The Abu Dhabi Judicial Academy (ADJA) has launched its first training program under the “Child-Friendly Justice” initiative, seeking to bring about a change in the approach to criminal and civil court proceedings, judgment writing in personal status, and criminal and civil cases involving minors.
Youssef Saeed Al Abri, Under-Secretary of the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department (ADJD) and Chairman of the ADJA’s Board of Directors, said that the implementation of this initiative aligns with the vision of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of Abu Dhabi Judicial Department, to develop the judicial system and secure its global leadership, while focusing on the developments and changes to ensure the best judicial and judicial services.
Al Abri explained that the Judicial Academy aims to train members of the judiciary, particularly those specializing in personal status and criminal cases, and officers of the court and specialists working in the child protection field, to work in accordance with the requirements of the approach based on child-friendly justice when directly or indirectly concerned with a criminal case or with a civil or personal status case.
The ADJD Under-Secretary announced that five short training films are being produced and will include lectures translated into Arabic, providing the necessary clarification of this approach. This would contribute to the modernization and development of criminal, personal status and civil procedures as an integrated procedural and objective approach.
In this context, Professor Helen Stalford, Professor and interim Head of the Law Department at the University of Liverpool, United Kingdom, and the Founding Director of the European Children’s Rights Unit (ECRU), delivered the first training workshop under the initiative via the ADJA’s electronic platform for distance learning and training. In addition, she addressed the right-based approach and the skills to communicate with children at different stages of the judicial process and upon handing down court decisions.
Stalford also reviewed the legal framework of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the legislation that ensures that the child’s best interests are fulfilled in all disputes, taking into account his rights and interests and giving them the highest priority. She also underlined the importance of including procedures that allow children to express their views and be heard on issues that directly affect them, taking into account the child’s age, maturity and the circumstances surrounding the lawsuit.