VoC asked Dr Farah Nini Dusuki, the foremost child justice specialist in Malaysia, to comment on the news of a possible death penalty for a teenager in Kota Tinggi and she said: 1) The child should not have been even reported in the first place as to the possibility of facing the death penalty as this is totally prohibited under the law. Section 97 of the Child Act 2001 provides that no death sentence shall be given to anyone below 18 and as an alternative he faces the possibility of being detained in prison at the pleasure of the Ruler if found guilty at the end of the trial; 2) The child is not represented and this raises the question of whether he was offered legal counsel and told of his constitutional right in the first place? He has a right to be represented by counsel and the State is obliged to provide one for him if he is unable to get one himself; 3) The media should have been more sensitive to his plight as a child and should not have sensationalized the matter unnecessarily, as he has the right to be presumed innocent until he is found guilty. The media has a duty to promote his well-being as their primary consideration and for a child who is in conflict with the law the priority ought to be to minimize any form of stigmatization so that the chances of rehabilitation and reintegration will be more effectively achieved. thestar.my/News/Nation/2014/08/04/Teenager-faces-the-death-penalty-Juvenile-charged-with-killing-single-mother-during-a-robbery-gone-w/
Posted on: Fri, 08 Aug 2014 02:30:00 +0000
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