Human
rights monitor
Dealing
with children involved in crimes
Shirin
Akhtar
Bangladesh
is a signatory to the UN charter that describes anyone
under 18 will be considered as a child. Under the Bangladesh
law, a child under nine can be prosecuted for a crime.
That means a child under nine cannot be detained or sent
to jail. The 1974 law says anyone under 16 will also be
considered as a child.
Mohammad
Farid, then 16, was picked up by police at Gabtali bus
station as a suspect in a robbery case. He just arrived
at the station from a home vacation to resume work as
a tempo driver's helper and had no idea about the robbery.
He spent nine days in police custody where he was allegedly
tortured.
Police
never cared to inform the teenager's family about his
arrest. From police custody he was transferred to Dhaka
Central Jail where he spent another five months before
being sent to a correction home in Tongi. Farid's family
was too poor to get him freed.
Farid's
case is not unique in Bangladesh. Many like Farid suffer
detention in the hands of police. Such detention takes
place in violation of UN charter on child rights and Bangladesh's
1974 child rights law. However, detention of a child does
not always help correct his delinquency.
Consider
14-year-old Imon who was brought to a child court by his
father who says his son has become a delinquent. According
to the father Imon, does not obey his parents, returns
home late and keeps bad company. Unable to rectify the
son's behaviour, the father has brought him to the correction
centre in Tongi. The court ruled that Imon would stay
six months in the home. Ironically, the boy has learned
in the custody how to make daggers and such weapons, and
he reportedly told his friends that he would keep doing
it when he is released.
Says
Habibunnesa, head of trial and violence section at Save
the Children: "The type of training that is provided
in the country's adolescents centres is not realistic.
Those who serve terms here find it difficult to adjust
to the outside world because the skills they learn are
not good enough and moreover they are not given any certificates.
What
these children need is industrial schools and good training
institutes. The government should come forward to set
up such schools so these children do not return to crimes.
On
the first Monday of October each year, the United Nations
observes World Children's Day to create awareness about
children's rights and make the societies more responsible
to their development. A child week is also observed each
year starting Sept. 29. In spite of all these efforts,
the world is full of children who are deprived of their
rights.
Bangladesh,
for example, has about 450,000 children who live on the
streets. The 1974 law in Bangladesh provides that when
a child is seen as a crime suspect police must first try
to find who else is said to be involved in it.
Ms.
Habibunnessa further said that the idea is to find out
if any adult is behind the crime; whether the child has
been used by a gang to commit the crime.
"In
case of children the spirit of the law is correction,
not penalty. That's why lots of reviews are needed whenever
a child is involved in a major crime," she says.
The
1974 law also bars court from sentencing a child criminal
to death. There are provisions of bail for child crime
suspects even if the case is non-bailable. A child crime
suspect can be handed over to probationary officer or
proper guardian for correction. In case there is no blood
relation, a responsible person can be chosen as the child's
guardian.
Even
if a child is involved in a crime along with adults, there
has to be separate charge sheets for him. A child cannot
be kept in policy custody and he must be granted bail
and handed to a guardian.
About
police role the law says if an under-16 child is arrested
in a non-bailable case and if he cannot be produced to
court the officer-in-charge can free him on bail or send
the child to a safe custody until he can be produced before
a court. The law says the OC will immediately inform the
guardians or probationary officer about the detention.
Says
Additional Attorney General A J Mohammad Ali, the 1974
law is clear about a child's supervision, custody, security,
trial and penalty. The trial is to be held in a court
that deals with adolescent crimes. The role and responsibilities
of judges have also been defined in the law. ``Special
care is taken during the trial of a child crime suspect
so he is not harassed during the process", he added.
Salma
Ali, Executive Director of Bangladesh Jatiya Mahila Ainjibi
Samity, told a recent workshop that many of the child
prisoners are held in connection with holding illegal
arms, drugs or explosives. She said children are used
as pickets during political programmes such as hartals.
Police make mass arrests, including children. Besides,
children are used as carriers of drugs. The political
parties must stop using children in their partisan interests."
Says
Habibunnessa: "It is important to make provisions
so that a child crime suspect is kept in community custody
instead of police custody, police must fully abide by
the law and there should be separate trial for child crime
suspects."
Source:
NewsNetwork.
Photo:
Star
