HARIPUR, March 23: The district government has banned women telephone operators in the district and directed the public call offices to relieve female operators forthwith ‘in public interest’, it is learnt. The decision to this effect was taken by the Criminal Justice Coordination Committee (CJCC) in December 2004 in the light of certain complaints from public and police. The decision was implemented by the police last week. The CJCC, according to an administrative order issued by the District Coordination Officer on Dec 17, 2004, banned hiring women operators and asked the district police officer to ensure compliance with the directive.

According to the letter, “the PCO is a public place. A lot of complaints from general public are pouring in that employment of female operators at PCOs is creating immoral activities. This trend is required to be curbed.”

Therefore, all the PCO-owners “are hereby barred not to appoint any female public call operator at their PCOs. Those already employed should be removed forthwith in public interest”.

Commenting on the decision, a female telephone operator said she was the only breadwinner in her family of five and was jobless ever since she was sacked.

Ms Riffat, another operator, also criticized the ban. She said she used to earn Rs1,500 a month but after the ban she had lost the source of income and badly needed some other job.

In reply to a question, she said there were several industrial units at Hattar which offered jobs to women but wages they offered were negligible.

Ms Riffat said if the administration had reports about immoral activities at the PCOs, it should have picked up the people at fault instead of depriving all women of their right to earn their livelihood.

DPO Raja Naseer Khan said police had received complaints regarding the operators’ involvement in immoral activities.

The provincial secretary of the Pakistan Democratic Party, Javed Qureshi, termed the ban a violation of Articles 18 and 34 of the constitutions.