Articles
A Model Court For Migrant Children
A Model Court For Migrant Children
On 23rd June 2021, more than 100 lawyers, activists, academics and others gathered for a webinar on proposals for a model court for migrant children organised by Equal Justice for Migrant Children (EJMC) and hosted by Routes. The impetus for the event is awareness that unaccompanied migrant children are subject to multiple legal processes. This presents huge challenges for children who have to navigate the legal system in a new country, often with an inconsistent system of advice and support, whose interests, while significant in principle, are not centred in a holistic way and whose voice may not be heard. This makes it much more difficult to ensure an optimal outcome for the child.
We started by hearing from children themselves through the voice of Gulwali Passarlay, a former unaccompanied child and now an activist and writer and a short film in which several children spoke poignantly of their interactions with the immigration system and the ways in which this affected them.
They were followed by Professor Lenni Benson of New York Law School and founder of the Safe Passage Project, which enables pro-bono legal advice to be provided for unaccompanied migrant children in New York and Professor Ann Skelton, from University of Pretoria and a member of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child who emphasised states’ quite extensive obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child. An interesting set of reflections came from respondents including Lord Dubs followed by a lively discussion.
There are many practical and legal questions to be addressed when advocating for a single court for migrant children and the current political environment is not particularly receptive but the case is compelling. The UK has a legal obligation to make children’s interests primary, if not always paramount, and it is difficult to see how that can happen if their needs and interests are not systematically addressed and if they are not the central focus of the process.
Date: 23 June 2021