The Sindh government has criminalized corporal punishment, mental torture, and abuse of children at schools, madrasas, and workplaces under the Sindh Prohibition of Corporal Punishment Act 2016.
Notified on Monday by the Provincial Education and Literacy Department, the new rules of the Act prohibit every kind of physical and mental violence against children.
It would be the educational institution’s duty to ensure the protection and safety of their students and take every possible measure to protect children from physical and mental torture.
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“No student must be harmed physically, mentally, or emotionally, or be subjected to abuse by any person employed in the institution, which may affect the mental or physical growth of the student,” as per the rules.
The rules further state that every institute has to establish a protection committee constituting the head of the institute, representatives of the departments regulating the institution, and parents or guardians of the students.
The committee, as the rules state, would probe complaints about violence against students, protect them, and provide every possible emotional, psychological, physical, and mental support needed.
The body will send its recommendations to the district committee regarding the requirements to keep students safe and maintain a proper recorder. The committee will also arrange awareness sessions for children to inform them about their basic rights.
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Parents, children, or anyone can lodge a complaint with the child protection committee, which will be bound to address any anonymous complaint of violence against children.
The head of the committee will then share the complaint with fellow members, after which an investigation would be initiated to decide on it within 15 days. The recommendations, based on the findings of the committee, will be forwarded to the concerned department for further action.
“If the body reaches no conclusion or fails to find a relevant clause in the act, it is to immediately inform the police, child helpline 1121, or the relevant child protection officer of the Sindh Child Protection Authority,” the rules state.
Meanwhile, the education department will launch a separate space for online complaints on its website and post all the laws, rules, reports, instructions, and other documents related to corporal punishment on the website.
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