On the implementation and functioning of the «Barnahus»

Abstract

The aim of the work is to study and analyze the Barnahus model through the prism of European experience and the legal system of Ukraine.

The methodological basis of the study is the dialectical method of scientific knowledge, since the genesis of the «Barnachus» model was revealed with its help. From the standpoint of the value approach, legal ideas, the normative legal framework and law enforcement practice were investigated. The work uses such general scientific methods as: system analysis, ascent from the general to the specific, analogy, generalization, comparison, as well as the principle of historicism, social and objective approach, which contributed to the disclosure of the features of the «Barnachus» model as a whole and its components, in particular. Special-legal methods, such as comparative- legal, formal-dogmatic, sociological-legal, cultural-legal.

Results. The article is devoted to the Barnahus model, which is currently an innovative model at the European level in the field of combating violence against children and child-friendly justice. Ukraine, striving to become a full-fledged member of the European Union, has undertaken a number of obligations, including to provide children with additional procedural guarantees during their interrogation (questioning) in criminal proceedings. The article examines and analyzes the Barnahus model through the prism of European experience and the legal system of Ukraine. The author analyzes the basic ideas of the Barnahus model; examines the peculiarities of the formation and development of the Barnahus model in the legal systems of Scandinavian countries; clarifies the European quality standards of the Barnahus model as a result of the PROMISE network; examines the organizational and legal framework for the implementation and functioning of the Barnahus model in Ukraine; analyzes the impact of national legislation on the functioning of the Barnahus model in Ukraine, revealing certain problematic aspects.

Conclusion. It is established that the Barnahus model is a multidisciplinary program for child victims and child witnesses of violence or cruelty, organized in a child-friendly environment and under one roof to ensure effective protection, quick access to justice, and the provision of necessary services. It is proved that its main task is to cooperate «under one roof» of an interagency and interdisciplinary team involved in juvenile criminal justice for effective coordinated work (collecting evidence, providing services, creating a child-friendly environment, helping to return to their usual life, etc.) and achieving maximum interaction with child witnesses or child victims of violence or cruelty.