CSJ’s Executive Director, Nimisha Srivastava was in Ladakh for a workshop on effective implementation of Juvenile Justice Amendment Act 2021 where she gave a detailed presentation on the Act and Model Rules 2016, giving detailed insight on the principles, on JJBs and CWCs, their structures and functioning, their powers and responsibilities, and other related aspects in relation to children in conflict with law.

This training was created for duty bearers of ICPS, legal services authority, police and other functionaries, and was organised by Juvenile Justice Committee, High Court of J&K and Ladakh in collaboration with Social Welfare Department UT Ladakh, supported by UNICEF India, and aimed to impart awareness for effective implementation of Juvenile Justice Amendment Act 2021 in Ladakh. Read more about it here.

Image source: AFP via Getty Images

What that urgency around the second wave, and even now, after the third Omicron wave in India, does not capture is the long term impacts of the pandemic on children. Not only are children the most vulnerable part of the population, but add to that a pandemic, rising socio-economic crisis and widening gaps in access to education, and you have a nation with vulnerable children falling through the cracks.

CSJ’s Executive Director, Nimisha Srivastava recently spoke with Arpan Rai, on the challenges of supporting children as we enter the third year of the  pandemic, and the hope that given the right & timely support & encouragement, children can recover from adversity.

Read the piece here.

CSJ’s Executive Director, Nimisha Srivastava recently published a blog for Global Campus of Human Rights on how technology played a significant part in traffickers taking advantage India’s COVID-19 second wave when ‘COVID orphan adoption’ messages proliferated across social media. Read the article here.

CSJ’s Executive Director, Nimisha Srivastava spoke with TRT World News on the amendment of the age of marriage for girls. Watch the full segment here.

CSJ’s Executive Director, Nimisha Srivastava joined journalist, Smita Sharma of India Ahead News, to share from CSJ’s experience of working within communities that have experienced sexual and gender-based violence, in light of cases of abuse in Vijayawada and Shahdara. Both these cases were examples of how we often tend to wait for something drastic to happen in cases of gender-based violence, where we then seek to punish in reaction, while leaving girls as objects to satisfy sexual desires, otherwise. Nimisha shares here how the problem is in keeping the discourse around women’s safety centred on morality & protectionism and that to prevent such atrocities, we need to learn to have uncomfortable conversations. Watch the full segment here.

On World Human Rights Day 2021, CSJ had shared the importance and need for nuance, when making and implementing laws for children that keeps their autonomy & rights in mind. Without that, they cease to be truly empowering & enabling.

A week after that CSJ’s Executive Director, Nimisha Srivastava was invited by India Ahead News to share her take on the proposed change in age of marriage for women (from 18 to 21 years) and how that when seen with in isolation is seen as a welcome move, but when seen in interaction with patriarchal ground reality and other laws that are meant for children’s protection, is in fact, more harmful than helpful.

This World Human Rights Day, Mariwala Health Initiative launched the fourth issue of their journal, ReFrame. The theme of the issue was “Unpacking Structural Determinants of Mental Health.”

Based on CSJ’s work with children within institutions, Arti Mohan, CSJ’s Restorative Justice & Practices Program Officer wrote a piece on the Impact of Institutionalisation on children’s mental health, which has been published in this issue of ReFrame. Read here.

Source: The Quint

On October 28, 2021, The Quint published this piece on the rise of cases of child sexual abuse during the pandemic due to multiple lockdowns and increased vulnerability of children. This, in contrast to the NCRB data that states that crimes against children reduced in 2020, reflects the culture of silence around child sexual abuse.

CSJ’s Executive Director, Nimisha Srivastava spoke with Kajal Iyer for the same. Read full article here

On July 7, 2021, CSJ’s Executive Director, Nimisha Srivastava and Lead Social Worker, Restorative Justice Program, Nikita Kataria were featured in a piece on Agents of Ishq. Both Nimisha and Nikita shared how working with children at CSJ – both, children who have been sexually harmed, as well as children in conflict with law – has redefined the meaning of vulnerability for them.

The article covered experiences of people who have worked with helplines during COVID-19 crisis and how that work has developed their understanding of human vulnerability, which they shared based on our experience offering tele-counselling (in collaboration with UNICEF and Chhattisgarh government) to children & families in distress across Chhattisgarh during COVID second wave. Here is a post detailing more.

From August 22 to 31, we will be presenting at the RJ world conference on our models of Restorative Justice, Restorative justice in prisons, Remembrance based justice, tools for child rights and needs based restorative justice along with other RJ leaders and academicians from across the world. 

RJ World 2020 is a 10-day online showcase of inspiring presenters – facilitators / practitioners / teachers / researchers / artists – who are passionate about sharing insights and ideas in the realm of restorative justice and restorative practices in all sectors.
To book your slot visit www.rjworld2020.com

CSJ is mentioned in First Post 

Sonal Matharu of Firstpost highlights a Counsel to Secure Justice in an article titled “Children Who Murder: Why We Are Guilty.” This article highlights the story of a young boy who caused fatal harm to an infant while speaking to key factors in the child’s upbringing, which may have lead to the indifference felt when causing fatal harm to the infant. 
The entire article can be found here: 

https://www.firstpost.com/india/children-who-murder-6607411.html

Restorative Justice Workshop is mentioned in The Hindu 

The Hindu highlights a three-day workshop attended by CSJ’s very own Urvashi Tilak, Nimisha Srivastava, Arti Mohan and representatives from organizations working with Youth in India.  Workshop, sujatha Baliga, an expert on restorative justice addressed the fact that the concept of restorative justice is to create a paradigm shift in the way we think of wrongdoing. The workshop also addressed the shortcoming of the current juvenile justice system, in terms of an inability to fully address the needs of the individuals harmed, their families, and communities.

The entire article can be found here

CSJ is mentioned in News Minute

The News Minute published an article which asks the question “Will restorative justice help indian sexual crime surviours where the legal system lacks?”, and  higlights how CSJ is one of the leading organisations in India with  the goal of implimenting restorative justice practices. 

The entire article can be found here

CSJ’s Program Director is mentioned in Times of India

The Times of India Spotlights  CSJ in an article titled “Restorative Justice: She got justice here way, without going to the police.” This article speaks to the fact that individuals who are harmed long for their harm to be acknowledged, and how acknowledgment by the person who caused harm can help those who are harmed heal. 

The entire article can be found here

CSJ’s work featured by Al Jazeera

Al Jazeera explains the problem of child sexual abuse in India, featuring Rukmini’s story.