The text has been kept in the drawer for months and, it seems, its time has come. The Council of Ministers will likely approve today the expansion of the Comprehensive Protection Law for Childhood and Adolescence against Violence (LOPIVI), promoted by the Ministry of Youth and Childhood, which among other things, removes the 12-year age limit for minors to be heard obligatorily in processes that affect them.
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This is indicated by sources from the department led by Sira Rego, who recall that until now the obligation to listen to children was established from the age of twelve or from a “sufficient maturity” of the affected minor, “which has caused, in many cases, that the voices of girls and boys have not been taken into consideration,” they indicate.
The expansion of the regulation establishes that it must be expressly justified in all administrative and judicial acts and resolutions how the general interest of the minor has been assessed and why the decision adopted better protects the physical, emotional, and psychological well-being of boys and girls. In this regard, among the criteria related to the best interest of the minor is the removal of the child from the person who abuses them, so that the best interest of the minor is never to be with an aggressor or alleged aggressor.
The new text expressly prohibits parental alienation syndrome, PAS, along with any reformulation or approach without scientific support. “No public or private report based on PAS may be used in judicial or administrative proceedings,” they explain from the mentioned ministry. Furthermore, resolutions that use it may be challenged.
The new text prohibits parental alienation syndrome: no report on PAS can be used
The regulatory expansion reinforces that joint custody cannot be established when there are indications that this decision may negatively affect the physical, psychological, or emotional health of the minor. If a child expresses rejection towards one of their parents, the system must investigate the causes of the rejection and protect the minor.
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It also incorporates what the Rego department describes as a measure of enormous impact: the consent of only one parent will be enough for a minor victim of violence to access psychological, social, or legal care. “This will prevent the aggressor from having veto power over the reparation,” the cited sources reiterate.
The reform of the regulation tightens the requirements to access and remain in professions, trades, and activities that involve regular contact with children and adolescents. In this line, it will be a requirement for access to such professions not to have been convicted of crimes related to childhood and adolescence.
And it establishes the obligation to create specialized duty shifts in violence against childhood and adolescence within bar associations.
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