2011 conclusions of the European Committee of Social Rights finds youth justice violations in Ireland

8th February 2012

The conclusions of the European Committee of Social Rights for 2011 are now public, and the Republic of Ireland has been found to be in violation of Article 17(1) in two ways relating to youth justice:

• Young prisoners are not always separated from adults, specifically at St. Patrick’s Institution where boys aged 16 – 17 are often housed with adult prisoners.
• The age of criminal responsibility is too low for serious offences.

Also of relevance were the further questions the Committee had regarding the right to education under Article 17(2).

The Committee found that the amended Children Act of 2001 appropriately focused on early intervention and diversion as a response to youth offenders, with detention as a last resort in institutions where the ethos is educational rather than penal. It also established detention schools for persons under 18, and shifted responsibility for their operations to the Irish Youth Justice Service (from the Department of Education and Sciences). However, St. Patrick’s Institution houses male offenders between the ages of 16-21, meaning that boys aged 16-17 are placed in detention with an adult population. Though they are meant to be separated from the adult population at St. Patrick’s, the Committee found that this is not enforced in practice. Lending credence to the call for youth offenders to be moved to a youth detention centre is the fact that St. Patrick’s has no facilities for education. Neither is it managed by the Irish Youth Justice Service, but by the Irish Prison Service for adult offenders. The Committee found that where Article 17(1) requires young offenders to be kept separate in all circumstances from adult offenders, the state of Ireland is in violation of the European Social Charter.

Second, although the age of criminal responsibility was raised from 7 to 12 years in the Children Act (with a rebuttal presumption that the minimum age of responsibility is 14), the age of responsibility can be lowered to 10 years for “serious crimes.” These children are tried in the Central Criminal Court without the consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions, which is usually required to try children under age 14. Where Article 17(1) requires that the age of criminal responsibility is not too low even for serious crimes, the Committee found that Ireland is again in violation of the Charter.

The Committee deferred its decision regarding whether Ireland was in violation of Article 17(2), but noted trends of absenteeism in Irish schools, particularly among children belonging to the Traveller community. Of critical importance was also the fact that Irish schools are overwhelmingly Catholic, removing the element of choice for many non-Catholic families. Many of these schools seemed to give priority acceptance to Catholic children, leading the Committee to question what measures are being taken to integrate children from other denominations. Because the majority of Irish prisoners have left school before age 16, the Committee’s questions regarding Article 17(2) may speak to elements of social exclusion and contribute to the absenteeism that presents as a trend in prisoner populations.

Read the full report here (the Committee’s comments on Article 17(1) can be found on pages 18-22). 

To read more from the IPRT on the inappropriate detention of youth offenders in St. Patrick's, click here.