Child Protection Paramount, they Must be Treated Differently
Our Constitution and legislations such as Criminal Procedure Act 2009, Juvenile Act 1973 and Family Law Act 2003, have provisions to ensure that when a child is brought before the court whether as a victim, witness or accused he or she is given special protection and treatment.
Chief Justice Kamal Kumar stressed this yesterday while presenting a paper during the session Justice LeagueJustice for Our Children.
He highlighted sections 41 (2) and 15 (9) of our Constitution.
S.41 (2): “The best interests of a child are the primary consideration in every matter concerning the child.
“This is obviously a very broad provision and covers all matters that concerns a child, whether it be criminal case or family matter.”
S.15 (9): “If a child is called as a witness in criminal proceedings, arrangements for the taking of the child’s evidence must have due regard to the child’s age.
“In a criminal case, these rights will have to be balance against the accused’s right to fair trial.
“Any court process and in particular criminal cases can be quite intimidating to any person. It is therefore imperative that children are given adequate protection to ensure that they do not feel intimidated or vulnerable when giving evidence or defending themselves.”
He said Judges and Magistrates in our courts are mindful of the fact that children need to be treated differently.
“At this point I wish to acknowledge and thank the Government and UNICEF for all the assistance provided to Judicial Department to date to ensure that we have appropriate facilities to deal with children and not to make them fearful, intimidated or vulnerable when they appear in court,” he said.