PESHAWAR - Representatives of a civil society organisation Friday demanded the government to increase budgetary allocation for the protection of child rights in the province. The demand was made by Child Right Movement (CRM) Provincial Coordinator Azizud Din along with Fata chapter representatives during a pre-budget news conference held at the Peshawar Press Club on Friday.
Aziz said the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa introduced the 'KP Child Protection and Welfare Act 2010' and established the KP Child Protection and Welfare Commission and Child Protection Units (CPUs) in 11 districts of the province, which are mostly donors' supported.
He urged the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government to allocate sufficient resources to establish and strengthen child protection system in the province.
He also demanded of the provincial government to allocate funds for establishing CPUs in all districts of the province with sufficient trained human resources and an effective response and referral mechanism so that children of the province could be protected from violence, abuse, exploitation by implementing law in its true spirit.
Aziz said the KP government should also allocate budget for the implementation of the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance (JJSO) 2000 in the province. Under the JJSO, every child in contact with the law is entitled to free legal aid at the state's expense.
Similarly, he said budgetary allocation is also required for appointment of probation officers and establishment of at least two borstal institutions in the province according to the ordinance.
Appointment and increase in number of probation officers will not only help reduce the number of juveniles but also the number of other prisoners who are detained in minor offences or first offenders.
Speaking on the occasion, CRM Fata representative said the government should focus on improving the state of Child Rights in Fata in the upcoming federal budget by allocating resources for maternal, newborn and child health, education and child protection.
The president extended the Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act 2012 to FATA last year, however, no budgetary allocation has been made to implement the provision of law and ensure that all girls and boys aged 5 to 16 go to schools.
They demanded of the federal government to allocate funds for establishing a child protection system in Fata and implementation of the JJSO 2000 in Fata.