K-P may record, broadcast execution of child abusers

CM approves amendments proposed by committee

PESHAWAR:

To prevent sexual abuse of children, the province may soon record the execution of capital punishment handed down to convicted child abusers but then also publicise them.

This is expected to happen after Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Chief Minister Mahmood Khan on Monday formally approved amendments to the K-P Child Protection Act 2010.

The amendments had been proposed in a report prepared by a 13-member parliamentary committee for suggesting punishment for child abuse convicts and presented in the provincial assembly on July 6 this year.

As per the recommended amendments, the execution of capital punishment for child abuse convicts will be recorded and publicised.

Further, the government will establish child protection police stations across the province. Moreover, anyone convicted of abusing children will not be allowed to travel through public transport. They will also be declared ineligible for employment.

Following the approval from the provincial cabinet, the bill is expected to be presented before the K-P Assembly for ratification.

Moreover, convicts in child abuse cases who are handed life sentences will not be given any relief in the form of remissions.

The committee has further suggested launching an awareness campaign through the K-P Information Ministry against child abuse and assault. It has also been recommended to utilise the services of Lady Health Workers (LHWs) for the purpose.

To trace and solve cases of child abuse, the amendments recommend the establishment of a forensic laboratory in the province apart from dedicating 10 to 15 topics related to child abuse topics in various examinations.

The committee had further urged to maintain a record of individuals who had been deported from foreign countries through the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), to check if they had been deported for committing a similar offence abroad.

The panel also suggested an imposing a ban on bringing cellphones and other electronic devices to schools.

Meanwhile, K-P Assembly Speaker Mushtaq Ghani said that the provincial government cannot publicly punish child abuse convicts as per the orders of the Supreme Court (SC).

He asserted that Prime Minister Imran Khan wanted to hang child rapists publicly and therefore, the federal government is busy drafting legislation to that effect.

Addressing a programme organised at the K-P Assembly against child abuse on Monday, Ghani said that convicts in such cases deserved stringent punishments.

Detailing his part in the entire process, the speaker said that he had immediately formed a committee to suggest punishments for child rape convicts when the issue was first raised in the assembly.

As an example of the efficacy of public executions, he pointed to the low crime rate in a country such as Saudi Arabia, which has amongst the highest rates of public executions in the world. Ghani called for a comprehensive and robust awareness campaign against child abuse.

Further, Special Adviser to K-P chief minister on Information Kamran Bangash said that everyone needs to play their role to curb this menace.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 20^th, 2020.