KARACHI, Oct 3: Speakers at a seminar on Thursday underlined the need to increase awareness about women’s problems and eliminate the laws discriminatory to them in the country.

They were speaking at a workshop on the “Promotion of Women’s Right,” organised by the Inter Press Communication (IPC) in collaboration with UNICEF and the Department of Mass Communications (MCD), University of Karachi at the Arts Auditorium of the University.

Dean Faculty of Arts, Abuzar Wajdi, presided over the function. The main speakers of the plenary session were Chairperson MCD Prof Shahida Kazi, Director of Centre of Excellence, Women Studies Centre, Dr Khalida Ghaus, founder member of the Women Action Forum Shahla Zia and IPC President Sheen Farrukh. A large number MCD students also attended the workshop.

Speaking on the occasion, Abuzar Wajdi said women in the country were largely deprived of their rights. He stressed that they must emerge as agents of change at all levels —”right from the family to the global level”.

“There is a need to redefine the role of women in the new perspective,” he observed underscoring also the need to create a conducive environment for women work force at work places.

Prof Shahida Kazi in her paper “Women in Power and Decision-making,” said women were lagging behind in every field, holding poor legal status. They were denied economic empowerment.

“They are discriminated against in all fields,” she said reminding at the same time that despite their social and economic backwardness, women in the Third World had succeeded to reach the top level in governments.

The speaker cited instances of Mrs Bandranaike, Indira Gandhi, Khalida Zia, Hasina Wajid and Chadrika Kumaratunga, who were democratically elected as prime ministers of their respective countries and ruled very effectively. Dr Kazi traced the history of women rights in the world and the subcontinent, mentioning that women got the right to vote in 1921 in certain parts of India, which was extended all over India by 1928.

She said that though many women took part in the struggle for Pakistan however, most of them belonged to the established political families and their husbands, fathers, brothers or other male relatives were already in politics.

Dr Khalida Ghaus spoke of the “Institutional Mechanism for the Advancement of Women.” and the National Policy for Advancement and Empowerment of Women announced on May 8, 2002.

She said that though under the National Plan of Action, it was suggested that the Ministry of Women Development would be strengthened, institutional arrangements at the provincial and district levels were inadequate.

She observed that there appeared to be a mere change of departments; earlier women affairs were being dealt with by the ministry of social welfare and now the responsibility had been reposed with the department of population welfare.

Ms Shehla Zia in her paper “Women and Law,” discussed a wide range of discriminatory laws, including the Hudood, Qisas and Diyat ordinances, introduced during the period of Ziaul Haq.

She said the ordinances pushed back the status of women, adding that even under the personal laws women were discriminated.

In her paper “Significance of CEDAW”, Ms Sheen Farrukh said that Pakistan had ratified the Convention on Elimination of All forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and had prepared a national plan for action, but the plan had yet to be put into action.

She urged the students of Mass Communications to adopt a positive attitude towards women.—APP