509- In order to guarantee the rights of such children, Penitentiary Administration authorities tried as much as possible to develop an area for nursing mothers. In collaboration with social services or private charity organizations, the said children received special care in terms of health and feeding. In some cases, facilities were built to enable the children of school age to go to school out of the prison premises through a programme designed to enable penitentiary staff to accompany the children to school. 510- Since many stakeholders are involved in the care of the said children, discussions are underway to seek solutions to the problems identified. (Low-cost and easily applicable solutions). 4: The new Challenge regarding Children associated with Armed Forces or Groups 511- In addressing the challenge resulting from the recruitment of children and especially young girls314 into armed groups, the fate of children associated with Boko Haram was of concern as discussion forums were organised on the issue with the support of UNICEF315. The aim was to ensure compliance of the treatment given to such category of children with the provisions of the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflicts and with the Paris Principles and Guidelines on Children associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups. 512- Indeed, as part of the fight against Boko Haram, children were arrested and detained at the Central Prison, Maroua. In execution of the habeas corpus rulings delivered by the High Court of Diamare, 26 children concerned were released in 2017 and taken to the Institution Camerounaise de l’Enfance, Maroua for rehabilitation and reintegration into their families. 513- The arrest of some of these children raised the issue of their criminal responsibility and how they should be treated. Indeed, Law No. 2014/28 of 23 December 2014 on the suppression of acts of terrorism has granted exclusive jurisdiction to the Military Tribunal to hear and determine matters on acts of terrorism whereas minors cannot be prosecuted before the said court. Discussions organised by stakeholders of the criminal chain and social stakeholders highlighted the need to adopt a general policy on the status of children associated with armed forces and armed groups and a referencing system for children who have taken part in the activities of armed forces or armed groups316. 514- Section 9 of Law No. 2017/12 of 12 July 2017 to lay down the Code of Military Justice provides that minors who are offenders, co-offenders or accomplices in cases which fall within the jurisdiction of the Military Tribunal shall be referred to courts dealing with juvenile delinquency. It further provides that in such cases, the State Prosecutor shall refer the case files to the competent Legal Department after separation of the proceedings as appropriate. Section 2: Rights of Persons with Disabilities (Article 18 (4) ACHPR) 515- The 3 thrusts of the national policy on protection of persons with disabilities contained in the previous Report (§547) continued to guide Government action in the area. The thrusts comprise prevention of deficiencies, rehabilitation of persons with disabilities and their socioeconomic integration. The lead wire of this approach was the integration of the disability 314 Cases of children who are victims of kidnapping, forced enlistment, use as human bombs and sexual objects were identified as part of the security crisis caused by Boko Haram. 315 On peut mentionner utilement l’Atelier de restitution des travaux de l’Atelier sous-régional tenu à Dakar du 13 au 15 octobre 2015, sur le traitement des mineurs présumés associés à Boko Haram comme victimes, témoins et/ou auteurs, organisé à Mbalmayo du 31 novembre au 01 er décembre 2015 au profit de 15 Policiers et de 15 Gendarmes. An example is the Workshop to hand over proceedings of the Subregional Workshop on the treatment of minors alleged to be associated with Boko Haram as victims, witnesses and/or authors held in Dakar from 13 to 15 October 2015 (Pls review the footnote in French) 316 Be they fighters, cooks, errand boys, spies or victims of sexual exploitation. 87