KARACHI, March 24: While waiting for issuance of a notification of relevant rules, the Sindh welfare department expects to make the Sindh Child Protection Authority (SCPA) — a legal body aimed at monitoring child protection related issues at provincial and district levels — operational by the start of the next financial year, it emerged on Sunday.

To ensure the rights of children — people up to the age of 18 —who need special protection measures, the Sindh assembly passed the Sindh Child Protection Authority Bill in May, 2011.

The governor of Sindh assented to the bill in June, the same year to make it a legislative act.

The bill called for establishment of an authority for child protection within 60 days after the passage of the law.

Sources in the social welfare department said that the SCPA could not be established accordingly due to delays in making of rules for carrying out the purposes of the act.

On the other hand, child rights activists too criticised the provincial government for delays in setting up of the SCPA, saying that the children in need could not be benefited from the law despite its passage 21 months ago after the enactment.

Under the law in question, a child protection officer may, in case of a child in need of special protection measures, ask relevant authorities for an appropriate action.

He may, in consultation with child protection committee, apply to the magistrate concerned for taking into custody a child if he/she requires special protection measures.

Whenever a child is taken into custody, he/she should immediately be taken to the nearest Child Protection Institution for temporary accommodation till appropriate orders are passed by the appropriate authority, the SCPA act, 2011 further says.

A child in need of special protection measure includes a child who is i) victim of violence, abuse and exploitation; ii) subjected to physical and psychological violence, sexual abuse or commercial sexual exploitation; iii) forced into worst forms of child labour, exploitative labour or beggary; iv) subjected to human trafficking within and outside Pakistan; v) being misused for drug trafficking or subjected to abuse of substances like glue drugs, spirit; vi) engaged in an armed conflict; vii) without primary care givers; and viii) affected or infected with HIV/Aids.

The SPCA, among other functions, shall have powers to coordinate and monitor child protection related issues at provincial and district levels and ensure rights of children in need of special protection measures.

It shall have powers to support and establish institutional mechanism for child protection issues and to set minimum standards for social, rehabilitative, re-integrative and reformatory institutions and services and ensure their implementation.

It shall also function to set minimum standards for all other institutions relating to children, like educational institutions, orphanages, shelter homes, remand homes, certified schools, youthful offender work places, child parks and hospitals, and ensure their implementation, it has further been learnt.

Speaking to Dawn, social welfare department secretary Dr Abdul Raheem Soomro said that draft rules regarding the establishment, appointment, infrastructure and actions of the SCPA, after vetting by the Sindh law department, had been approved by competent authorities and a mere gazette notification, said to in sight, was due.

Provincial coordinator of the social welfare department Mohammad Rahim Lakho, who has also been associated with the child protection project, said that a big complex being built to house the offices of the SCPA and to provide residential, educational and training skill development facilities was near completion.

The planned first phase of construction of the building project would be completed by June this year following which due offices and facilities would be made operational, he added.

He said that under the laws in question, the minister-in-charge of the social welfare department would be the chairperson of the SBCA, with secretaries of the social welfare, the home and the labour departments along with two provincial assembly members, two well-known advocates having experience in child rights and two representatives of non-governmental organisations working for welfare and development of children as its members.