Measures to provide relief to women highlighted: Seminar on rights
By Our Staff Reporter
KARACHI, April 17: Speakers at a seminar on Saturday said that the Constitution and religion guaranteed many rights to women, but they were not getting the rights owing to socio-cultural traditions prevailing in this society.
The seminar on Social Audit on Abuse Against Women was organized jointly by the Sindh Women Development Department and an NGO, Community Information, Empowerment and Training (CIET).
Adviser to the Prime Minister on Women Development Nilofar Bakhtiar, Sindh Minister for Women Development Dr Saeeda Malik, CIET chief Dr Anne Cockcroft, Ms Farzana Saleem were among those who spoke at the seminar which was conducted by Dr Khalid Umer.
The speakers said that the government was aware of the fact that women were being discriminated upon and denied their due rights. Therefore, they suggested, specific steps were being taken so that the problems could be resolved on a priority basis.
Mentioning that the government was sincere in promoting the cause of women's rights, the speakers pointed out that for the first time in the country's history, a 33 per cent quota had been fixed for women in the local bodies whereas the quota for reserved seats in the parliament had also been increased.
They said that a highest ever number - eleven - of women ministers had been inducted in the federal and provincial governments. They claimed that this much women representation had no parallel, even in the western democracies.
The participants of the seminar were told that the government had created a separate ministry for women, whereas in the past, the subject had been part of some other ministry. Now the ministry could devote full time to formulating laws and execute women welfare projects aimed at progress and protection.
The speakers pointed out that the government was planning establishment of handicraft display centres at district level to facilitate exhibition of products crafted by women artisans.
They said that majority of the women artisans lived in rural areas where middlemen were offering a meagre amount as price of their strenuous work. These middlemen, they said, earn a high profit by selling the handicrafts at much higher prices.
These centres would be operated on a 'no profit, no loss' basis. While the women artisans would be getting comparatively better prices, the customers would also be getting the products at reasonable rates, they maintained.
The speakers, quoting a survey report, informed the participants that around 56 per cent of men considered it their right to beat up women of their family. What was alarming was that a vast majority of the women subjected to beating, abuse and victimization considered it 'their fate' and did not even raise their voice against it owing to which the culprits could not be punished.
They stressed the need for concerted efforts to bring about a changed in such a mindset so that women could be protected from victimization by men. They also emphasized that women should be encouraged to raise their voice against injustice and violation or deprivation of their due rights.
They speakers were of the view that if the issue was pushed under the rug, it could never be sort out. The issue could be resolved only when it was taken up effectively and discussed widely, they added.
The seminar was informed that a women complaint centre had been set up within the Artillery Maidan police station which women could visit without any fear to register their complaints and seek relief.
The speakers pointed out that lawyers and representatives of various NGOs remained present at the complaint centre to ensure that complainants did not face any difficulty and were provided all possible assistance they needed.
