Places visited by the National Preventive Mechanism in 2011 emergency centres for children, the representatives of the NMP checked whether a juvenile’s stay in an ECC did exceed the period stipulated in the act. Pursuant to Article 37b of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted by General Assembly on 20 November 1989122,the arrest, detention or imprisonment of a child shall be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time. The results of the NPM controls show that in all visited units cases were reported of detaining juveniles for a period of time longer than permitted by law, with the longest reported detainment amounting to as many as 108 days (ECC in Tarnów). It was also reported that juveniles were detained for 22 days (Ostrów Wielkopolski), 18 days (Bydgoszcz) or 12 days (Poznań). Such practices are unacceptable not only because of the fact that isolation exceeds the period stipulated in the Act on j.d.p., and thus has a negative impact on juveniles’ mental state, but also because the establishment was not adapted to detain juveniles for a longer period of time. Such extended detention in an ECC has serious repercussions for a juvenile, making it impossible for him/her to attend school or limiting his/her contact with family members, which at that age is very important. In response to the NPM’s Report, the Municipal Police Chief in Gorzów Wielkopolski announced that measures were being taken in order to shorten the period of detention as much as possible. He announced that cases when the length of juveniles’ stays in Centres exceeded the acceptable period resulted from a court’s order to place juveniles in an ECC until they are transferred to an indicated establishment. The Director of the ECC in Radom explained that the reason for detaining a juvenile, who was in the Centre on the day of the visit, for 6 days, was the necessity to transfer relevant documentation and to specify the establishment where the juvenile would be finally placed. According to the Director, such situations do occur occasionally, and the convoys to establishments indicated by the court are carried out as soon as possible. Similar explanations came from directors of other establishments, who expressed their willingness to make efforts to shorten the period of stay of juveniles in ECCs. Concerned by the numerous cases of prolonged stays of juveniles in ECCs, the Human Rights Defender once again addressed the Minister of Interior and Administration, the Minister of Justice and the Chief Police Commander123. In the opinion of the Mechanism, the prolonged stays of detained juveniles result from the lack of legal provision stipulating the maximum period of time for detaining a juvenile in an ECC after a court has issued a decision to apply this measure. Until his/her placement in the establishment indicated in the court’s decision, the juvenile stays in an ECC. Expressing his opinion on this matter, the Minister of Interior and Administration stated that the good of juveniles, as well as ensuring a proper care until they are transferred to the establishment indicated by the court, is the main concern of police officers. He confirmed that judges tend to place juveniles in ECCs without setting the time limit for such stays, making juveniles wait until there is a place for them in the indicated 122 123  Dz.U. of 1991 No 120, item 526, as amended.  RPO-672816-VII-720.8.1/11. 69