Bahawalpur: Experts at a workshop organized by Legal Awareness Watch Pakistan (LAW) in Bahawalpur called for the full and effective implementation of the Juvenile Justice System Act (JJSA), 2018, in accordance with its true spirit.
According to a press release issued here, the workshop focused on laws relating to protection of children’s rights within the justice system. Addressing the participants, LAW Director Sarmad Ali Advocate and other speakers highlighted the key provisions of the Juvenile Justice System Act, 2018. They explained that under the law, every individual below the age of 18 is considered a child.
He emphasized that a juvenile suspect cannot be kept on physical remand in a police station during custody, nor can a child be handcuffed or shackled under any circumstances. He added that juveniles in custody must not be subjected to physical abuse or torture, whether at a police station or while serving a sentence, and that the death penalty cannot be imposed on a juvenile offender.
He also noted that a juvenile in custody must be produced before a Juvenile Court within 24 hours, and that children are entitled to free legal aid and medical treatment during police remand or imprisonment. He added that a juvenile who has remained in judicial custody for six months is legally entitled to bail. The workshop stressed that children in conflict with the law should be placed in observation homes during investigation and, where appropriate, in rehabilitation centers, rather than being detained in police stations or ordinary prisons, as required under the Act.