Considering that the Commission on Human Rights and Youth Rights (CDPDJ) has “failed” in its duty to protect the most vulnerable children, groups that work with young people from the Youth Protection Directorate ( DPJ) are asking that its powers be transferred to the future commissioner for the well-being and rights of children. A “false good idea”, replies the president of the CDPDJ, who assures that the organization does its job well.
“For several years, the Commission on Human Rights and Youth Rights, despite its powers, has not fully played its role as watchdog for the most vulnerable children in our society,” launched a cry from heart the journalist, author and godmother of the DPJ Youth Foundation, Nancy Audet, before parliamentarians last week during the study of bill 37 on the creation of the position of commissioner for the well-being and rights of children.
“For me, it is incomprehensible that we have such important powers and that we do not use them,” she argued. The CDPDJ has extraordinary powers. It really has the power to change life paths, to help children who are victims of rights violations that risk leaving them with lifelong consequences. »
By going out to meet young people in the field herself – an area that she knows very well having grown up there herself, as she recounts in her book Never again the shame —, she notes several “so worrying” situations, but alleges that the CDPDJ does not intervene. “His total absence from the field is what troubles me the most. »
At his side, lawyer Mylène Leblanc said she was “alarmed” by the fact that the CDPDJ does not intervene in the cases of the children it represents in court. “What is very alarming is that as lawyers, we are calling on him, and it is action on the ground that is not coming. We wonder why, with all the powers of section 23 of the Youth Protection Act, but also the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, how come such a powerful organization does not already ensure this safety net? security there. »
Families left in the lurch
These criticisms were taken up, almost word for word, by the interim president of the Federation of Host Families and Intermediate Resources of Quebec, Mélanie Gagnon, who also evokes the image of a “watchdog” who “failed” in his duty to protect children.
For me, it is a misunderstanding that we have such important powers and that we do not use them
Foster families, she explained, are often on the front lines to notice that children are not receiving all the care to which they are entitled or to identify other failings on the part of the DPJ. “We will work with them [la CDPDJ] when we want to declare injuries to children’s rights, but I must tell you unfortunately that, in recent years, [la CDPDJ] Didn’t respond very presently when asked for something. They say that the DPJ is handling the case and it stops there, it doesn’t go any further. »
The Ex-placed DPJ Collective also says it is “concerned” by the fact that in the current bill, the CDPDJ maintains its powers relating to children’s rights. He claims, like Mmy Audet and Gagnon, that they be transferred to the future welfare commissioner.
Reply from the CDPDJ
These criticisms are refuted by the president of the Commission, Philippe-André Tessier, and the vice-president responsible for the youth component, Suzanne Arpin. “We have heard these criticisms, but we have also heard good things, it must be emphasized,” replied Mr. Tessier in an interview with Duty.
“For us, it is important to clearly understand the role of the Commission in the youth ecosystem and to insist on the fact that it is not only the action before the court that counts when we talk about the situation of vulnerable children, quite the contrary. »
In the last year alone, the CDPDJ opened and resolved within an average period of three months 258 administrative investigations into legal violations, out of a total of 599 requests for intervention, specifies Mr. Tessier. In addition, on its own initiative, it launched 78 investigations of a systemic nature, including one which will be announced Thursday on the impact of waiting times at the DPJ for the whole of Quebec (see box). In the last five years, the CDPDJ has doubled its staff and reopened regional offices.
“Judicialization is the exception of the exception,” repeats Mr. Tessier. When we observe a situation and the DYP recognizes the injury and tells us what it will put in place to correct the situation, there is an agreement and, for us, the file is closed. »
The president and vice-president assure that they are “taking the field”, but note that the confidentiality of investigations can give the impression that nothing is being done. “I was present during the presentation of Mr.me Gagnon, who spoke on behalf of the host families, and I understood their dismay to say: “We raise the flag, but we have no follow-up, we are not kept informed.” But that does not mean that the children did not have a response to the injury to their rights,” explains M.me Arpin.
However, they believe that the role of the Commission is poorly understood and that certain provisions of the Youth Protection Act, which governs their mandate, are misinterpreted, which is why Mme Arpin undertook to tour Quebec to speak to lawyers who work in youth protection.
“We can hear the concern,” concludes Mr. Tessier. And we wonder how we can translate it into action on the ground to be more visible, better known. »