ISLAMABAD: The Federal Ombudsperson for Protection of Women Against Harassment (FOSPAH) at Workplace Fauzia Viqar during her visit to Central Jail Kot Lakhpat Lahore found no evidence of physical torture or sexual harassment in post-May 9 context, said a statement released to the media here on Tuesday.

She interviewed 21 women prisoners arrested in connection with May 9 incidents to inquire about any kind of harassment.

The prisoners denied the media reports of sexual abuse and sexual or other kind of harassment by police or prison staff.

They, however, reported arrests by male police officers in presence of policewmen, unnecessary dragging during late night raids, arrest without warrants and restricted access to lawyers in prison.

They also reported derogatory remarks and questioning of women’s political activists, which amounts to gender stereotyping and insensitivity by police officials which is against constitutional provisions for women’s full participation in public life.

Women prisoners expressed satisfaction over the conditions and facilities in prison. Specifically, those arrested after May 9 incidents had no complaints either of maltreatment, abuse or disrespect by prison staff. Assessment, however, revealed poor complaint management system within the prison, compromising impartiality and effectiveness.

Women prisoners were also not adequately informed about their rights or the Pakistan Prison Rules and complained of inadequate sanitation conditions.

The Federal Ombudsperson for Protection of Women Against Harassment at Workplace is an autonomous body dedicated to safeguarding the rights and dignity of women.

The organisation conducts investigations, issues orders, and imposes penalties for violations of laws against harassment and discrimination. The assessment aimed to identify any instances of harassment, mistreatment, or abuse faced by women prisoners, during their arrest, police custody, and imprisonment.

The federal ombudsperson met IG Police and IG Prisons Punjab to assess female arrest and detention procedures and conditions. IG Police apprised the ombudsperson of police mechanisms such as women complaint centers, Tahaffauz Markaz and protection centres that provide assistance to female victims of violence, disabled and the transgender persons.

IG Prisons provided comprehensive information about treatment and facilities for women prisoners including separate buildings (within the prison), dedicated female staff, living conditions, skills development, cameras only at the entrance and, the complaint handling mechanism which is centrally located at the IG office.

Ombudsperson has presented a set of recommendations to resolve the identified issues in light of these findings.

These include ensuring that female officials carry out arrests of women, expediting access to legal counsel where procedures permit and providing access to legal counsel for women who cannot afford it, setting up efficient complaint-handling procedures in both the police and prison systems, providing access to Prisons Rules, and, putting in place gender-sensitive training programmes for police and prison staff.

Published in Dawn, July 5th, 2023