The book written by Justice M Imman Ali, a talented judge of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh contains a bibliography with more than thirty sources, a list of 30 laws and a list of cases numbering more than 45. It also contains a list of all relevant international instruments. The book has been published by the United Nations Children's Fund (unicef).
The book is divided into nine chapters. Chapter I is an introductory piece. Here, the author has narrated the background and objectives of the book. He briefly describes the methodology, terminology and the sources he has used for the book. He identifies the scope and limitations in the subject and outlines, though briefly, the structure of the book. Chapter II deals with the international legal framework on children's rights and justice for children. This chapter is intended to act as a background to the other chapters. Chapter III deals with children in conflict with the law under the Children Act 1974. Chapter IV deals with arrest, bail and pre-trial detention. Here, the author discusses the discretionary power of the police to arrest children for minor offences and the relevant procedures for first-time offenders. Chapter V deals with the jurisdiction of the court. The author has broadly divided the chapter into two parts. Part one deals with jurisdiction over the person, and part two deals with jurisdiction over the offence. Chapter VI deals with trial procedures. The author fully explains the procedures that need to be followed before the Juvenile Courts. Chapter VII deals with sentencing by the Juvenile Courts. The author explains in detail the process and duties of the Court in disposing a case under the Children Act 1974. Chapter VIII deals with the custody and detention. The author discusses the procedures for and conditions of custody and detention of offenders and the possibility of release as well as the custody of victims and children in need of care and protection. The final chapter, Chapter IX, is the conclusion. Here the author summarises the main principles of the regime for children under the Children Act and outlines the issues that need to be addressed to move towards a justice delivery system for children in Bangladesh.
Justice M Imman Ali was born in Bangladesh but brought up and educated in the United Kingdom; he spent his childhood and went to school in England, completed his BA (Hons) in Law at the University of Trent in Newcastle, UK. He took an LLM at the University of Leicester, UK. He was called to the English Bar in July 1978 by the Honourable Society of Inner Temple. Justice M Imman Ali has been enrolled with the Bangladesh Bar Council as an advocate since 1979. He was then enrolled as an advocate of the High Court Division of the Supreme Court in May 1982 and the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court in August 1995. He served as a Deputy Attorney General of Bangladesh before he was elevated to the High Court as an Additional Judge on February 22, 2001. On February 22, 2003, he was confirmed as a judge of the High Court Division. Justice M Imman Ali was elevated to the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on February 23, 2011.
Justice M Imman Ali participated in many international workshops, seminars, conferences, symposiums and training programmes held in South Korea, Indonesia and the Czech Republic in 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000; India in 2003; Malaysia and New Zealand in 2008; United Kingdom and Malawi in 2009; Turks and Caicos Islands in 2009; Australia in 2010; New Delhi in 2011; and Bangkok, the USA, Scotland, Bulgaria and Kyrgyzstan in 2012. He also took part in the training of judges and prosecutors of Armenia on juvenile justice in December 2012. He has visited many other countries for different purposes. Domestically, Justice M Imman Ali has acted as a resource person for the training of judges, lawyers, police officers and social welfare officers under the auspices of the Judicial Administration Training Institute (JATI) and Legal Education & Training Institute (LETI).
During his practice in England and at the Bar in Bangladesh, Justice M Imman Ali came into contact with vulnerable women and children who were subjected to harsh treatment by the state, and society in general. As a result, he developed a keen interest in the rights of women and children, particularly in how they were treated within the justice system. Since his elevation to the High Court of Bangladesh in February 2001, he has dealt with many cases concerning human rights, and the rights of women and children in particular. Notable among his judgements is the case of State V Roushan Mondol & Hashem, reported in 59 DLR 72, delivered in 2006, which is considered as a landmark judgment in the area of justice for children in Bangladesh. Since then, he has delivered many other judgements in the field of justice for children in his role as the Presiding Judge of the High Court Division. The author has thus acquired a wide knowledge in the realm of justice for children not only through the cases that he has dealt with, but also by way of the numerous seminars, symposiums, workshops and conferences which he has attended nationally and internationally.
The book has attempted to cover a wide range of issues simultaneously. In that sense, it may be said that the book is not a detailed, in-depth study of any particular issue based on empirical data with a conventional research methodology. The book is not solely an 'academic' and conventional one, the kind we frequently come across, nor is it a book resulting from a doctoral or post-doctoral thesis. Rather, it is a book resulting from the author's vast legal and judicial experience, and the particular expertise he has developed from his legal and judicial career. In that sense, the book is an in-depth guide, based on primary and secondary sources, on the juvenile justice and the justice delivery system for children in Bangladesh. In the author's own words: "So, I started with the intention of putting together a compilation of cases but ended up writing a book. However, I do not really consider it a 'book' but rather a guide to the Children Act 1974, the Children Rules, 1976 and the relevant case-law for professionals dealing with children."
The author is currently a sitting judge of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh. When he wrote the book, he was a sitting judge of the High Court Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh. No matter which country they are in, the judges of the apex court normally lead an extremely busy life. They are required to hear lengthy cases, go through voluminous bundles of papers, and then they have to take up the arduous work of writing lengthy judgements, utilising their wealth of wisdom and judicial analytical power. While judges in developed countries enjoy the support of sophisticated resources, this is not the case in developing or third world countries. There the judges work extremely hard in an environment with limited resources. Given this environment and background, Justice M Imman Ali has taken an admirable step in writing the book containing 609 pages. It is, no doubt, an outstanding contribution towards the legal system of Bangladesh in general, and justice delivery system for children in the country in particular.
The judges voluntarily lead a self-restricted life. They do not openly come into public life, and neither do they express their opinion in public. They avoid all sorts of controversy. Books are essentially the opinions of the authors. We all know that the opinions can be differed with. The author seems to be well aware of this and acknowledges certain constraints. He says in the preface, "Being a sitting judge, I understand that there are certain constraints on writing 'books' on law and expressing opinions, since the very same may be quoted in Courts in support of any argument. Being conscious of these constraints, I have quoted copiously from judgements of the High Court Division and Appellate Division as well some relevant decisions from other jurisdictions."
The book is a distinct one in the sense that it is not of a usual descriptive kind on law - the type, in different forms and styles, we normally find in the market. It is, rather, a unique type of book, based on comparative analysis and experience and is derived from primary and secondary sources, in which the author has assimilated all relevant national and international instruments for justice delivery system for children.
The reviewer has attended a book launching ceremony of the author's book in London around a couple of years ago organised by Penal Reform International. Justice M Imman Ali gave a short presentation on his book. The chair of the programme was so impressed by the quality of the presentation that she later commented, "I was so impressed, if he was not a judge I would have invited him to the BBC for in-depth discussion."
Compiling a book consisting of 609 pages is not an easy task. It is, no doubt, a very hard and lengthy job, which the author had, despite his extremely busy judicial responsibilities, performed with confidence and passion. The book will, to a great extent, help readers understand juvenile justice and the justice delivery system for children in Bangladesh. It will be an invaluable asset for the judges, legal practitioners and law enforcement agencies.
Barrister Nazir Ahmed is a
UK-based legal expert, analyst,
writer and columnist.
ahmedlaw2002@yaho.co.uk
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Towards a justice delivery system for children in Bangladesh
A guide and case law on children in conflict
with the law
by Justice M Imman Ali
Published by unicef; pages 609
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