Dear Madam,
Manipur
Alliance for Child Rights, a common platform for NGOs, Individuals, Civil
Societies working for protection and promotion of the rights of the needy children/ juveniles of the state hereby submit this memorandum
to you
with a high hope that you will take up necessary
prompt initiative to protect the rights of the children by giving suitable directives and recommendations to
the state and central government.
That, even
after enactment of various progressive legislations and purposeful schemes and
projects, the relentless violence
against children have been occurring,
under which girl children are bearing
the brunt of atrocities and violence at the most.
The most
heinous crime i.e. “Custodial rapes of minors” specially the tribal children
from Ukhrul, Tamenglong, Chandel etc inside the illegal
homes based in, Jaipur (Rajashthan), Kerala, Tamilnadu and other metro
cities of India is so rampantly occurred. Several hundreds of children who had
been enticed to give free education and accommodation to those outside states’
were recruited from the poor villages of these districts, where developmental
and poverty elevation schemes have hardly reached. The innocent children were then put into
those home and exploited, used as child
labour besides sexually and physically abused. Thus, their right to excess to equitable quality formal primary
education was grossly violated while other fundamental rights were also
consequently robbed, as in many cases,
children were incarcerated in a
virtually sub human condition, with no basic foods and amenities like toilets
(As testified again by pastor John
Jacob’s Jaipur Grace Home case).
Murdering
of rape victims across the state is alarmingly increased in recent times, that necessitated prompt executive decision and response of the
state and national government, policy and administrative reforms, police and
judiciary reforms, are also similarly called
for to relook upon fulfilment of India’s
commitments to UN Conventions, International laws and International Humanitarian Rights Standards including UN Convention on
Rights of the Child.
We selectively lay down few
recommendations, urging your good self and good office to consider for making
official directives and recommendations so that State/Central government are
convinced and obliged to translate the
recommendations into actions:
.
Our Recommendations
1. State
or central government authority should setup of 24 X7 Toll Free Women Helpline for 9
districts of the state, complying the directives and hon’ble supreme court and
considering the immediate needs for protection of rights of the girl children.
2. State
and national Government should provide trauma counselling and free treatment services
for victims of rape and other forms of
violence committed against women and girl children. We urge to NCPCR for passing necessary appeal and
recommendations, so- that such basic needs are actually accessible to the needy victim women and children in the
state, where a prolonged armed conflict persistently has brought countless
collateral injuries to women and children population. Such vulnerable
population is exposed to the conflict without any safe passage and safeguards
enjoyable by them as enshrined in UN CRC, other international human rights and
humanitarian laws.
3. Setting up of Fast Track Courts in every district of
the state for fair and speedy trail of
rape cases within a maximum
period of 60 days has not been complied with by the concerned authorities,
despite the fact that hon’ble supreme court has given its directives to set up
such courts. We urge to set up Fast tract Courts/ Special courts/children’s
courts for every districts in Manipur
with adequate number of dedicated full time
judges.
4. The
criminal investigation system needs to be reformed and revitalised as the
present system is almost a failed system. Many serious offences such as rape
and murder of women and minor girls ended without any due prosecution and
conviction of culprits, as police fail
to submit charge sheets against the accused persons within the stipulated time.
Manipur state long after its merger into
India in 1949, has no a well equipped Foreignsic Science Laboratory for conducting few delicate tests,
but still depends upon labs of Kolkata (West Bengal). The prolonged time consuming testing process
has resulted in to justice delayed - justice denied. For deliver fair and speedy
judgment to rape and murder cases of women and children a well equipped
Foreignsic Science Lab must be constructed in the state of Manipur.
5. Inclusion
of gender education, life skill and livelihood education in school education,
providing child friendly counselling
facilities to all the educational institutions in order to empower and educate
the young people is highly needed.
6. India
government recently enacted “The Criminal Law (Amendment ) Act 2013”, the Act gives impunity to the security
forces, as no prosecution can be taken up in the law courts against the accused
security forces who has allegedly committed sexual assaults, without prior
permission of the government. The impunity provision of the Act implicitly and
explicitly encourages the intention to commit rape and violence against the
women and girl children by the security forces in the state. It makes lives
of women and girl children more defenceless,
as heavy security forces have already
been deployed in the name of counter insurgency, enjoying the impunities
of draconian law the Armed Forces (Special Power) Act, 1957 .
