September 1, 2002	Sunday	Jamadi-us-Saani 22,1423

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PESHAWAR, August 31: Chairman, Voice of Prisoners, Noor Alam Khan has asked the Chief Justice of Pakistan to take suo motu notice of the detention and hand-cuffing of three juvenile offenders in Karachi, which was contrary to the law and international conventions.

In a press release issued here on Saturday, he said all the major newspapers carried the picture of three little boys of 6, 8 and 10 years of age, respectively, who were hand-cuffed.

He added that under the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance, 2000, a juvenile offender could not be hand-cuffed.

Mr Khan said that a juvenile offender could also not be kept in a police station and had to be kept in borstal institution. He also asked the United Nations high-ups to take notice of the violation of the Convention on the Rights of Child here. He added that the said picture had tarnished the country’s image abroad.

Moreover, he said the detention of such minor boys would have a negative impact on their psyche and thinking who would turn into hardened criminals.

He added that under section 82 of the Pakistan Penal Code, no crime should be considered a crime if committed by a child below 7 years of age.

Similarly, the court concerned had to ascertain the maturity of a juvenile offender, if he or she was below 12 years of age.