Children used as camel jockeys: Supreme Court directs early disbursement of compensation money

The Supreme Court on Friday directed all departments, having connection with children used as camel jockeys in the UAE, to disburse the compensation money, lying with the government, as early as possible. Lack of information about the whereabouts of those children is hindering early disbursement.
A three-member bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Justice Ghulam Rabbani and Justice Khalilur Rehman Ramday directed Eecretary for Overseas Pakistanis, Punjab Home Secretary, and Secretary, Child Protection Bureau, to convene a meeting for expeditious distribution of cheques among the children, and apprise the court on September 19. Meanwhile, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Interior. Shabbir Ahmed and Director (Legal), FIA, Azam Khan, submitted their reports regarding the matter.
The court directed Director, FIA, to ensure, through investigation officer of the agency, production of all the persons against whom challans had been submitted in Lahore, Multan, and Pabbi courts so that proceedings against them could be started.
The official of Overseas Ministry said that disbursement of cheques among the children's families was the responsibility of Child Protection Bureau. The Chief Justice remarked that the purpose of the Court was that the culprits were punished. He said that if the accused were not appearing before the courts, then what was the benefit of registering cases.
Justice Ramday asked the FIA Director that agents and facilitators involved in smuggling of children were still roaming around. The FIA Director informed the court that many children, used as jockey, had been taken out of Pakistan by their parents along with the legal documents. He told the bench that after 2006, cases were not registered, and only one case of child trafficking was registered in March, 2010.