2. SAFETY, SECURITY AND DIGNITY FOR ALL 46 Invasive body searches should not be carried out on children, except under very exceptional circumstances, and consent is required from the child and the legal guardian before any invasive search is carried out.131 47 The UN Special Rapporteur on torture has called upon states not to perform strip searches of children in detention unless they have reasonable suspicion that requires them to do so.132 48 Children living in prison with a parent should never be treated as prisoners (Rule 29(2)) and should only be searched when it is deemed absolutely necessary to do so. The reasons for any searches of children should be clearly explained to both the child and the parent. The parent should be present during the search and be able to fully view the procedure. 49 Girls should never be searched by male staff. 50 Rule 21 of the Bangkok Rules stipulates that prison staff “shall demonstrate competence, professionalism and sensitivity and shall preserve respect and dignity when searching both children in prison with their mother and children visiting prisoners”. 2 Body searches of LGBTI individuals 64 51 Body searches can be particularly humiliating for LGBTI persons, and they may be at heightened risk of ill‑treatment due to their sexual orientation or gender identity. Prison administrations should, therefore, develop specific guidelines for searches of LGBTI prisoners, in particular for transgender and intersex individuals. 52 For LGBTI prisoners, the requirement that searches be conducted by staff of the same sex may not provide an appropriate level of safeguards because the risk of harm posed by both male and female officers may be equal. Transgender persons should be asked if they prefer to be searched by a male or female staff member.133 53 For transgender and intersex persons, determination of their gender should not depend on their status as recorded in official documents, but on their own self-perceived gender at the time of the search (see Rule 7(a)). PROMISING PRACTICE: SEARCHING TRANSGENDER PRISONERS – VIDEO PRODUCED BY THE SCOTTISH PRISON SERVICE [2.7] The Scottish Prison Service has issued a series of short films designed to provide guidance to prison staff on searching transgender prisoners. The films demonstrate a promising practice in that they clearly outline issues around the arrival of a transgender prisoner and make it clear why a gender-sensitive approach is so important. The series includes separate films to demonstrate the search of a trans man and a trans woman, which were produced in conjunction with the Scottish Trans Alliance (scottishtrans.org) and the Equality Network (www.equality-network.org).134 The Scottish Prison Service Gender Identity and Gender Reassignment Policy stipulates that people in custody should be body searched in accordance with their wishes. The person in custody must be asked which sex they wish to be searched by, their answer recorded and the body search conducted accordingly.135 131 132 133 134 135 131. Resource book on the use of force and firearms in law enforcement, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), 2017, p. 141, referring to Guidelines on the Conditions of Arrest, Police Custody and Pre-trial Detention in Africa, African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR), May 2014; see also: Protecting Children against Torture in Detention: Global Solutions for a Global Problem, American University Washington College of Law’s Center for Human Rights & Humanitarian Law, Anti-Torture Initiative, 2017, p. 51. 132. UN Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Report to the Human Rights Council, 5 March 2015, A/HRC/28/68, para. 86(f). 133. LGBTI persons deprived of their liberty: a framework for preventive monitoring,PRI/APT, op. cit., note 27. 134. Extracts from the series can be viewed at vimeo.com/99916554. 135. Gender Identity and Gender Reassignment Policy, Scottish Prison Service, 12 March 2014 at www.sps.gov.uk/Corporate/Publications/ Publication-2561.aspx. Guidance document on the Nelson Mandela Rules