Law lecture details efforts of Defense for Children International Palestine

Legal experts from Defense for Children International Palestine discussed fair trial protections for juveniles afforded by the legal system in Palestine in a public lecture held on Tuesday, April 24, 2018, on Birzeit University’s campus. 

The lecture, entitled “Fair Trial Guarantees for Juveniles in Light of Decree-Law No. 4 Concerning Juvenile Protection,” was organized by the Department of Law in the Faculty of Law and Public Administration and featured Khaled Quzmar, general director of Defence for Children International Palestine; Anwar Ghafri, the organization’s legal advisor; and Dr. Mustafa Abdul Baqi, chair of the Department of Law at Birzeit University. 

Quzmar started his speech with a brief introduction on Defense for Children International Palestine, its fields of action, and its contributions in drafting the international Convention on the Rights of the Child. 

Additionally, Quzmar reviewed the organization’s actions locally, such as defending Palestinian children who are tried in Israeli military courts, documenting violations of their rights, and assisting in preparing the Decree-Law No. 4 Concerning Juvenile Protection. 

Ghafri noted that the juvenile protection law was drafted after Palestine joined the Convention on the Rights of the Child. 

“Such agreements and conventions provide certain measures and guarantees that protect children in juvenile interrogation cases and trials. By following these measures, children are guaranteed having their best interest at heart in interrogation cases and trials and offered mediation as one alternative solution to prosecution,” said Ghafri.