PESHAWAR, Dec 6: Speakers at a consultation workshop on Tuesday asked the government to appoint probation officers and set up separate jails for juvenile prisoners in all districts of the province. The workshop on “Enforcement and Implementation of the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance (JJSO) 2000” in the Hangu district was organized by the District Bar Association, Hangu, in collaboration with the Child Rights Committee (CRC).

Pir Amir Faisal, Coordinator of the Society for the Protection of the Rights of Children (Sparc)’s CRC, said that the committee was trying to create awareness about the ordinance and extend free legal assistance and other services to juvenile inmates in the judicial lock-up in Hangu.

Sparc deputy national coordinator Arshad Mahmood said that there had been no uniform juvenile justice system in the country since independence and the provinces of Frontier and Balochistan didn’t have a single legislation regarding children and particularly for those who came into conflict with the law. The government on July 1, 2000, promulgated the JJSO 2000.

He said that Sparc played an active role in notifying the rules of the ordinance in the Frontier and the Peshawar High Court also notified Juvenile Courts under the law, but unfortunately no visible improvement had been noted so far.

He said that even today 84 per cent of juvenile inmates are under trial in the province, there are only 13 Probation Officers for 24 districts in the NWFP.

He also briefed lawyers about the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and about the salient features of the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance 2000.

He said that it was unfortunate that despite the enactment of the law children were still in prisons under minor and bailable offences.

Mr Mahmood also informed lawyers about the Peshawar High Court’s notification for formation of panels of lawyers for extending legal assistance to children at the expense of the state.

He said that the District Bar should take up the issue with the district and sessions judge and try to make sure that a panel was formed in Hangu.

Shabir Khan, President of the District Bar Association, assured the Bar Association’s full support and cooperation to the Juvenile Justice Network and Sparc’s Child Rights Committee for providing legal assistance to juvenile inmates.

He said that this was a useful activity since the maximum number of lawyers was not aware about various aspects of the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance 2000 and developments taking place in the arena of juvenile justice in the province.

He lamented the pathetic conditions at the judicial lock up and said that a proper jail should be established in Hangu as soon as possible. He also called upon the government to establish the office of probation officer in Hangu and appoint a full-time probation officer in the district.

Three resolutions were adopted calling for appointment of probation officer Hangu, formation of a lawyers’ panel under the JJSO and the establishment of district jails immediately to avoid unnecessary delays in the trials of juvenile and adult prisoners.

The participants of the workshop later visited a judicial lock up where they met 48 inmates, including four juveniles.

Juveniles were kept separately in a tiny room with the toilet inside the room spreading a stench. They were using the same water tap as a toilet as well as for drinking water.

Two of the four inmates were under trial since more than two years in total violation of the JJSO 2000, including one Nasiruddin s/o Wazir Azam under trial under section 302 since May 10, 2003. Mewa Khan s/o Noor Asghar is under trial under section 302 since November 10, 2003. This is despite the fact that under section 10 (7) of the JJSO, except in cases where the delay in trial has been caused by the accused, the detained child should be released on bail if involved in an offence punishable with death and has been imprisoned for a continuous period exceeding one year and whose trial continues.