With regard to the legal instruments that are applied in designing juveniles programs it was established that the Juveniles Act was the most utilized with a record of 100% usage. This was a positive aspect because the Juveniles Act is the primary law in Zambia that governs child justice programs.
5.2.3.1 Application of statutes in designing programs
Application of statutes in designing programs is vital because the provisions in the statutes provide guidelines on how to administer child justice programs. It was established that one but all the participants had utilised the provisions in the UNCRC in designing rehabilitation programs which was a good trend because the piece of legislation is premised on the principle of the “best interest of the child”. The utilisation of the provisions of the UNCRC entails that the rehabilitation programs are designed to meet the best interest of the child offenders. It was also noted that the majority 15 (75%) of the respondents had employed the provisions in the ACWRC. This is a positive outcome considering that the ACWRC is mainly concerned on the situation of the African child. It can be deduced that the programs designed by utilising the ACWRC addresses the unique factors of the African child such as their social-economic, cultural, traditional and developmental circumstances but to mention a few.
The provisions in the Constitution of Zambia were utilised by the majority of the respondents. This was a positive indication because the Constitution is the supreme law of the land. However, it was noted that the provisions in the UDHR which happens to be a cardinal piece of legislation were not utilised by a good number of the respondents. The UDHR is an important piece of legislation in child justice.
Moreover, it was established that less than half of the respondents had utilised the Beijing Rules despite it being the only piece of legislation that stipulates the standard minimum rules for the
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administration of child justice. This was a negative indication because child justice cannot be administered effectively without making reference to the Beijing Rules.
Only 9 (45%) of the respondents had utilised the provisions in the ICCPR when designing rehabilitation programs which is a matter of concern because the legal instrument puts emphasis on the separation of child offenders from adults as well as upholding all the procedures of rehabilitation. It can thus be stated that the ICCPR is an important piece of legislation that should be employed in child justice programs.
The conclusion was that most of the social welfare officers seem to have knowledge about the key legislations applied in child justice at both local and international level. However, about 30% of the social welfare officers indicated ignorance of some of the key pieces of legislation. Not been conversant with some of the legislation would make achieving the goals of effective child justice delivery impossible.
Recommendations:
Social welfare officers should receive training on the various statutes concerned with child justice.
Statutory services in child justice should be provided by social welfare officers with a qualification in social work because the social work training is comprised of law modules that enable the social workers to have knowledge about the relevant legislation.
Zambia should consider putting into place a legal instrument that is mainly for the protection and care of children so that the country has a statute that solely promote the legal protections and safe guards for children, distinct from those of adults.
5.2.3.2. Influence of international statutes on Zambian legislation
Zambia has ratified a number of international statutes of which it is a State Party. It was ascertained that these international statutes have an influence on the Zambian legislation. The majority of the participants had indicated that the international statues are well incorporated in the Zambian legislation. It was stated that the both sets of legislations have a mutual concern on matters that concern children in conflict with the law. Some participants though expressed some concern on the conflicting statements with regard to the definition of a child.
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The conclusion that can be drawn is that the international statutes have had a positive influence on the Zambian legislation as there has been a successful incorporation. The provisions in the international statutes have been applied to complement the provisions in the local statutes hence strengthening the child justice system.
Recommendation:
The definition of who a child is should be clearly spelt out in Zambia so as to compliment with the international definition.
5.2.3.3 The National Child Policy (NCP)
The national child policy is the main policy that addresses issues of child justice in Zambia. The majority of the participants indicated that they never had access to the NCP before hence expressing ignorance. A small fraction of the participants mentioned to have had knowledge and access of the NCP. The preceding group indicated that the NCP was a viable document that provided guidelines on how to execute child justice programs. However, another small fraction of the participants indicated that even though they had had utilised the NCP, it did not adequately address the issues of child justice in accordance with the resources availed.
The conclusion is that the NCP is not a well-known document among the social welfare officers providing the child justice services. Furthermore the respondents are of that view that, the contents of the document are known not address the issues of child justice according to the resources provided.
Recommendations:
Social welfare officers must ensure that they acquaint themselves with the necessary polices that govern their line of work.
The government must ensure that the policy is made available to all stakeholders providing child justice services
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