Policing

Policing is critical for children’s security but police are also responsible for preventing and addressing crime by children and younger persons. This can raise risks from a human rights perspective, especially as children are more likely to come in contact with police due to their greater presence in public places. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) sets our various protections concerning arrest and detention, and this chapter examines their implementation in Norway in law but especially in practice. The number of children arrested has been steadily falling but significant concerns remain about specific police practices. Three stand out and are the focus of the chapter: racial profiling, use of solitary confinement, and detention for immigration. The chapter is cautiously optimistic on progress on some other areas but especially critical as to the lack of measurement and denialism in other areas