SUKKUR, Nov 26: Speakers at a seminar have called upon political parties of the country to struggle against karo-kari and the jirga system in Sindh and to force the government as well as the parliament to pass such laws that could discourage karo-kari and bring it to an end.

Speaking at a seminar on 'Karo-Kari and Jirga System in Sindh' held at a hotel here on Friday under the auspices of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, they suggested that the judiciary should be made powerful, and other such steps should be taken that could end the 'black' tradition.

Abdul Fatah Malik alleged that Pakistan was founded by landowners, and added that subsequent governments had and were safeguarding the interests of landowners, investors and industrialists. He insisted that all social evils were the outcome of the jagirdari system, which had subjugated the nation.

Advocate Hadi Bux Bhatt asserted that people must change their hypocritical attitude and bring womenfolk at par, allowing them to take their own decisions. Professor Sarwar Saif argued that karo-kari and the jirga system were being used to eliminate opponents, and added that people had to be motivated and educated in this regard, which was the very purpose of the seminar.

Assistant seminar coordinator Mohammad Paryal Mari termed karo-kari and the jirga system cancer of the society, and alleged that feudal lords and landowners subjected innocent people to the evil as and when they pleased, and later, went on to conduct jirgas.

Madam Falak Naz said that if the jirga system had been impartial and effective, it would have minimized the crime rate, but on the contrary, crime rate was increasing. She said that women were the most affected because their families as well as the society punished them.