Day: October 11, 2007

ISLAMABAD – Chairman National Engineering & Scientific Commission Dr Samar Mubarakmand (NI, HI, SI) has stressed the women folk to come forward and empower them by acquiring knowledge, professional competence and following the great values of Islam and urged them to play their due role for the progress and development of the country.

While addressing as chief guest on the eve of Iftar dinner hosted by Women’s Institute of Science & Humanities (WISH), Islamabad he said that women are fifty per cent of our population and this chunk of society can equally contribute for progress of the country if they are properly educated and well trained.

He said this folk should not wait to be empowered by men rather they should take initiatives by acquiring knowledge and entering into professional lives so that they could attain the much needed confidence and economic independence.
Dr Samar said that there is no need to get despondent as our scientific community has achieved countless milestones for which our country stands high in the comity of nations. “I can see very bright and excellent future of Pakistan as we have no dearth of talent and passion for hard work in the present lot of students,” he envisaged.

Chairman NESCOM said that it is easy to find faults and
lacunas in the society but more important is to solve those problems and to lead the country towards the path of progress and prosperity.

Eulogising the contributions of Scientists & Engineers he said we have been able to develop nuclear and missile technology indigenously in a very short span of time, adding that, this was made possible because of the students of yesterears.

And now whole world looks towards us enviably as now we have also attained the most sophisticated and advanced cruise missile technology.

Further motivating the participants he said that this thousand mile journey was started with the handful of scientists and engineers who with their sheer hard work, dedication and commitment made the country’s defence impregnable and now by the grace of God we, at NESCOM alone, have more than 16,000 scientists and engineers at our strength.

He said that we the Pakistanis are a God-gifted nation and are the finest race of the region. We have been endowed with immense talent and potential. “The only thing we need is the proper guidance and environment and we can become the world beaters”.

He also quoted the verse of Allama Iqbal in which Allama says that the land of this country is not infertile. In this verse Iqbal refers land with the human intellect and says if we exploit our hidden potential and discover our inner faculties we can work wonders.

He said that it is the very fact that it is the man and not money or material who makes the nation great and stronger. He urged the students to emulate their role models of the past by following the principles of hardwork, honesty devotion and team work.

Source: The Nation

Date:10/12/2007

KARACHI, Oct 11: Despite a gender sensitisation policy notified by the Sindh police early this year, under which women are to be encouraged to join the police force and policewomen are to be posted to field assignments, women are currently being offered limited opportunities and are, in fact, often given the derogatory label of being ‘soft-job seekers’, Dawn has learnt.

Investigations reveal that their perceived inefficiency is directly linked to their insignificant role in investigations, slow promotions and the lack of support provided by the police department.

There are currently no female investigation officers in any high-profile case. Yet the factors that have impeded their progress over the years include gender discrimination, the thana culture, the perceived inefficiency of female police officers and, above all, the government’s failure to create an environment conducive for equal opportunity.

This is evidenced in the fact that despite a severe shortage of staff, there has been no major induction of female recruits in recent years.

Against the 1,051 posts currently sanctioned for women, there are only 214 policewomen in Karachi – seven DSPs, 20 inspectors, 23 sub-inspectors, 40 ASIs, 10 head constables and 114 constables. By contrast, policemen number at about 29,000 in the city. While men not only outnumber women in recruitment, they also occupy nearly all the operational and administrative posts, both major and minor. It is no wonder, then, that the policewomen complain that they have no voice.

The female staff of the police department are mainly assigned tasks related to security or when raids are conducted. While policemen say that the women are themselves responsible for their glaring lack of involvement in investigations, policewomen lay the blame on their superiors and maintain that they are not assigned any investigation work.

Passed over for promotions, facilities

“Their attitude is always discouraging,” complained an ASI. “For women who are as qualified as their male colleagues, it is extremely frustrating to be restricted to menial tasks. Take the example of the women’s police station where, until some years ago, policewomen used to investigate cases. Why has it now been reduced to merely a lockup for women accused in some crime?”

The ASI conceded, however, that many low-ranking policewomen do not go to the police stations at all and remain on call for when their services are required.

This lackadaisical approach is explained to some extent by the fact that most of the policewomen contacted by Dawn complained that the attitude shown by policemen tends to be offensive. They also strongly criticised the fact that women are not provided the same facilities as their male colleagues, particularly in terms of transport.

