Law Reform
Juvenile crime correction system in Bangladesh
Rita Bhoumick
Russell was only nine years old when he was arrested on charge of killing his father. He was eventually convicted of the murder and sentenced to 30 years in jail. Russel was first sent to Comilla jail and from there to Kishore Unnayan Kendra or Juvenile Correction Centre in Tongi, Gazipur. The boy from a remote village in Cox's Bazar had made a long journey since then.
Shamsun Nahar, social caseworker of the JCC says, "Russell has been here for six years and his behaviour is quite satisfactory. He is now 18. The law does not permit anyone over 18 to stay in the centre."
"Satisfied with his good conduct, we applied to the appropriate authority for granting him amnesty. Besides, BLAST (Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust) on behalf of Russell appealed his conviction on February 07, 1998," she adds.
Supreme Court senior staff lawyer Md Abdul Mannan Khan says, "The court delivered its verdict in 1998 and the centre apprised me about this case in 2001. Having had a closer look, I have found out that he has been punished under a law, which is against section 51 of the Children's Act."
"According to section 51, no child can be jailed for life while section 71 says no child can be punished and imprisoned," he describes, adding, "After gathering necessary papers, I've taken preparation for the hearing in the High Court."
He continues, "At one stage of the hearing, it was found that sections 51 and 52 are contradictory to each other. Then the High Court ordered me to employ two senior lawyers as friends of the court. I worked as their assistant. January 16, 2002 was the scheduled date for the hearing, which did not take place due to some reasons. Later, I prepared myself again for the hearing after disintegration of the bench."
Social Welfare Ministry, Social Services Department and Kishore Unnayan Kendra applied to the President for granting him amnesty. He was released on July 20 after being pardoned. Later, Save the Children UK provided him one-year vocational training and awarded Tk 1,500 as stipend.
Social caseworker of Kishore Unnayan Kendra Masuma Akhter says, "Children's Act was introduced in Bangladesh in 1974. Under this law, a child (under 16 years of age) during the trial and verdict for his first and petty crime should be kept at a secure lace with all humanitarian facilities."
She also says, "The tendency of committing crime is seen among the youngsters belonging to lower and upper class families. A juvenile court receives two types of cases; police case (GR case) and guardian case.
Crimes like hijacking, drug dealing, robbery and killing committed by the adolescents (under 16 years of age) are regarded as police cases while the cases filed by the guardians under section 33 of the children's act to correct their unruly children are guardian cases. If a guardian files such a case the court, after questioning the guardian, either orders to keep the adolescent in the Kishore Unnayan Kendra or orders to correct the concerned in the custody of the guardian under direct supervision of a probation officer."
Maleka Khairunnesa, a first class magistrate of Juvenile Court of Kishore Unnayan Kendra says, "If an adolescent commits a crime for the first time and his/her social condition is good, he/she is kept in the family environment under the supervision of a probation office. The youngster is freed after one year although the law mentions a time frame of 1 to 3 years.
She also says, "If the family environment is not good, the offender is kept in the correction centre for three months up to one year. But, the trials of serious crimes like rape, drug dealing, arms and explosive crimes and killing are not held in Juvenile courts or Magistrate courts. These trials are conducted in Metropolitan Tribunal or Session Judges courts."
A senior legal aid officer of 'Aporajeo Bangladesh', an organisation that works for the well-being of destitute children, says, "Sometimes the court orders of the cases filed by police do not reach the correction centre. As a result, the records show either an adolescent is fugitive or has been released despite being detained in the correction center. This is how an adolescent is detained without any trial."
Sarwar Binte Islam, who is also an advocate of the Supreme Court, says, "The offenders get adults and they are sent to prisons from correction centres as court proceedings consume long time. As a result, the changes made to their behaviours in the correction centres become pointless after their arrival in the prisons."
Sadaruddin Ahmed, director of Department of Social Services, says, "Under the present condition of the country, it will be very good if we can have one correction centre in every division. At present, there are only three centres with two located in Gazipur and one in Jessore."
"During their stay in the correction centres, the youngsters are provided with education and vocational training until they reach 18 so that they can lead a normal life afterwards," he says. "They are given loans so that they can utilise the vocational training they received in the correction centres. A plan is also underway to provide them with jobs," he added.
The director says, "Under the present socioeconomic conditions of the country, it is not possible to make separate arrangements for different types of offenders in one institute because it is very expensive."
Golam Ahmed Faruq, a probation officer of Kishore Unnayan Kendra says, "If the Juvenile Court finds an adolescent guilty of an offence, the court can set him/her free by suspending the punishment based on the report submitted by the probation officer. But, the freedom will come on some conditions, including a commitment not to repeat the offense and lead a normal life.
Professor of Dhaka University's Clinical Psychology Dr M Mahmudur Rahman says, "Children and adolescents tend to follow others if their families and environments are not healthy."
"The children, particularly those of the 8-14 age group, resort to crimes when their parents fail to guide them properly," he says, adding, "Not only theteachers, but also the parents should take more care of the children to prevent them from committing crimes."
According to Dr Rahman, children and adolescents on the streets should be provided with food, education and secure shelter, which are their rights. If petty crimes are not eradicated, millions more crimes will be committed. The government should take initiatives to sort this out. Spending money only on prisons will not address the issue.
Source: News Network.
