Call to implement Juvenile Justice Act

LAHORE:To mark the World Day Against the Death Penalty, Juvenile Justice Advocacy Network (JJANP), calling on decision-making quarters to implement Juvenile Justice Act 2018 in its letters which was introduced for providing a separate and effective justice system for children in conflict with the law, told in a briefing to media personnel?

The briefing was held under the umbrella of Legal Awareness Watch (LAW) in a local hotel. Juvenile Justice System Act 2018 was introduced after the Universal Periodic Review on Pakistan in 2017. Under the above Act, children, when they get apprehended, cannot be kept in ordinary police stations nor prisons instead observation homes and rehabilitation centres. The Juvenile Justice Act 2018 was supposed to provide a child friendly justice system, focusing on reintegration of juvenile offenders into society, said convener barrister Sarmad Ali. He demanded the authorities concerned notify rules of business under section 24 of the Act 2018 for implementing it in its letter to give conductivity to children in courtroom as well as elsewhere and make juvenile justice committees across Pakistan functional for resolving minor and major penal violations through diversion i.e., non-penal sanctions.Moreover, the investigation of criminal cases should be made fair and transparent in accordance with Criminal Code of Procedure.