September 26, 2005	Monday	Sha'aban 21, 1426

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LAHORE, Sept 25: Assisting the poor in the fulfilment of the responsibility of the marriage of their daughters is the religious and social obligation of the rich. Punjab Governor Khalid Maqbool said this while speaking at the mass wedding ceremony of 100 Muslim and Christian couples at the Fortress Stadium here on Sunday.

The governor said that daughters were considered a collective responsibility in an Islamic society. It gave equal importance to daughters of the rich and the poor.

He said the Islamic tradition of giving good treatment to the children and respect to women was older than the traditions of any civilized society in the world.

The representation of women in national and provincial assemblies, he said, had been raised from less than two per cent to more than 20 per cent during the past six years and 24,500 women union councillors had been elected through direct vote.

An independent woman chamber of commerce had also been established and the number of women availing credit facilities from the First Women Bank and the Khushhali Bank had increased manifold.

He said the Punjab government had not only made the education of the girls free but was also providing them free books and a stipend of Rs200 per month to the parents for sending their daughters to primary schools in far-flung areas. Society was helping the parents with limited means in getting their daughters married.

The governor said it was good that our new generation was more sensible than its older one and all the brides participating in the mass wedding ceremony had gone through the screening for hepatitis and thalassaemia voluntarily. It had, therefore, become necessary to promulgate a law for making blood screening before marriage mandatory.

He said those advising the women to get divorce and raise voice against their parents in the name of liberty in New York wanted to destroy our social fabric.

“We cannot accept such social values of the west. We have given the women their due status in the politics and economy but sanctity of our homes and religion is more important for us. We would progress by adhering to social and moral values of Islam instead of following the agenda of foreign countries”, he said.

The governor also distributed gifts among 88 Muslim and 12 Christian couples participating in the mass wedding ceremony.

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