NNC Highlights on the Topic of Children and Criminal Repression – at a Round Table under the Patronage of the Minister of Justice
On 16 July 2025, the National Network for Children took active part in the round table “Criminal Justice in Contact with the Child in Bulgaria: Achievements and Challenges”, organised by Assoc. Prof. Iva Pushkarova and the Justice Development Foundation under the project “Themis Sees the Child – 2”, in partnership with over 10 institutions and organisations, including the Supreme Court of Cassation, the National Legal Aid Bureau, the National Institute of Justice, the State Agency for Child Protection, the Union of Jurists in Bulgaria, and others, among them the NNC. The forum was held under the patronage of the Minister of Justice at the Palace of Justice in Sofia.
Deputy Minister Mihaela Mechkunova actively participated in the event, highlighting the alarming trend of growing aggression among young people, which requires a comprehensive institutional response. She stressed the need for a complete reform of the juvenile justice system, timely oversight, the imposition of adequate sanctions, and the implementation of preventive and educational measures.
On behalf of the NNC, Georgi Elenkov, Director “Child Policies”, was among the speakers and presented the Network’s key causes in the field of access to justice for children in conflict with the law (perpetrators of antisocial acts and crimes) and for children who are victims of criminal offences. His presentation outlined the need for cross-sectoral cooperation and a comprehensive reform based on the following priorities:
-
Guaranteeing procedural rights and protection from re-victimisation of child victims;
-
Adoption of unified standards for working with children in judicial and extra-judicial proceedings (with appropriate differentiation between child-sensitive care for victims and adapted care for perpetrators);
-
Counteracting the trend towards the formalisation of individual assessment standards introduced with the 2023 amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code, the Law on Countering Antisocial Acts of Minors, and the Ministry of Interior Act;
-
Ensuring specialisation, ongoing training, and strengthening the functional competence of all professionals in the juvenile justice system – both investigative bodies, prosecutors, lawyers, and judges, and the so-called supporting professionals (social workers, psychologists, educators, public educators, etc.);
-
Expanding the procedural rights of children in contact with the law and ensuring individual assessment and an adapted approach, including in quasi-criminal proceedings under the Decree on Combating Petty Hooliganism (DCPH) and the Law on the Protection of Public Order during Sports Events (LPPOSE);
-
Ensuring effective access to justice and rehabilitation for vulnerable groups often invisible to the system – children with disabilities and victims of sexual abuse are often excluded from protection due to formal obstacles or gaps in law enforcement. Examples from judicial practice showed worrying tendencies of de facto denial of justice;
-
Providing coordination and a restorative approach – it was emphasised that the lack of synchronisation between institutions, the shortage of restorative practices and specialised services for children in conflict with the law, as well as the workload and insufficient training and resources among child protection staff, undermine the effectiveness of responses to the criminalisation of children;
-
The need to improve the efficiency of coordination mechanisms for children at risk (Art. 36g of the Child Protection Act) – to ensure synchronisation, timeliness, and substantive contribution from all experts involved in case management.
The forum brought together many organisations and experts – members of the NNC and/or of its Legal Aid Network (the Institute for Social Activities and Practices, P.U.L.S. Foundation, For Hope Foundation, the Centre for the Study of Democracy, and others).
The NNC expressed its readiness to actively participate in further work on developing proposals for legislative and institutional changes related to juvenile justice. The Network has been recognised as a partner by the Justice Development Foundation in the remaining period of work on the objectives of “Themis Sees the Child – 2”. We remain committed to advocating for a comprehensive and sustainable reform in the field of juvenile justice in Bulgaria.
