Govt asked to ratify conventions on child rights

The fifth commission meeting of the National Commission on the Rights of Child (NCRC) Thursday asked the government to ratify conventions on child rights in the light of the ever-changing climate, political and economic milieu.

According to a statement, the huddle also reviewed the finalisation of the NCRC Second Amendment Bill, 2022 among other agendas.

It also deliberated the proposed amendments to the rules of operations and recruitment process of the commission. The participants discussed the process of hiring against approved posts, the development of policies, and lobbying the case for additional funds and establishing a child rights fund.

The statement further said the meeting was presided over by the NCRC Chairperson Afshan Tehseen. The chairperson apprised the participants about the completion of NCRC’s first term of operations and the progress of the programme as per NCRC mandate.

She presented the commission’s activities and progress in delivering its mandate, the challenges faced over the year, and the action plan for the upcoming quarter.

During the meeting, it was identified how the commission was mandated with examining the laws, policies and inquiring into violations of child rights.

It was also presented to the board that Under 15(e) and 15(k) of NCRC Act 2017, the organisation was exercising quasi-judicial powers to address complaints of child rights violations.

The communique issued by the commission further read that complaint handling was one of the priorities of the commission and to date, it has dealt with 267 complaints.

These complaints are resolved through proper inquiry and investigation, it said adding that recently, NCRC summoned ICT police officials and police record over custodial torture of minors and submitted its inquiry report to Senate Standing Committee on Human Rights.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 16^th, 2022.