“The lack of transport facilities are a major hindrance in terms of our efficiency,” complained one officer, pointing out that official motorbikes are routinely allotted to men.

“We have to travel on the buses even for official work,” said another disgruntled policewoman. “If the navy or the army can facilitate their female staff members, why can’t the police?”

A number of policewomen also raised the issue of promotions, saying that they were discriminated against and the separate women’s police cadre had become a hurdle rather than a privilege.

No woman has ever been appointed to the ASP rank in Sindh, though there is one direct appointee in the Punjab who entered through the public service commission exam. The seven female DSPs currently working in Karachi were promoted to the rank in 1998 through a court order – they joined the police force in 1978 as inspectors and remained at this rank until they filed a case pleading that they should be promoted in the same manner as their male colleagues.

“There were 14 of us, most of whom had masters’ degrees or were law graduates,” said a cop who was amongst the women promoted in 1998. “Seven of us were promoted and the rest are still inspectors. Although we did get our promotions, they considered our services from the 1990s instead of 1978. The case got a lot of publicity in the media.”

However, the DSP believes that women are not sidelined in investigations but in fact, the policewomen are themselves reluctant to perform such demanding tasks.

‘Extraordinary steps are required’

Against the background of these long-standing problems, the Sindh Police notified a gender sensitisation policy early this year as part of the government’s policy action while seeking funding worth $350 million for reforms of the justice sector under the Access to Justice Programme. Two of the important implementation elements are to encourage women to join the police force and to post female police officers to field assignments.

In the pursuance of this policy, IG Ziaul Hasan issued a couple of months ago a notification abolishing the fixed quota for women. In this context, assistant inspector general of the police, Dost Ali Ghulam Haider, told Dawn that the Sindh Police now offers equal opportunities to both genders and women can apply for any position. However, he commented, “policewomen are not currently working to their optimum level. They should play a more active role in day to day policing and press for the rights that are due to them. Some of them have been sidelined over the years.”

In terms of women’s role in investigations, Mr Haider said that policewomen are normally discouraged in this regard and they also tend to avoid the job. “Policing is a 24-hour job, underpaid and high-risk,” he said. “Few women opt for it and those who do are reluctant to get involved in investigations since it involves a lot of stress and leg-work: making arrests, producing the accused persons in court and at various forums during the course of the investigation, and subsequently attending court on every hearing scheduled.”

Source: Dawn

Date:10/12/2007

DESPITE a Sindh High Court ruling in 2004 banning jirgas, they continue to take place, often under the patronage of elected representatives. Many jirgas are known to set up a parallel system of justice which often runs counter to the law of the land. They have handed down death sentences in a cases that a court of law would handle differently.

Such utter contempt for laws help jirgas fuel barbaric customs because people feel they can get away with murder, especially those committed in the name of honour. This shows that laws – no matter how well intentioned –alone cannot bring about a change. It is important that laws designed to root out social evils are firmly implemented if the wrongdoers are to be deterred.

Moreover, the legal approach must be supported by on-going awareness campaigns on social ills and customs.
It is heartening that some people are now standing up to the customs that treat women like commodities and use them as compensation for excesses committed by men. There is the practice of karanh-ji-chattai, which is a fine imposed on a person for his/her involvement in karo-kari, which in itself is a crime.

This practice has come into the limelight because the SHC in Larkana is hearing a petition on a jirga that was convened in Thull and attended by influential men who ordered the petitioner to hand over his 14-year-old daughter to settle an honour killing that took place over 20 years ago. This is preposterous and one must lend all support to the petitioner who has courageously stood up to the influential men who threatened him and his family with dire consequences if he went to the police.

It is now a matter for the courts to decide but one can only hope that justice is seen as being done.It is always difficult to understand why innocent women have to pay for crimes they have nothing to do with. One can understand, though by no means condone, that the ‘influential’ men like elected representatives who participate in jirgas do so in order to hold on to their power and influence.

But it is incredulous for the higher ups in the parties they represent to turn a blind eye to such behaviour. But unfortunately this is what has been happening all long. If political parties are sincere about bringing about a change, they must first start with changes in-house and induct only those in their cadres who represent party policy in letter and spirit. Civil society also has a role to play.

It must step forward and demand the implementation of the ban on the jirga. Much of the problem would be resolved if women were to be accorded the status that is their right.

Source: Dawn

Date:10/11/2007