October 26, 2008	Sunday	Shawwal 26, 1429

KARACHI, Oct 25: Women from the coastal areas of Sindh took out a rally and staged a demonstration outside the press club here on Saturday to launch a campaign, titled “Hunger-free women”, with the support of several non-governmental organisations. The campaign will focus on women’s right to land ownership and food resources with the aim of alleviating poverty and averting hunger.

Waving sickles and carrying banners and placards inscribed with slogans “End poverty,” “Provide education to our children” etc, participants of the rally assembled at Fresco Chowk and marched up to the press club via Sindh Assembly road.

Led by Hina Shahid and Tahira Ali, the rally was organized by the ActionAid Pakistan in collaboration with the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF) and other partners in the cause.

The leaders demanded an equal share for peasant families in the land and agricultural produce, suggesting allotment of an eight-acre piece of cultivable land per family. They called for introduction of agrarian reforms envisaging limitation of private landholdings. They also suggested levying of agriculture tax and ensuring that peasant women benefited from the revenues.

They also demanded provision of basic necessities of life — food, clothing, housing, education, health care facilities, etc — to every citizen without any discrimination.

Sindh Assembly Speaker Nisar Ahmed Khuhru and MPA Humera Alwani also joined in the rally to express their support to the peasant women’s cause.