Chapter 8 • International Legal Standards for the Protection of Persons Deprived of Their Liberty As noted above, international human rights law requires, in principle, that accused persons be segregated from convicted prisoners and that they be given separate treatment appropriate to their status as unconvicted persons (cf. art. 10(2)(a) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and art. 5(4) of the American Convention; see also in particular art. 8(b) of the Standard Minimum Rules). As to accused children/minors, more specifically, both article 10(2)(b) of the International Covenant and article 5(5) of the American Convention provide that they shall be separated from adults and brought to justice as soon as possible. However, according to article 37(c) of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which must be considered as lex specialis as compared to the general human rights treaties, “every child deprived of liberty shall be separated from adults unless it is considered in the child’s best interest not to do so” (emphasis added). The best interest of the individual child may thus justify a departure from the basic rule that it shall be separated from adults.81 Rule 8 of the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners is of a more general scope and provides that “the different categories of prisoners shall be kept in separate institutions or parts of institutions taking account of their sex, age, criminal record, the legal reason for their detention and the necessities of their treatment.” This means, in particular, that “men and women shall so far as possible be detained in separate institutions; in an institution which receives both men and women the whole of the premises allocated to women shall be entirely separate” (Rule 8(a) of the Standard Minimum Rules, emphasis added). The separation of women from men and children from adults is a first indispensable, albeit not sufficient, measure to ensure the right to security of these particularly vulnerable persons. With regard in particular to children, it is also essential that the relevant places of detention have an adequate infrastructure and specially trained personnel who enable their specific needs and interests to be met.82 Further details as to detained children and women will be given in Chapters 10 and 11. In general, the accommodation of detainees and prisoners must be such as to respect their dignity, security and good health, with adequate sleeping, living, working and sanitary conditions. Children/minors who are deprived of their liberty shall be separated from adults, unless such separation is not in their best interest; they shall be brought to justice promptly. To the extent possible men and women shall be held in separate institutions. 81 On the question of separation of detained children from detained adults, see Implementation Handbook for the Convention on the Rights of the Child (New York, UNICEF, 1998), pp. 501-502 (hereinafter referred to as UNICEF Implementation Handbook). 82 On the detention of children, see e.g. Eric Sottas and Esther Bron, Exactions et Enfants, Geneva, OMCT/SOS Torture, 1993, pp. 26-27. Human Rights in the Administration of Justice: A Manual on Human Rights for Judges, Prosecutors and Lawyers 341