KARACHI: The Sindh government’s Human Rights Department has launched the Legal Aid and Human Rights Complaints Portals to provide free legal aid to marginalised individuals who are victims of human rights violations.

The primary objective of these portals is to integrate complaints and enhance the overall responsiveness to human rights violations.

Speaking at the launch ceremony of the complaints portals, Human Rights Secretary Tahseen Fatima highlighted the provincial government’s commitment to addressing the issues faced by the deserving, poor, and needy.

“We have worked hard to make these portals efficient and aim to ensure accountability and transparency,” she stated. Ms Fatima encouraged the general public to utilise and popularise these services.

Sindh Human Rights Commission chairman Iqbal Detho emphasised Sindh’s unique position in having an independent Human Rights Commission, unlike other provinces.

“The Commission has the authority to take suo moto action against fundamental rights violations. We are working to mainstream legal aid mechanisms, with the Sindh government providing Rs. 100 million for legal aid to the needy and poor,” he added.

Mr Detho also mentioned the Commission’s process of receiving complaints, investigating, and submitting recommendations to the concerned departments.

Jameel Hussain Junejo, Executive Coordinator of the Treaty Implementation Cell, explained that this initiative aims to centralise all complaint mechanisms across various organisations in the province. Shehla Qureshi, Assistant Superintendent of Police, noted that the Sindh Police have their own complaint mechanism, with the Police Complaint Centre receiving 8,433 cases between 2020 and 2024.

Bisma Memon and Shahid Abro of the Human Rights Department further elaborated on the functionality and efficiency of the new portals.

Published in Dawn, July 21st, 2024