Peculiarities of The Detention of Juvenile Suspects: National and International Standards of Protection

Abstract

This article examines the procedural specifics of applying detention as a measure of procedural compulsion to juvenile suspects. Drawing on the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and specialized United Nations instruments — the Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice (“Beijing Rules”), the Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty (“Havana Rules”), and the Guidelines for the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency (“Riyadh Guidelines”) — the article identifies international standards for protecting children during detention and compares them against the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan. It is found that, despite certain positive developments (the mandatory participation of defense counsel from the moment of actual detention, the mandatory involvement of a psychologist and/or educator in the questioning of minor victims and witnesses, and the introduction of the institution of the investigating judge), national legislation does not establish reduced or otherwise age-differentiated periods of detention and does not provide for the separate custody of minors from adults at the initial stage of detention. Proposals are formulated for eliminating the gaps identified.