Juveniles Act not fully enforced-Human Rights

COPPERBELT Law Association of Zambia-Human Rights Commission (LAZ-HRC) convenor Wilson Banda has said that the intestate and the juvenile Acts are not being enforced fully by stakeholders.

Mr Banda said in Chingola yesterday that the two penal codes had provisions which were sufficient to protect children’s rights and yet the two pieces of legislation were not fully enforced.

He said despite the social welfare having offices countrywide, the department only responded when approached on specific issues pertaining to the children.

Mr Banda said the commission was determined to visit the social welfare organizations to ascertain their handling of issues of children living in the streets, who were usually deprived of their rights provided for under the juvenile and interstate Acts.

Mr Banda said LAZ had also observed that most of the orphaned juveniles were appearing in courts without legal representation and had their rights overlooked by senior police officers, who remanded them in the same cells as adults.

He said juveniles that appeared in court without legal representation and remanded in custody together with adult suspects and criminals were being groomed to be hardcore criminals.

The LAZ-HRC would now move in and help reduce these problems by ensuring that the said acts were fully recognised and applied.

“The commission will liaise with municipal councils as a starting point to find out what could be done about these issues because we as a concerned committee of LAZ are aware of the legal provisions pertaining to the welfare of juveniles,” he said.

Mr Banda said the committee would contact the Human Rights Commission (HRC) to involve his committee in organizing and funding seminars for police officers and other law enforcement agencies.

He said members of the public should not look at the legal practitioners as business executives who were only interested in money but members of the community who were ready to help without a fee in exceptional cases.

Mr Banda appealed to residents countrywide to report orphaned juveniles who were denied justice and contact LAZ or himself directly.

The LAZ-HRC would ensure that no orphaned child appeared in court without legal representation.

This was because some children were being convicted because they did not understand court language.

The LAZ-HRC reports to LAZ.