Yearly Archives: 2018

Pakistan’s Juvenile Justice System

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Pakistan is a signatory to the Convention on the Rights of Child (CRC). Article 37 of the CRC asks state parties to ensure the following: (a) No child shall be subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Neither capital punishment nor life imprisonment without possibility of release shall be imposed for offences committed by persons below eighteen years of age; (b) No child shall be deprived of his or her liberty unlawfully or arbitrarily. The arrest, detention or imprisonment of a child shall be in conformity with the law and shall be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time; (c) Every child deprived of liberty shall be treated with humanity and respect for the inherent dignity of the human person, and in a manner which takes into account the needs of persons of his or her age. In particular, every child deprived of liberty shall be separated from adults unless it is considered in the child’s best interest not to do so and shall have the right to maintain contact with his or her family through correspondence and visits, save in exceptional circumstances; (d) Every child deprived of his or her liberty shall have the right to prompt access to legal and other appropriate assistance, as well as the right to challenge the legality of the deprivation of his or her liberty before a court or other competent, independent and impartial authority, and to a prompt…

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Child Labour In Pakistan: A Downplayed Issue

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  • Post category:Law
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The issue of child labour has been marred with many discrepancies over the years. What has remained constant throughout, however, is the fact that this sensitive issue continues to be understated and despite the various legal mechanisms in place, child labour remains one of biggest growth-stunting problems of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. This article will try and highlight some of these issues and bring the flaws of the protective mechanisms to the forefront. Child labour manifests in many different forms and unfortunately in Pakistan the list is quite diverse, ranging from bonded labour, slavery and agriculture-intensive labour to the labour in many different types of industries which are all infested with poor working conditions for children, so much so that in most cases they are denied even the right of freedom of movement. One of the main reasons why Pakistan suffers from this evil is the fact that our legal system is severely underdeveloped in terms of rights of the child and it will remain this way unless there is greater public outcry and revision in legal mechanisms intended to protect these rights. The first legal mechanism worth mentioning here is none other than the Constitution of Pakistan 1973, Article 11(2) of which states that, “All forms of forced labour and traffic in human beings are prohibited.” And Article 11(3) which more specifically states that “No child below the age of fourteen years shall be engaged in any factory or mine or any other hazardous employment.” The first issue…

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Your Right To Information Matters Because You Never Know When You’re Going To Need It

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  • Post category:Law
  • Reading time:5 mins read

The right to acquire information is a fundamental right of every citizen of Pakistan. However, citizens are less aware of their basic fundamental right which is guaranteed to them by the Constitution of Pakistan as this right is not acknowledged to a great extent. The Constitution of Pakistan provides in its article 19-A that every citizen shall have the right to have access to information in all matters of public importance, subject to regulation and reasonable restrictions imposed by law. According to the article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) information is like the oxygen of democracy and its importance cannot be denied in the processes of decision-making and opinion-forming. Presently, nearly a hundred countries have laws that grant individuals a general right to access information held by public bodies, while only 13 countries had such laws uptil 1990. Universal Legislation for  Freedom of Information (FOI) On 28th September, 2002, organizations promoting freedom of information (FOI) all over the world joined heads in Bulgaria and founded the FOI Advocates Network. The aim of this coalition was to endorse the right of access to information for all the people and to access government/public information while promoting freedom of information as essential to both democracy and good governance. Thus, the UNESCO General Assembly in 2015 declared 28th September as the “International Right to Know (RTI) Day”. Most of our nationals are still not aware of the purpose of…

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Legal Rights Of Children Under Laws Of Pakistan

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Many laws deal with the rights of children. It is necessary to shed light on the definition of a child, before dilating upon the topic at hand. According to Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (9th edition), a child is defined as, “A young human who is not yet an adult.” Section 3 of the Majority Act 1875 (pre-Partition of British India) states the age of a minor to be 18 years, while the age of a minor under a guardian to be 21 years. Keeping this in view, children’s rights categorically find mention, expression and place in the fundamental law of Pakistan, that is the Constitution of Pakistan under the Chapter on Fundamental Rights. Article 11 of the Constitution unequivocally enshrines that, “No child below the age of fourteen years shall be engaged in any factory or mine or any other hazardous employment.” In this regard, worth mentioning is the federal Employment of Children Act 1991 which follows the definition of the Constitution and attempts to regulate the conditions of work for children under 14 years and forbid their employment in harsh occupations. The minimum age for employment in provinces is still 14 years in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh, but has been raised to 15 years in Punjab. The minimum age for hazardous work remains 14 years in Balochistan and Islamabad Capital Territory, but has been increased to 18 years in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh. Be that as it may, the Children (Pledging of Labour) Act 1933 defines a child…

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