Day: September 8, 2012

Participants at the awareness workshop underlined that traditions and cultural norms are the root causes behind gender disparity, depriving women from political, constitutional and empowerment rights in society. They stressed the need for serious efforts to end gender inequality and to provide equal rights for women to enable them to contribute to the economic development of the country.

The day-long “Media Sensitisation Workshop on Women Issues” was organised by Aware Girl, a non-governmental organisation here at a local hotel on Friday. More than 25 participants from the print and electronic media organisations, and representatives of non-governmental organisations participated.

On the occasion, the Aware Girl, Chairperson Gulalai Islmail, Executive Director Saba Islmail, Program Director, Leema Khan and members of the organisation were present. The Chairperson, Ms Gulalai highlighted the basic aims of the awareness workshop, and said that the organisation was actively working for the empowerment of young women through advocacy and capacity building to enable them to become agents of change and empowerment in society.

The Chairperson, Gulalai Islmail delivered a comprehensive lecture on “Gender Equity and Equality”, and said that women face a number of challenges because of the lack of empowerment and adequate resources. She said that the primitive culture and traditions of society suppressed women’s legitimate and constitutional rights. Though, she said that industrialisation had played a vital role to some extent, to give due rights to women, but more was needed for their empowerment. “Gender disparity could only be removed by the provision of equal opportunities, quotas, and by empowering women in decision making,” she suggested.

Leema Khan, Program Director, in her presentation on “Women Politics, issues and the way forward”, said that women were not empowered economically and socially due to the absence of the required measures at the government level. She said that unequal distribution of resources and access to resources were the main reasons behind growing women gender disparity in society. Lack of support from elected male representatives in the parliament had led to a number of bills to be deferred in the National and provincial assemblies, she said.

Similarly, Ms Leema said that traditional, and cultural norms, and the feudal system were another great impediment for the empowerment of women, and women were not aware about their constitutional and legitimate rights, because of the low literacy rate amongst women.

Ms Leema said that the women were not contributing their share to the national economy because of domestic restrictions and other hurdles. During the group-work, the participants also stressed the need for highlighting the issues facing women in attaining their political, constitutional and legal rights. She concluded that the media should play its active role and highlight the problems of women.

Business Recorder

By: Fazal Khaliq

SWAT: A 13-year-old girl will be married off to an old man to atone for her brother’s mistake, a jirga decided here on Friday. Her brother was charged with having an extra-marital relationship with a woman.

“They want me to get married to pay for my brother’s fault, but I don’t want to marry that man. I’d rather commit suicide than get married in this way,” she told The Express Tribune before bursting into tears. Swara is a custom in the Pashtun belt where girls are forcibly married to men of rival families to settle feuds.

Sadia is not the only one upset about the jirga’s decision. Her second brother, Faheem*, said, “Our neighbours accused my elder brother of having illicit relations with a woman. He confessed and married her in court. But now her influential family and the jirga are bent on getting my sister married, which isn’t fair.”

He has sought the government’s assistance in the matter.

A representative of the jirga said that the family can either agree to the marriage or pay a compensation of Rs253,000 to the aggrieved family. Otherwise they will imprison all of them. Attaullah Jan, a local lawyer, said marrying a girl against her will is illegal, according to the family laws of Pakistan. He called upon human rights’ organisations to intervene if the government fails to do anything.

District Coordination Officer Swat Kamran Rehman said that he had directed the district police officer and the district officer revenue to initiate an inquiry into the case. He added that action will be taken against the culprits if they are found guilty.

The Express Tribune

KARACHI: For Sana, the ordeal is finally over. The court has allowed her to live with the man she married of her freewill on August 27. Since then, she had been facing threats; from her family, from her relatives and also from the police, which were acting on the criminal case registered against her husband.

Azad Khoso had married Sana, a schoolteacher in Dhabeji, after executing freewill before a Justice of the Peace against her family’s consent. Two days later, the woman’s father, Punno, registered a case with the Dhabeji police, alleging Khoso and his family members of kidnapping his daughter, whose name was Sunita, and forcibly converting her to Islam later.

The family was involved in kidnapping Hindu girls and selling them after marriage, he alleged. Azad Khoso and his wife had gone to the court against the police authorities for harassing them in the “fake” kidnap case lodged at the Dhabeji police station. The police were harassing him and his family members and might arrest them, Khoso submitted.

On court’s order, the case investigation officer recorded the statement of Sana, who on oath said she embraced Islam of her free choice and then married Khoso on her freewill. She also denied the allegation that she was kidnapped by her husband and asked to be allowed to live with him instead of her family.

On Friday, a division bench headed by Justice Sajjad Ali Shah took up the case. After going through the sworn statement of Sana, the court granted Sana’s request to go with her husband. While disposing of the petition, the court directed the police to provide protection to the couple. The investigation officer was ordered to complete the inquiry and submit his report.

The Express Tribune

Karachi: A man who allegedly killed his wife over Karo-kari with the help of his brother-in-law was remanded in judicial custody along with his accomplice here on Friday.

Mochko police produced the suspects, Fazal Hanif and Sharif Khan, before Judicial Magistrate (West) Pir Assadullah Shah Rashidi. They were alleged to have killed Ramim, wife of Sharif Khan, by strangulating her over charges of having illicit relations when they found her talking with somebody on the cell phone.

The News

HYDERABAD: A large number of Hindu community members, including women and children, demonstrated outside the press club on Friday in protest against the abduction of a 14-year-old girl. Dr Jagdesh Kumar, Photo and Mansingh who led the protest alleged that Sunny, daughter of Rupa, was snatched from her home in Gulshan-i-Khair Mohammad on Sept 5 by Raju Shaikh.

They said that they had lodged an FIR against Raju at the Ghangra Mori police station but police had not yet made any arrest. Raju lived in Gujrati Para and worked at a private factory as a labourer, they said.

They said the girl was underage and warned if she was not recovered soon their community would broaden the protest.

They appealed to the authorities concerned and the DIG of Hyderabad police to recover the girl and take action against the abductor. Hindus were being forced to leave and their girls were being abducted to convert forcibly in the name of marriages, they said.

They urged the government to provide protection to Hindus and protect them from those who did not like to see followers of other religions in Pakistan.

SUKKUR: Activists of the Pakistan People’s Party (Shaheed Bhutto) took out a rally and observed a token hunger strike for two hours outside the Jacobabad Press Club on Friday in protest against the government’s failure to protect the Hindu community in the province. They also condemned the government for failing to arrest the killers of their leader, Mir Murtaza Bhutto.

The rally was led by PPP-SB district chief Syed Aslam Shah, Nadeem Qureshi, Haji Ahmed Ali Khoso, Abdul Latif Pechuho and Mehmooda Sikander. The protesters held a demonstration in front of the press club and raised slogans against the government.

Speaking to the protesters, the PPP-SB leaders claimed that under a conspiracy the Hindu community in Sindh was being targeted by kidnappers, robbers and killers. Hindu girls were being kidnapped and forced to convert, they alleged.

They appealed to the Hindu community not to quit their motherland and counter these elements along with their Muslim countrymen.

They urged the government to look into the problems being faced by the affected Hindu families and maintain law and order by checking the anti-social elements and providing safety, security and protection to all minorities living in Sindh. They also called for protection to traders and businessmen, especially those belonging to the Hindu community against kidnappers and extortionists.

They also called for immediate arrest of Mir Murtaza Bhutto’s killers and strongly criticised the Sindh government for its failure to make any headway in this regard over the past many years.

Dawn