CCPR/C/112/D/1968/2010 Consideration of the merits 7.1 The Human Rights Committee has considered the communication in the light of all the information made available to it by the parties, as provided for under article 5, paragraph 1, of the Optional Protocol to the Covenant. 7.2 The authors claim that their rights under article 7 of the Covenant were violated, as the imposition of a life sentence on a juvenile constitutes cruel, inhuman and/or degrading punishment and that the legislation applicable to them does not offer a real possibility of release on parole. The State party argues that the sentences imposed on the authors are proportionate to their crimes, to the need for retribution, to deterrence and to protection of the community; and that possibilities of release exist under the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 and the Crimes (Administration of Sentences) Act 1999, as well as under the royal prerogative of mercy. 7.3 The authors further claim that their life sentence is incompatible with the requirements under article 10, paragraph 3, of the Covenant that the essential aims of the penitentiary system be reformation and social rehabilitation, and that juvenile offenders be accorded treatment appropriate to their age and legal status. The State party argues in this respect, inter alia, that article 10, paragraph 3, does not prevent Governments and courts from imposing penalties that aim at adequate punishment, community protection and deterrence, as they see fit in appropriate circumstances. 7.4 The authors claim that the State party, by enacting the legislative amendments regarding eligibility for parole after the offence was committed in 1988 and after their sentence dated 18 September 1990, breached article 15, paragraph 1, of the Covenant, because those amendments resulted in removing the prospect of their release on parole and hence in a heavier penalty than the one applicable when the criminal act was committed. The State party contests this claim arguing that parole does not form part of the penalty or sanction imposed by law, but is by nature a discretionary and flexible component of the way in which the sentence is served. 7.5 The authors finally claim that the imposition of a life sentence without possibility of parole for crimes they committed as juveniles is incompatible with the obligations of the State party under article 24, paragraph 1, of the Covenant. The State party argues in that respect that its criminal justice system affords appropriate measures of protection to juveniles, in application of which the authors commenced their term of imprisonment in a juvenile institution and were transferred to adult institutions after attaining 18 years of age. 7.6 The Committee notes that, as a result of the application of Schedule 1 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 and subsequent legislation, the authors must serve 30 years of their life sentences before they can apply for a determination of their sentence; that such determination would be limited to setting a non-parole period; and that upon completion of the non-parole period, the New South Wales State Parole Authority could only release the authors if they are either in imminent danger of dying or physically incapacitated. 7.7 The Committee considers that the imposition of life sentences on the authors as juveniles can only be compatible with article 7, read together with articles 10, paragraph 3, and 24 of the Covenant if there is a possibility of review and a prospect of release, notwithstanding the gravity of the crime they committed and the circumstances around it. That does not mean that release should necessarily be granted. It rather means that release should not be a mere theoretical possibility and that the review procedure should be a thorough one, allowing the domestic authorities to evaluate the concrete progress made by the authors towards rehabilitation and the justification for continued detention, in a context that takes into consideration the fact that they were 14 and 15, respectively, at the time they committed the crime. 16