(Amnesty International Appeal)
When teenage boys turn 16 in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) in India they suddenly face a new threat. If they get arrested, they are treated as adults while according to international law only those above 18 should be.
Raheel Khursheed, who recently joined an Amnesty International Twitter campaign to demand the release of a teenager said, “The government has to decide whether the approach of talking to these young people should be humane or whether they want to go down as a government that uses legal brutality.”
According to the Jammu and Kashmir Juvenile Justice Act (JKJJA) teenage boys above 16 are adults and the government routinely locks them up in adult prisons in harsh conditions. There is a real need for reform in the area of juvenile justice and this has been recognised by the J&K Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah himself.
By signing this petition you can ensure that Omar Abdullah keeps his word. We will deliver your signatures to him ahead of the monsoon session of the J&K Assembly in September.
Join Amnesty International's campaign to make the adult age 18 so that the JKJJA becomes compatible with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Please go to the following URL and sign in the online petition.
(Image Copyright: Owais Zargar)
1 comment:
Thanks for posting this. We are trying to reach atleast 30,000 signatures by September so your support really helps.
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