KARACHI, Jan 8: The government is committed to introducing women-friendly laws and it is also contemplating to make anti-women practices, including that of honour killing, a non-compoundable offence.

This was stated by State Minister and Senator Anisa Zeb Tahirkheli during a meeting here on Monday held to exchange ideas with media persons and civil society representatives on the draft Criminal Law Amendment Bill 2006, submitted at the National Assembly Secretariat on December 31, 2006.

Senator Anisa Zeb Tahirkheli said PML-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, in close consultation with his party members and coalition partners, had not only submitted but had also played a key role in preparing the draft bill focussing on the `Prevention of Anti-Women Practices’.

She said it mainly comprised amendments as well as the needed augmentation to the Criminal Procedure Code and to the Pakistan Penal Code.

The first change, she said, was in Section 310 of the Pakistan Penal Code under which practices such as Vani, Swara and Badal-az-Sulah, turning women as a mode of transaction under the cited practices, would be enumerated as an offence punishable for three years with fine.

Though facilitator or perpetrators of forced marriages were already being countered under the Women Protection Bill, through the proposed amendments individuals indulging in the cited practices would particularly be tried under the law and could be sentenced for their crime in accordance with the state law. Under the proposed bill this had been more specifically defined and elaborated, Ms Tahirkheli said.

She said it was for the first time that a strong political will exists in the country to actually empower women and the PML-Q government would not succumb to any pressure in its efforts to introduce necessary amendments and even do away with laws found anti-women.

Referring to the subsequent aspects of the `Prevention of Anti-Women Practices’, she said a new chapter had been added to the Pakistan Penal Code (Chapter XX-A) - Offence Against Women. The chapter with five different sections would counter practices depriving women of their right to inheritance and property.

Under Section 498-A those depriving women of their rightful share and rights could be tried under the law and sentenced for up to seven years imprisonment.

Women have to be given their share under all conditions and women themselves also could not forego their due rights granted under the religion as well as the law of the state.

The minister said Section 498-D (Chapter XX) would be another important piece of legislation under which a husband accusing his wife under `Qazf’ would now be required to prove it.

In case the wife denied the allegation and the husband failed to prove his accusation, the court could arbitrarily dissolve the nikah and grant khula as per the wife’s request — besides penalising the husband.—APP