CRC/C/SAU/CO/3-4 (h) Children in pretrial detention are held with convicted children and with adults in certain detention facilities and children sentenced to death are often denied family visits. 44. The Committee recommends that the State party strengthen its efforts to build a system of restorative and rehabilitative juvenile justice that is fully in line with the Convention, in particular articles 37, 39 and 40, and with other relevant standards, including the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice (the Beijing Rules), the United Nations Guidelines for the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency (the Riyadh Guidelines), the United Nations Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty (the Havana Rules), the Guidelines for Action on Children in the Criminal Justice System and the Committee’s general comment No. 10 (2007) on children’s rights in juvenile justice. In particular, the Committee urges the State party to: (a) Expeditiously raise the age of criminal responsibility to an internationally acceptable level, as previously recommended (see CRC/C/SAU/CO/2, para. 75), taking into account that a minimum age of criminal responsibility below the age of 12 years cannot be considered to be internationally acceptable; (b) Set and implement time limits for the period between the commission of the offence and the completion of the police investigation, the decision of the prosecutor (or other competent body) to bring charges against the child and the final adjudication and decision by the court or other competent judicial body; (c) Ensure that all children can challenge the legality of their deprivation of liberty before a competent authority within 24 hours of arrest and that a decision be rendered as soon as possible and no later than two weeks after the challenge has been made; (d) Ensure that children arrested and deprived of their liberty are provided with free legal aid from the moment they are arrested and throughout the proceedings and that interviewing children without the presence of a legal counsel be prohibited by law. Both parents should be allowed to accompany their children during proceedings; (e) Ensure by law that no person who was a child at the time of committing an alleged offence can be tried before the Specialized Criminal Court; (f) Put an end to the arbitrary placement of children in centres under the authority of the Ministry of Social Affairs and ensure that children who have been placed in those centres are released without delay and provided with protection and assistance measures; (g) Abolish the requirement for a male guardian to provide consent for children to be released from prison at the end of their term and ensure that those who remain in prison because of lack of consent be freed and provided with assistance and support for their social reintegration; (h) Undertake a comprehensive assessment of the violations of girls’ rights in the justice system and adopt measures to address them; (i) Ensure that children deprived of their liberty are separated from adults in all places of detention and that the necessary measures be taken for children to maintain contact with their families. Child victims and witnesses of crimes 45. The Committee also recommends that the State party ensure, through adequate legal provisions and regulations, that all children who are victims or witnesses of 13

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