PROJUS – Regional Comparative Report

The research was carried out by teams in five countries - Belgium, France, Hungary, the Netherlands, and Spain – and involved desk research, interviews and specialised database analysis. A total of 152 interviews were carried out with 109 adults and 43 children. The country research was analysed in order to produce this comparative report which identifies common issues, trends and examples of good practice. Most of the countries under review have well-developed and distinct juvenile justice systems which in the case of France and Belgium date back to over 50 years. Hungary is the only country which does not have a specific code and separate institutions for persons under 18 accused of criminal offences. Each country has a different approach to juvenile justice although all are premised on the recognition that allowances and adjustments need to be made for children taking into account their different level of maturity as compared to adults.The numbers and characteristics of foreign child suspects and accused in the project countries is not known due to the lack of available data.