Juvenile Justice System and the Rehabilitation of Juveniles in Mardan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to delineate the contextual realities related to the implementation of juvenile justice system for the rehabilitation of juvenile delinquents in Mardan, Pakistan. The focus of the study is to analyze Juvenile Justice System Ordinance 2000 (hereafter JJSO 2000) with reference to the obstacles in the way of its proper implementation. Principally, the Ordinance and its Rules guarantee the rehabilitation of juveniles but practically the laws relating to juvenile justice are not implemented so far. This is a qualitative research for which data was collected through participant observations, in-depth interviews and focused group discussions. The data was collected from the officials of all agencies responsible for the implementation of Juvenile Justice System including police, judiciary, probation and prison. The analysis of empirical data indicates that Juvenile Justice System Ordinance is not implemented with true spirit and resultantly the juveniles are not properly rehabilitated.