7. Urged
upon NCPCR, to recommend upon Manipur
state to set up adequate number of Girls Homes in the state. It is a fact that
Manipur state has not set up any Girls Children Home till now, besides there is no separate Special Home and
Observation Home for Girls in the state.
8. Continuously
irregular and unreasonably delayed in the release of funds for children homes and shelter homes becomes an
internalised system in the state.
The whole amount of ICPS norm’s grant-in
–aid for the government supported
children homes, shelter homes run by NGOs in the state, for last year i.e for the financial year 2011-12, was
released so lately in the month
of August 2012, after a delay of 5 months from the end of financial year. For the current
financial year 2012-13 the grant has not been released till now.
How, can we expect quality intuitional care from these homes, if their
funds are not timely released. Besides,
required staffs for DCPUs under ICPS are not appointed till now causing a great
lost for marginalised children who are waiting benefits of ICPS scheme.
A strict monitoring system to ensure quality services of the homes, giving
training to the children homes’ staffs, conducting
periodic social audits are crucial for bringing transparency and accountability of these institutions.
9. The
recently exposed, long time hidden case of Jaipur’s Grace Home run by pastor Jacob
John , in which around 30 children from Ukhrul were abused and exploited resulting
in some children died, many suffered deformity, even became pregnant and giving
birth to a child, must be immediately
investigated after filing an FIR in Ukhrul. Though the heinous crime allegedly
committed by pastor John Jacob and other culprits, was, perhaps, concealed by the parents and guardian
as they did not aware the right approach to reveal their agony. Now NCPCR has
received complaints from the parents and guardians, we demand befitting
punishment to pastor Jacob John the main culprit and others involved in Jaipur child exploitation and
abuse case, as per law.
We urge that,
the trial should be held in Manipur state not in Jaipur. Further, NCPCR is
pleaded to ban all the unregistered children homes ever found all over
India. A comprehensive educational and
economic rehabilitation apart from medical treatment, counselling and
mainstreaming of all the trafficked survivors children in the state is higly
needed.
10. Eviction
without proper alternative arrangement denying the right to education, health and right to
life of the children, has become an institutionalised policy of the state.
State authority even dishonour court’s standing order by dismantling the houses and properties thereby making
internally displaced people. After Loktak eviction, Lamphel Yaipha Leikai
eviction, airport expansion eviction, the latest eviction action took place at Kabo Leikai, Imphal East areas, where the state evicted the local settlers for a proposed
5 star hotel.
In the abrupt
eviction action, around 300 children, most of them school going ones suffered a lot, as they were forced to leave the place and
compelled to take refuge in different villages at their own risks. Children
stopped going to their own schools.
State should take up alternative arrangements to protect the fundamental rights of the children belonging
to the eviction victim families.
11. The
Manipur Commission for Protection of Child Rights (MCPCR) which was set up
after a massive social and legal pressure on November 2, 2012 in the state, is
being put into most incapacitated position,
that chairperson and members are left to run the commission on voluntary
basis, without giving any support staff, logistics, not even
an office building of its own,
let alone honorarium and
allowance . The Childhelpline needed to
run by the MCPCR for monitoring
RTE implementation is not yet setup, depriving the right to redress the
grievances of children. Urged upon to look into the matter and please advice
and direct the state government so that basic necessities are provided to MCPCR and its
basic duties are properly performed.
12. Urged
to monitor and take up follow up actions constantly so that Children’s right to
free and compulsory education Right to Education, a fundamental right for every
child in the state is not violated in any manner, but truly implemented.
13. Finally
urged to recommend to the concern authorities, so that children’s
emergency outreach service i.e.
Childline, which is now only operational in Imphal municipal areas, could be extended to other districts of the
state in the best interest of children.
With warm regards
Yours truly,
Keisam Pradipkumar
Convener,
Imphal the 7th
June, 2013 Manipur Alliance for Child
Rights
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