the family life of the juvenile and his/her
close relatives and the juvenile’s reintegration into society.
124. All juveniles, including those on
remand, should have frequent access
to a telephone and the opportunity to
exercise their right to correspondence at
all times. If there are security concerns,
particular telephone calls and correspondence could be monitored, and exceptionally prohibited. Any such decision
should be based on a substantiated risk
of collusion or other illegal activity, and
be for a specifed period.
In some establishments visited by the CPT,
juveniles are allowed to communicate
with family members on a regular basis by
using free-of-charge Voice over Internet
Protocol (VoIP) services. Such practices
are highly welcome; however, they should
not be considered as a substitute for visits.
125. Information on transfers, release,
disciplinary sanctions and protective and
security measures applied to a juvenile,
as well as concerning any illness, injury or
death, should be provided without delay
to the parents or legal representative of
the juvenile concerned.
g. Discipline and security
126. Restorative confict resolution
should be given priority over formal
disciplinary procedures and sanctions.
Disciplinary sanctions, if applied, should
be governed by the principle of proportionality and imposed in full compliance
with the relevant formal disciplinary rules
and procedures, and not take the form
of an unofcial punishment. Any form of
collective punishment is unacceptable.
In a number of establishments visited by
the CPT, it was not uncommon for staf to
administer a so-called “pedagogic slap” or
other forms of physical chastisement to
General Report of the CPT, 2013-2014 ► Page 56
juveniles who misbehaved. In this regard,
the CPT recalls that corporal punishment
is likely to amount to ill-treatment and
must be strictly prohibited.
127. The CPT wishes to stress that a
juvenile’s contact with the outside world
should never be denied as a disciplinary
measure; nor should it be limited unless
the disciplinary ofence relates to such
contact.
128. Any form of isolation of juveniles
is a measure that can compromise their
physical and/or mental well-being and
should therefore be applied only as a
means of last resort.
In the CPT’s view, solitary confnement
as a disciplinary measure should only
be imposed for very short periods and
under no circumstances for more than
three days. Whenever juveniles are subject to such a measure, they should be
provided with socio-educational support
and appropriate human contact. A member of the health-care staf should visit
the juvenile immediately after placement
and thereafter on a regular basis, at least
once per day, and provide him/her with
prompt medical assistance and treatment.
129. As regards solitary confnement
for protection or preventive purposes,
the CPT recognises that such a measure
may, in extremely rare cases, be required
in order to protect particularly vulnerable juveniles or to prevent serious risks
to the safety of others or the security
of the prison, provided that absolutely
no other solution can be found. Every
such measure should be decided by a
competent authority, based on a clear
procedure specifying the nature of the
confnement, its duration, the grounds
on which it may be imposed and providing a regular review process, as well
as the possibility for the juvenile concerned to appeal against the decision
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