The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) assembly has passed the Child Protection and Welfare (Amendment) Act 2022, imposing life imprisonment and death sentence for child abusers.
Provincial Law Minister, Fazal-e-Shakoor, tabled the bill in the assembly on Tuesday. The bill received approval from the provincial cabinet in December last year.
According to the bill, convicts of child abuse cases in the province will now either get life imprisonment or a death sentence. Those involved in child pornography will get 14 years in prison. The sentence may extend to 20 years along with a fine of Rs. 2 to 5 million.
Those involved in sharing videos of child pornography will get 10 years in prison and a fine of up to Rs. 2 million. Those involved in child trafficking will be sentenced to either 14 years, 20 years, or life in jail.
Child Protection Courts will be formed and they will hear the cases related to child abuse. These courts will complete the hearing of a case in 30 days. They will also treat DNA sampling and videos as admissible evidence.
A Register of Sexual Offenders will also be maintained by the provincial government. The register will include the names of all the individuals involved in cases of child abuse.
Individuals whose names will be in the register will not able to work for any government department, travel in public transport, and enter public spaces all over the province.
Anyone who employs an individual whose name is found in the Register of Sexual Offenders will be sentenced to 5 years in jail and will be fined up to Rs. 10 million.
