Endangering lives of children through media focus
Waseem Ahmad Shah
RECENTLY, the security forces and police in Lower Dir district presented a nine-year-old girl before media claiming that she was abducted by some terrorists and they intended to use her as a suicide bomber. They claimed that they had also recovered a suicide vest from a nearby place at Islam Dara area.
The law enforcing agencies (LEAs) allowed the media persons to interview the girl without caring for different international guidelines prohibiting the disclosure of the identity of a child in need of protection. While completely ignoring her tender age, a volley of questions were put to the child. Her images were splashed on different television channels as well as in newspapers without realising that this practice might put her life in danger.
Interestingly, the security forces and police had not even completed their investigation when she was presented before media. They were even not sure about her identity and from where she was kidnapped. It was a tough job for the child to face cameras of television channels and newspaper photographers and give interviews to scores of journalists.
This is not the first time that a child in need of protection has been exposed to media glare. In fact the security forces and law enforcing agencies lack proper training in this regard. Ever since the start of military operations in different conflict zones, the LEAs have been presenting children, who were engaged in armed conflict by the militants, to the media.
Presently, the federal as well as the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governments have not enacted a specific law for enforcing the confidentiality of a child who is involved in armed conflict and is in need of protection. While some provisions have been included in certain legislations, but still a lot more is needed to be done.
In Sep 2010, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government enacted the Child Protection and Welfare Act, 2010. Section 24 of the said Act provides: “No report in any newspaper, magazine or news sheet of any assessment regarding a child at risk under this Act shall disclose the name, address or school or any other particulars, which lead to the identification of the child at risk nor shall any picture of the child at risk be published: Provided that for reasons to be recorded in writing, the authority holding the assessment may permit such disclosure, if in its opinion such disclosure is in the interest of the child at risk.”
Any person found violating this section is liable to be punished with fine up to Rs10,000. This section is suffering from several deficiencies as the electronic media has not been included in it and they have been given a free hand to continue violating the privacy of a child in need of protection.
The federal government had promulgated the Press Council of Pakistan Ordinance in 2002, which carries a schedule wherein an Ethical Code of Practice for the Press is given. Article 14 of the said code states: “In the case of sexual offences and heinous crime against children, juveniles and women, names and identifying photographs shall not be published.”
Section 8(1)(iv) of the said ordinance empowers a press council to revise, update, enforce and implement the said Ethical Code of Practice for the newspapers, news agencies, editors, journalists and publishers. As this law has yet to be implemented, therefore, the violation of the code by the media continued unabated.
The UN had adopted the “Guidelines on Justice in matters involving child victims and witnesses of crime,” in 2005. Section 26 of the guidelines provide: “Child victims and witnesses should have their privacy protected as a matter of primary importance.”
It further provides that Information relating to a child`s involvement in the justice process should be protected. This can be achieved through maintaining confidentiality and restricting disclosure of information that may lead to identification of a child who is a victim or witness in the justice process.
The said guidelines provide that in order to ensure justice for child victims and witnesses of crime, professionals and other responsible for the well-being of those children must respect the principle that every child is a unique a valuable human being and as such his or her individual dignity, special needs, interests and privacy should be respected and protected.
Furthermore, to avoid further hardship to such like child, interviews, examinations and other forms of investigation should be conducted by trained professionals who proceed in a sensitive, respectful and thorough manner.
Similarly, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has given guidelines for reporting on issues related to children, which suggests: “Never identify through words or images a child who is or has been abused or exploited. You could be putting their lives in danger.”
The National Commission for Child Welfare and Development (NCCWD) has also prepared a “Code of ethics for media on reporting of children`s issues”. This code includes the guidelines given by the IFJ.
Source: Dawn
Date:7/4/2011
” 
” 
” 
” 
” 
