However, the total capacity of the facilities is limited, Guterres noted in a written statement received here on Friday.
"The children who arrive in another country in search of international protection are extremely vulnerable and have specific needs. We should treat them first and foremost as children, not as illegal immigrants", Guterres remarked.
Although it is difficult to obtain precise figures, the UNHCR has estimated that thousands of minors have been detained as illegal immigrants worldwide.
As a state, which has acceded to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), the Indonesian government has taken some steps to end the detention of minor illegal immigrants.
With the support of the UN Refugee Agency and the Church World Service (CWS), the Indonesian government has set up two shelters as alternative accommodations for the children who arrive as unaccompanied refugees rather than placing them in a detention house.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has been working with the government to move the children, who have been identified by the UNHCR as refugees and asylum seekers, from immigration detention centers to government-run shelters and to provide alternative accommodation for families with children.
The UNHCR continues to work closely with the government to ensure that the childrens needs are met, and they can avail a viable alternative treatment and enjoy a sense of community.
(T.SDP-89/Uu.INE/KR-BSR/A014)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
Copyright © ANTARA 2014
