08 March 2005	Tuesday	26 Muharram 1426

PESHAWAR, March 7: The NWFP chapter of the All-Pakistan Women Association has criticized the provincial MMA government for its discouraging behaviour towards women's rights associations.

Speaking at a press conference here on Monday, Ayesha Bokhari, provincial general secretary of Apwa, said that the government had discouraged Apwa's foreign donors, saying that women of the Frontier province faced no problems.

"The donors, since then, have refused to extend any help to us despite our requests," she said. Ms Bokhari said that the provincial minister for Ushr and Zakat had refused to meet an Apwa delegation which wanted to discuss problems of women residing in the shelter of Apwa.

"Once he visited our shelter house and without spending a few minutes there he asked us to arrange Islamic teachings for the women in shelter house and went away," she said.

She said recent rains had damaged the shelter house of Apwa, which housed over 80 women and children. "We are in a dire need of help to renovate the shelter house," Ms Bokhari said. She announced that Apwa, NWFP chapter, would hold election in next month.

"Young, educated and energetic women have submitted nomination papers for various offices and we hope that new body will bring positive change in the image of Apwa," she said.

Speaking on the occasion, Ms Sitara Imran, director of Apwa's shelter house, said that they had divided the shelter house in two portions to separate women from children. She said that they had started a literacy project to educate those children who were working as domestic servants. "After a course of three months these children can read newspapers easily," Ms Imran said.

"We have also started carpet-weaving project in the shelter house and inmates of the shelter house are now quite expert in carper-weaving," she said. Mrs Imran said that Apwa had established two reproductive health centres in the provincial metropolis.

She said they would launch community infrastructure programme very soon to educate women of rural areas. The programme, she said, would be named as "literate Pakistan". She said Apwa was also planning to establish the first businesswomen incubator. "We will work as a go-between between big business institutions and businesswomen of the Frontier province," she said.

She admitted that most of the people did not help them due to the poor performance of Apwa in the past. Ms Imran was very hopeful about the future of orphan children living in the shelter house. "Haroon, an Afghan boy is now studying in Saint Francis School in the fifth class and next year he will be admitted to Atchison School and College," she said.