Children of incarcerated mothers: Prisoners without committing any crimes

January 24, 2024

DHAKA – Recently, the High Court, in response to a writ petition, asked the government to explain why laws would not be framed for the mental and psychological development of children detained with their incarcerated mothers in jails across Bangladesh. The public interest litigation came after a local daily highlighted the plight of 10-month-old Mahida, who lives with her imprisoned mother Husna Akhter in a condemned cell in Habiganj jail. Mahida is one of 304 children detained in 68 jails around the country.

Mahida shares a cramped cell, measuring 10 feet by 10 feet, with her mother and two others, has no access to a window and lives under a high-power electric light that stays on all night. The four of them survive on one bucket of water a day, and hence, there is no way for her to have clean nappies. The sufferings of Mahida point to a legal lacuna and a procedural dead end, as the regulations for children of incarcerated mothers in Bangladesh are inadequate and/or not being implemented.

Bangladesh has ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which is the primary human rights treaty outlining the civil, political, economic, social, health and cultural rights of children. CRC necessitates all signatories to take all available measures to ensure the protection of children’s rights, which ranges from formulating and implementing policies to allocating funds for advancing children’s well-being. The revelation of an astounding 304 innocent children being detained in jail, effectively suffering the same fate as a convicted offender, is in utter stark contrast with such commitment of the state.

In its preamble, Children Act, 2013 states that the premise of this law is rooted in the CRC.