Council moves to protect stone-throwing children

The government is preparing to take a step to protect children who throw stones at police or chant illegal slogans in favor of terror organizations from facing time in prison.

According to the draft proposal prepared by the Justice Ministry, children under 18 would be judged by juvenile courts and not by the specialized courts that were established instead of the State Security Courts, or DGMs.

The proposal, which was discussed at Tuesday’s Council of Ministers meeting, changes the articles of the anti-terror law concerning children. Speaking after the Tuesday meeting, government spokesman Cemil Çiçek said the draft brought new measures concerning children who throw stones at police or chant illegal slogans in favor of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, at street demonstrations or similar activities. Çiçek said the children would be judged by juvenile courts if the draft becomes law.

According to the draft, the children’s sentence would be delayed if they did not commit the same activity for a period of five years.

Çiçek also said alternative punishment options would also be available and applicable.

The move is deemed to be an important step in the realization of the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, government’s Kurdish move.

The children who throw stones at police or chant illegal slogans in favor of the PKK are tried or punished for being members of a terrorist organization, according to the current law. Legal experts say more than 1,000 children were taken into custody within the last two years for this reason. According to the data from the Initiative for Justice for Children, there are currently 300 such children aged between 12 and 18 who are detained in prisons.