ISLAMABAD: The chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Law and Justice said there should be criteria for people eligible to become the federal ombudsperson for protection against harassment of women at the workplace.

Senator Javed Abbasi remarked during a committee meeting on Wednesday that it was strange that chairs of various departments were appointed on basis of “good reputations”, which he said was not acceptable.

“A person can have a good reputation for me but he might not have a good reputation according to the views of some other person,” he added.

Federal Ombudsman Secretariat for Protection Against Harassment of Women at the Workplace (FOSPAH) Secretary Agha Ali Abbas had, earlier in the meeting, informed senators that according to the rules a judge or an individual with legislative experience can be appointed head of the secretariat.

He said similar organisations have similar laws, which say that a judge or well reputed individual can head the organisation.

Mr Abbas said the current ombudsperson, Kashmala Tariq, has been appointed for a four year period.

He said FOSPAH does not have suo motu powers and only acts on complaints filed with the secretariat. Around 400 complaints have been filed since FOSPAH was set up, of which 300 cases have been disposed of.

“We have contacted as many as 400 organisations and institutions and have advised them in writing to establish in house committees to deal with complaints of harassment at their organisations.

“Around 100 organisations have given a positive response; even now, cases have been increasing such as now we are receiving 50 complaints per month. We decide cases within 60 days,” he said.

Senator Ayesha Raza Farooq said the FOSPAH should have suo motu power, just as other commissions do.

“We live in a society in which women cannot lodge complaints with such bodies. So the secretariat should take notices and after hearing the cases it should punish the culprits,” she said.

The committee suggested that the secretariat provide a detailed presentation on the nature of its cases and how they were disposed of.

Law and Justice Commission should be vibrant

The committee also discussed the need to make the Law and Justice Commission more vibrant and dynamic to review statutes and laws and efficiently achieve objectives.

Senators said there was a disconnect between parliament and the commission, for which measures have to be taken. They recommended that the commission’s reports should be laid before parliament instead of being presented to the government so that parliament is able to decide on legislation on matters highlighted in the reports.

Commission Secretary Dr Mohammad Raheem said 138 reports have been approved so far, of which 39 have been implemented, 75 have not been implemented and the rest have been partially implemented.

Members said the commission has a large mandate but the high number of unimplemented reports reflects the gaps in the existing procedure. They decided to make a subcommittee led by Senator Raza Rabbani to formulate recommendations to bridge the gap and make the commission more vibrant.

Published in Dawn, August 9th, 2018