A/HRC/29/26 51. Against this backdrop, the importance of designing, developing and strengthening justice systems that are sensitive to children’s needs, rights, well-being and best interests cannot be overemphasized. A child-friendly or child-sensitive justice system must guarantee the effective implementation of all children’s rights, while giving due consideration to the child’s level of maturity and understanding. In particular, childsensitive justice must be “accessible, age appropriate, speedy, diligent, adapted to and focused on the needs and rights of the child, respecting the rights of the child including the rights to due process, to participate in and to understand the proceedings, to respect for private and family life and to integrity and dignity”.18 52. In consonance with the Committee on the Rights of the Child, the Special Rapporteur is of the opinion that the scope of child-sensitive justice should extend to “all relevant judicial proceedings affecting the child, without limitation, including, for example, separation of parents, custody, care and adoption, children in conflict with the law, child victims of physical or psychological violence, sexual abuse or other crimes, health care, social security, unaccompanied children, asylum-seeking and refugee children, and victims of armed conflict and other emergencies”.19 53. As the Special Rapporteur has recalled on countless occasions, judges, prosecutors and lawyers are in a privileged position and have a particular responsibility to ensure the protection and promotion of both human rights and the rule of law. In particular, judges have a proactive duty to ensure that they uphold international human rights law and standards at all stages of court proceedings. To be able to make appropriate decisions on matters concerning children and uphold their rights, judges, lawyers and prosecutors must have received specialized training. 1. Children in conflict with the law 54. While the State is entitled to seek justice from children alleged to or accused of having infringed the penal law, it still has obligations with regard to ensuring that their treatment in the justice system is fair. The Special Rapporteur deplores that too often justice systems, and in particular criminal justice systems, are designed for adults and have not integrated the specific procedural safeguards due to children. 55. At a very minimum, every child alleged as or accused of having infringed the penal law shall be granted the guarantees enumerated in article 40, paragraph 2 (a) and (b), of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. While some of these guarantees are generally established in international human rights law, in particular in article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, other guarantees are granted to children because of their specific status as minors. 56. For instance, the Convention on the Rights of the Child provides that a child has the right to be informed of the charges against him or her including “through his or her parents or legal guardians” and the right to legal “or other appropriate” assistance. It also provides that children must also be tried “without delay”, while the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights requires that they be tried “without undue delay”. This means that the swiftness of the proceedings is especially important and implies that children have particularly prompt access to legal counsel. Parents or guardians of a child are normally entitled to participate in the proceedings but, depending on the best interests of the child, they may either be required to attend hearings or be excluded from participation. 20 18 19 20 Guidelines of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on child-friendly justice, section II (c). General comment No. 12, para. 32. Beijing Rules, rule 15.2. 11