PESHAWAR, Nov 5: The extension of the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance (JJSO) to the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) two years ago fails to serve its purpose as it has yet to be implemented there.

The local lawyers and social activists informed that the extension of the JJSO to Fata proved to be a futile exercise as the government has yet to take any step for its implementation.

They maintained that the juvenile courts had yet to be set up in tribal areas. In Fata there is no probation department which has been assigned vital responsibilities under the ordinance.

Social activists believed that the colonial era law of Frontier Crimes Regulation was the procedural law in Fata and some of its sections are in conflict with the JJSO.

“Under section 21 of the FCR dealing with collective responsibility the entire tribe could be detained and there is no differentiation between an adult and minor in that section,” said Jehanzeb Khan, the regional coordinator of Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (Sparc).—Bureau