Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Long struggle to secure due rights, women told (KARACHI,PAKISTAN)

Speakers at a seminar on Thursday said that the women would have to wage a long struggle for the rights which were guaranteed under the constitution and religion but not being given by the society.

The seminar, on Position of Pakistani Women in the Year 2006, was organized by the Karachi Women Peace Committee in connection with the International Women’s Day, observed on March 8.

The speakers said that misinterpretation of Quranic verses relating to women’s status and rights, and non-implementation of the relevant laws had marginalized the womenfolk in the country.

Sindh Minister for Women Development Dr Saeeda Malik told the participants that the government was doing a lot to empower women. In this regard, she pointed out that stipends were being given to young women in different trades so that they could develop their skills and enhance their earning. Crisis centres had been set up to enable women to report their grievances and seek legal aid and justice without any fear.

Justice (r) Nasir Aslam Zahid said that if the people at the helm of affairs had a desire, they could have played a positive role in enhancing the status of woman, but only lip service was being paid.

The government does announce funds, but rarely the same are released promptly. He also urged religious leaders to highlight the role and rights of women in their sermons.

Naib Nazim of Karachi Nasreen Jalil observed that women were being offered opportunities in the decision-making process. She urged women to get education to become aware of their rights and wage a struggle to achieve them if denied. She said that feudalism cast a negative influence on women’s social progress and also restricted their participation in public affairs.

Senator Dr Kauser Firdous said that though a large number of women had been given representation in the present assemblies, the bills presented by them on women’s affairs were not being given due consideration. In this context, she made mention of the bills relating to women inheritance, equal wages, employment, exploitation, etc. She said the country’s commitment to the Convention on Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women, the Beijing Plan of Action, the Millennium Development Goals and the National Plan of Action had not been honoured.

Former Nazim of Khairpur Nafeesa Shah condemned the tribal system which, she said, was one of the major hurdles in the restoration of women’s rights. She also deplored attitude of police towards womenfolk. “Women are fully aware of their rights and they are also in the forefront in the struggle for democracy, movement against karo-kari, etc.,” she noted, and pointed out that despite existence of the patriarchal system in her constituency, she had succeeded in bringing about many changes during her tenure as nazim of the district.

Dr Qurratulain Bakhtiari, who executes a women training programme in rural areas of Balochistan, said that neither she nor her colleagues had been facing harassment from the local sardars. She said that here were over 500 students engaged in various kinds of development activities in her institution.

A leading gynaecologist Sadiqa Jafri said that though the awareness regarding women’s issues had increased over the years, the commitments made by the authorities concerned had not been kept.

Nargis Rehman of the Karachi Women Peace Committee said that there was a strong opposition to the Hudood Ordinance and demands for effective laws to protect women’s rights. However, she said, the traditional mindset of the society and the general apathy on the part of public appeared to be major hurdles

source:www.dawn.com

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