8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 25 law on juveniles (Reformation Justice for Children and Protection against Abuse). The new law draft adopts the interests of the child and prioritizes it above all other considerations. It introduces unconventional measures that take into consideration not to separate the child from his or her family environment; and, in addition to criminal accountability, it addresses the protection of the child from abuse. The NIHR followed up on the session of Council of Ministers on 10 April 2017, during which the draft law on Reformation Justice for children and Protection against Abuse was considered to replace the current law on Juveniles. According to the new draft law, courts of reform justice for the child will be established to be competent to adjudicate in offences, that criminal courts have jurisdiction over, committed by children between 15 and 18 years of age. Article (33) of Law No. (18) of 2014 promulgating the Law on Reform and Rehabilitation Corporation, and Articles (37) and (38) of its Executive Regulation No. (131) of 2014, provide for special attention to the child accompanying his/her mother who is imprisoned or detained in custody at the Reform and Rehabilitation Corporation. The child remains with his mother in the center, whether he was born in the center or outside it before the mother was detained, until the child reaches the age of two or three years. If the child reaches the specified age, or if the mother of the child does not want to keep the child with her despite not reaching the specified age, the child is then given to his/her father or to the person who has custody of him/her legally or under the Shari’a Law. If the child does not have a sponsor, he/she will be placed in a child care center, and the mother will be informed of the child’s place of residence and will be able to see him/her. The law also indicated that the administration of the center should facilitate the visit of the child, who is under the age of 12, to see his/her mother who is imprisoned or remanded in custody, at her request, by bringing the child to the center once a week. The visitation shall take place in a private place away from the designated visiting area. The head of the center, or his/her representative, may authorize the visit to take place in private. This visit shall not be prevented for any reason connected to the behavior of the mother inside the center; however, it may be prevented for reasons of health. If the child is older than 12 years of age, the mother’s visits are carried out according to the general rules and regulations of the visit. Recommendations: a. Expedite the promulgation of the draft law concerning juveniles (Reformation Justice for children and Protection against Abuse), with the need to consider the juvenile as a person under the age of 18 years, in line with the provisions of the Child Law No. (37) of 2012 and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. NIHR_Bahrain©CRC_parallel report 2018