Legislative reforms, administrative actions and coordinated forums are needed to promote the protection of children.
Consistent and uninterpretable legislative and administrative measures are needed to protect children especially those who fall victim to cruelty as domestic workers.
This was demanded at the third provincial coordination forum jointly arranged by Search for Justice, Children Advocacy Network and National Commission for Human Rights to review and analyse the current legislative and administrative environment for effective implementation of laws to outlaw child domestic labour in Punjab.
Executive Director of Search for Justice Iftikhar Mubarik shared that a case management and referral system for child domestic labour and child abuse is a critical component of protecting children in these vulnerable situations.
Such a system should be developed with aim to ensure that cases of child abuse are properly identified, reported, and managed, and that appropriate referrals are made to relevant organisations and agencies for assistance and intervention.
He demanded all administrative and legislative interventions to establish a robust referral and case management system in Punjab backed by the legal framework.
Rashida Qureshi, a child rights activist and Focal Person for Children Advocacy Network- CAN Pakistan, stressed the need to establish collaboration between different organisations involved in child protection, such as child welfare services, law enforcement, healthcare providers, legal aid organisations, and NGOs.
She stressed for defining clear protocols for information sharing, joint investigations, and coordinated interventions.
Member National Commission for Human Rights (Punjab) Nadeem Ashraf demanded the government focus on devising and implementing a programme which are designed with aim to economically empower marginalised segments of society.
