
On January 20, 2021, Australia's human rights record was put under the United Nations' microscope.
Our treatment of Indigenous communities, asylum seekers and violence against women topped the list of global concerns during the five-yearly review, where other nations were able to ask questions and make recommendations for improvement.
And among the questions asked of us by other nations, were a number about Australia's age of criminal responsibility.
Currently, it is 10.
Watch: A child psychologist explains why children aren't held responsible for their crimes, in documentary The Bulger Killers: Was Justice Done? Post continues below video.
In Australia, children as young as 10 can be held criminally responsible for their actions. They can be arrested by police, remanded in custody, convicted by courts and jailed.
Thirty-one UN member states have called on Australia to lift the age, an increase in international pressure.
Among the nations to raise the issue were Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Greece, Sweden, Spain, Poland, Portugal and Mexico.
The Australian Government has set up a working group to look into it, but in 2020 the group delayed its response until later this year.
The age of criminal responsibility.
In 2019, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child recommended 14 years as the minimum age of criminal responsibility.
Australia's age - 10 - is out of step with most European countries. While the United Kingdom also has a minimum age of 10, most European nations have a minimum age of 14 years or higher.
Currently, Australia operates under a 'doli incapax' presumption, which means the law presumes a child under the age of 14 does not possess the knowledge required to have criminal intent, the Law Council of Australia states.
However, the president of the council, Pauline Wright, told ABC doli incapax had led to "huge inconsistences" and left children disadvantaged.
Although there is hope for consensus, it would be up to each state and territory to decide whether to increase the age.
The ACT has already committed to doing so, breaking ranks from the rest of the country.
Raising the age is included as a priority area of reform in the ACT Labor-Greens parliamentary and governing agreement, released in November 2020.
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