Parliament passes 'children in conflict with the law' amendment: imprisonment threshold for under-18s revised

Parliament's General Assembly has passed it: the Child Protection Law bill containing new regulations on children in conflict with the law has cleared parliament. According to reports from Diken and Sözcü newspapers, the law redefines the conditions under which individuals under 18 will face imprisonment sentences.

The regulation prioritizes supervised release, rehabilitation, and protective measures in juvenile justice while expanding the scope of criminal liability in certain serious crime categories. Turkey's legislation on juvenile delinquency had experienced its last major amendment in 2005 with the enactment of the Child Protection Law No. 5395; that regulation had primarily adopted the restorative justice model.

The implementation details and how the punishment threshold will be determined for which crime types will be clarified at the regulatory level. Civil society organizations working in the field of children's rights are evaluating the details of the law text.