011 and 2012 respectively).

Exactly in this respect, the project “Social Inclusion of Children in Conflict with the Law – New Models and Practices” aims to contribute for the social integration of children and youths in conflict with the law through the development and piloting of new specialized services and a thorough innovative model for support of children and youths, and their families. The model of work and the new services will be developed on the basis of the shared experience of the partner organizations Associazione di promozione sociale „Il Fiore del deserto” and “Include Youth”, as well as after the study of the practices in some other European countries.

We also hope that the project would contribute to the development of a Road Map for the implementation of the Concept for state policy in the sphere of child justice (2013 – 2014). Among tha main goals of the Road Map are “the introduction of alternative measures that would allow a response to the behaviour in conflict with the law without the participation of the criminal justice system, when this is possible”, as well as the development of a “system of qualitative and accessible services in the family environment and in the community, aimed at the prevention, early intervention and support of the child and the family.”

The project started on 01.06.2013 and ends on 30.05.2015.

The project is funded by the OP “Human Resource Development”, co-funded by the ESF.

The project is funded by the OP "Human Resource Development", co-funded by the ESF.