Youth in Adult Prisons: 16-Year-Old Musa’s Tragic First Encounter with Lockdown

Sixteen-year-old Musa, a resident of the Shabqadar tehsil in Charsadda district, was arrested by Peshawar Police for participating in a mobile snatching case and sent to Central Jail Peshawar along with two accomplices. This marked his first encounter with prison life.

Musa revealed that he had been influenced by TikTok videos promoting expensive mobile phones. He admitted to stealing to acquire these devices, but not as part of any professional criminal gang. Due to his age, he was placed in a separate barrack within the jail premises for adult prisoners rather than being sent to a juvenile facility under law.

Inside Central Jail Peshawar, Musa observed various inmates, including those from dangerous gangs and convicted criminals, all following an established prison routine each morning. The jail is considered one of the province’s largest model jails with many juveniles like him held within it. However, there are no functional juvenile centers for prisoners under 18 in any district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, despite legal provisions mandating their establishment.

Senior Peshawar High Court Advocate Ali Azim highlighted that the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance 2000 and its 2002 rules mandate the creation of borstal institutes for prisoners under 18. He stressed that such centers should provide education, vocational training, recreational activities, and psychological support to protect children’s futures from criminal influences and psychological harm.

Azim noted that despite these legal obligations, the provincial government has failed to implement these provisions, leaving hundreds of underage prisoners’ fates uncertain. The situation raises serious concerns about legal rights and human well-being.

The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Prison Department reported more than 10,000 under-trial prisoners across 35 jails, including women and juveniles. Of these, over 350 were under the age of 18—2 girls and 351 boys. Central Jail Peshawar houses the highest number at 2,226 prisoners, followed by Mardan with 1,658.

Social activist Imran Takkar explained that under the Juvenile Justice System Act 2018, children aged up to eighteen cannot be held in jail and those younger than ten have no criminal liability. However, no operational juvenile justice committees are present at district levels in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. This highlights an issue where law, humanity, and childhood are compromised.

According to UNICEF’s 2024 report, Punjab has the highest number of juvenile offenders (851 children), followed by Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (304), Sindh (297), and Balochistan (23). The overall prison system is operating at 152 per cent overcapacity with 73 per cent of prisoners under trial. Despite legal mandates for separation from adult criminals, most juvenile prisoners are still held in regular jails alongside adults.

These issues underscore the need for reform to protect children’s rights and futures within a justice system that often treats them as adults.