Fewer children were detained by police as the number of child victims rises in Macedonia

During 2025, police summoned 1,201 children in conflict with the law to police stations. That figure was 45 lower, or 4 percent less, than in 2024, when 1,246 children were recorded. The data are part of the Annual Report on the Situation of Children’s Rights and Juvenile Delinquency, prepared by the State Council for the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency and Child Justice, Macedonian-language DW reported.

The document describes the situation in 2025 through 40 indicators based on data submitted by 87 institutions. The indicators were updated and adjusted in line with amendments to the Law on Child Justice.

According to the report, the number of children at risk fell by 50 percent, but this was linked to a change in methodology. The category, which previously included children aged 6 to 18, now covers children up to the age of 14; a separate indicator has been established for the 14–18 age group. The methodological change also explains the decline in the number of girls identified as being at risk.

The sharpest increase in the number of child victims was recorded by the courts, where the figure rose by 118 percent compared with 2024. In total, the Ministry of Internal Affairs recorded 694 child victims, public prosecutors’ offices recorded 629, courts recorded 404, and social work centers recorded 334.

Of the girls summoned by police, 107 appeared as witnesses. Meanwhile, 61 girls were summoned following a report, accounting for 21 percent of the total.

The Council reported that the number of children responsible for misdemeanors rose by 54 percent compared with 2024, but fell by 31 percent compared with 2023. As for detentions, 50 percent fewer children were detained in 2025 than a year earlier, when 149 cases were recorded. However, the figure remains above the 2023 level, when 50 children were detained./Telegrafi/