24 NORWEGIAN PARLIAMENTARY OMBUDSMAN National Preventive Mechanism ANNUAL REPORT 2018 Routine use of coercion in child welfare institutions In recent years, the National Preventive Mechanism's (NPM) visits to child welfare institutions have found that young people are subjected to routine use of coercion. It is a matter of concern that several of the institutions we have visited have had a weak understanding of the legislation that, in some cases, has led to violations of the law and a high risk of integrity violations. In certain cases, children and young people can be placed in an institution involuntarily. The Child Welfare Act Section 4-24 provides for placing children and young people between the ages of 12 and 18 with ‘serious behaviour problems’ in a treatment or training institution without their consent for up to twelve months. Section 4-25 second paragraph provides for issuing an interim order for placement without the child’s consent on the same grounds.1 Furthermore, a child who has reached the age of 15 who gives their consent can be placed in an institution on the same grounds pursuant to Section 4-26. If the child has not reached the age of 15, the consent of those who have parental responsibility for the child is required.2 Routine coercion is when force is used as an integrated part of the institution's practice, without being specifically assessed for the individual resident in the specific situation. The NPM has highlighted findings of routine coercion after several visits. In autumn 2016, the Parliamentary Ombudsman's National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) began visiting child welfare institutions, and, at the end of 2018, we had visited nine institutions where children and young people can be placed without their consent.3 We have visited state-owned and private emergency institutions and long-term institutions. The NPM has nevertheless, on several visits, found that coercion is laid out as part of the rules or procedures. The findings concern personal searches and baggage searches, restrictions on the use of mobile phones, and on freedom of movement; in the form of being constantly followed closely by an adult (“shadowing”) or being separated from the rest of the youth group. Institutions cannot make house rules, procedures etc. that restrict the residents’ rights as such restrictions requires a decision based on individual assessment of the legal criteria for such restrictions in each case and specific situation.4 This means that coercive measures and restrictions that are regulated by the Rights Regulations cannot form part of an institution’s general rules or procedures. 1 The Act requires that the child has shown serious behavioural problems ‘in the form of serious or repeated criminality, in the form of persistent abuse of intoxicants or drugs or in other ways.’ 2 Even if the child is staying in the institution voluntarily, they may be retained there for up to three weeks after their consent has been expressly withdrawn. 3 Cf. the Child Welfare Act Section 4-24 and 4-25 second paragraph, but also Section 4-26 concerning retention in an institution based on consent. 4 The Rights Regulations Section 3.