A measure of last resort? Child offenders and life imprisonment - Carina du Toit

The main principle when sentencing children is that imprisonment should be a measure of last resort and only for the shortest appropriate period of time. However, contrary to international and foreign law in this regard, South Africa continues to sentence children to life imprisonment. The aim of this article is to contrast our current sentencing practices with regard to life imprisonment for children, with the sentencing principles set out in South African common law and in international law. Furthermore, the article sets out the negative effects of a mandatory life sentence in terms of the minimum sentences legislation.
From: SA Crime Quarterly 17, September 2006, pp. 13-18

What happened to the Child Justice Bill? The process of law reform relating to child offenders - Jacqui Gallinetti

Children who are accused of crimes in South Africa are governed by the same legislation as adults. The urgent need to develop a separate child justice system culminated in the release of the draft Child Justice Bill in 2000 by the South African Law Reform Commission (SALRC). A product of thorough research and consultation, the revised Bill was introduced to Parliament in August 2002. The changes made after public hearings and debates in Parliament in 2003 saw the whittling away of the overall child rights nature of the Bill. To add insult to injury, the legislation has, since that year, not been debated again before the portfolio committee and the legislature has provided no explanation for this state of affairs.
From: SA Crime Quarterly 17, September 2006, pp. 7-12