Unlocking Protection

Violence against children remains one of the most devastating violations of human rights. In Papua New Guinea, three out of four children experience violence, often within their own homes.

With 80 per cent of the population living in rural areas scattered across mountains and islands, access to justice is a challenge. Without a safe path to protection, many children endure violence in silence.

For fifty years, Papua New Guinea’s Village Courts have played a vital role in bringing justice services directly to communities. More than a thousand Village Courts across every province now serve two-thirds of the population, forming a community-based justice system found nowhere else in the world. Among the officials carrying this work forward is Initia Amini, a Magistrate from Hood Point Village Court. Across the seven villages her court serves, she is the primary person her court turns to when children are involved, handling three to four child-related cases each week.

But despite progress in the country’s legal framework for protecting children, access to justice is often hampered by limited resources, inadequate capacity, and attitudes that fail to recognise children’s rights or act in their best interests. To address this, the Australian Government is funding UNICEF to work with Papua New Guinea’s Village Courts and Land Mediation Secretariat to strengthen child-friendly justice.

Through multi-day training on child protection and gender-based violence, Initia, and other Village Court Officials, are learning to collaborate across sectors, understand when and how to refer cases, and manage case data effectively. They are learning how to prioritise the best interest of the child and support all children in contact with the law – whether victims, witnesses, or those in conflict with the law - favouring restorative justice and family reintegration over punitive measures.

Many children in conflict with the law who come before Hood Point Village Court have committed minor offences. Instead of detention, Initia and her colleagues help guide these children back into their communities, allowing them to continue their childhood at home - a time when they develop their personalities, relationships, and social and educational skills.

“We’ve got this other responsibility as a second parent to the children,” Initia says. “We do visitations.” Even without formal counselling training, she and her colleagues go the extra mile to follow up with children, their families and communities – well beyond their official duties.

Not all cases are minor. Devastatingly, in a recent rape case brought before the Village Court, a young survivor had grown up with her perpetrators - a family member and neighbour. For her safety, Initia arranged temporary care with a trusted relative, coordinated with her school, accompanied her to medical services, and provided ongoing support. The case was referred to the Family Sexual Violence Unit, and both offenders have since been convicted.

This case shows how collaboration across justice, child protection, health, and education can transform community justice spaces into child protection spaces. It also shows referral pathways working. As a result, the Village Court system has built trust and authority within the communities.

But for children to be protected, communities must know their rights. In response, Hood Point Village Court travels from school to school and into communities to raise awareness, helping children recognise when something is wrong and where to seek help.

“A child has the right,” Initia states. “A child has the right to protection. A child has the right to welfare. Anything else under the sun, a child has the right.”

Yet the environment in which Hood Point Village Court operates poses constant challenges. With Papua New Guinea highly vulnerable to climate change, heavy rains regularly flood travel routes and submerge the outdoor court area. When this happens, sittings are postponed and justice is delayed. 

Even on clear days, the open-air court offers little privacy, and hearings often draw large crowds.

“Fear is the biggest thing that holds people back,” Initia explains. “Fear of them being exposed on the outside. Fear of retaliation.”

To protect children’s dignity, confidentiality and safety, private sessions are essential. For now, these take place in the home of Village Court Clerk, Karo Vui, who has opened his doors to any child needing privacy and protection.

Karo serves approximately 25,000 people across seven villages. Day and night, community members come to his door with concerns ranging from marital disputes to assault. This year, he has issued seven child-related orders to the local police station, which Initia personally delivers – taking two PMVs each way. But change is coming: with UNICEF and Australian Government support, VCLMS is equipping Village Courts with tablets for instant transfer of case information to provincial and national systems.

By strengthening justice for children through tools and trainings, UNICEF and the Governments of Papua New Guinea and Australia are helping not only to uphold children’s rights, but also to ensure children can claim them, access a clear route to justice, have their voices heard, and that all court decisions are in the best of interest of the child.

“The bottom-line effect that we have is to create peace and harmony,” concludes Initia. “The training opened our eyes to the importance of listening to children and knowing where to refer them for help. We now feel more confident to protect their rights.”