The International Bureau for Children’s Rights (IBCR) is unveiling a new training called “REPERE – Making the child’s participation effective to strengthen his or her experience” aimed at improving the legal support provided to children victims or witnesses of criminal offences in Quebec.
In 2017, the IBCR conducted a study on young people who had been in contact with the justice system in Quebec (in French only). A number of shortcomings were identified with regard to their support, including a lack of consideration for their opinion, a misconception of their abilities and rights, and too few explanations of the procedure in progress.
In order to address these shortcomings, the Office worked closely with key actors in the justice sector (see opposite), as well as children, for two years to develop a new training course. Called REPERE (an acronym for Rendre effective la participation de l’enfant pour renforcer son expérience), this training aims to enable professionals working with children in contact with the justice system in Quebec to strengthen their skills in order to ensure that these children are accompanied in a way that respects their rights.
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The REPERE training course was designed in collaboration with members of the relevant fields, including the Directeur des poursuites criminelles et pénales du Québec (DPCP), centres d’aide aux victimes d’actes criminels (CAVAC), the Fondation Marie-Vincent, the Association québécoise Plaidoyer-Victimes and the CIUSSS du centre-sud de l’île-de Montréal. |
The training is aimed at various professions: social work, lawyers, judges, police forces, etc. and through 5 modules enables them to develop the skills and tools they need to ensure effective participation of children and thus foster a positive experience within the justice system of the province.
Content of the training
The training is composed of five modules covering the different issues of the child’s participation during his accompaniment in the justice system in Quebec : // Module 1 // Introduction to the importance of child participation in the judicial system // Module 2 // Child’s participation and his higher interest // Module 3 // How to better adapt your practice to the child // Module 4 // How to listen and hear the child // Module 5 // How to take into account the child in all his diversity By integrating the importance of children’s effective participation in their judicial accompaniment, the REPERE training lays the foundations for the wider change needed to build a judicial system that truly respects children’s rights. The IBCR will continue to work with its partners in this direction in the coming years. Learn more about REPERE training *The training is currently only available through the professional orders of Quebec, contact us for more information.* The IBCR would like to thank the Department of Justice of the Government of Quebec and the Foundation Chamandy for their financial support.L’IBCR tient à remercier le ministère de la Justice du Québec et la Fondation Chamandy pour leur soutien financier.
