February 16, 2023

Man arrested for raping 11-year-old girl

Rawalpindi: Police on Wednesday claimed to have arrested a suspect for allegedly raping an 11-year-old girl in the Saddar Wah Police Station area.

According to the police spokesman, Saddar Wah police on the application of the victim’s father registered a case last week and started an investigation. The police team under the supervision of Superintendent of Police, Potohar Muhammad Waqas Khan utilising modern technology and working with human intelligence managed to net the suspect who had escaped after the offense, the spokesman said. Rawalpindi Police were implementing the zero-tolerance policy against torture and rape, he added.

Source: The News

February 16, 2023

Girl ‘kidnapped’ in Shah Faisal Colony by online friend

A teenage girl was allegedly kidnapped in Shah Faisal Colony by a man who had befriended her while playing games with her online. Police have registered a case under the kidnapping section on a complaint filed by the girl’s father.

In the FIR, the complainant said that his daughter became a friend of a person named Abdullah through an online game. He added that she disappeared on the night of February 13.

The father claimed that Abdullah had abducted his daughter with the help of his Karachi-based relatives, and the suspect wanted to take her to Kuwait from Rawalpindi. Police said they had registered a case and initiated investigations. The investigators said they had obtained CCTV footage of the girl’s house to get help in probing the case. SHO Ali Marwat said the girl could be seen coming out of her house and then waving hands to the camera. Later, footage revealed that a man riding a motorcycle took her away.

Source: The News

February 16, 2023

Women in the police

Turbat’s first ever women’s police station, the second ever in Balochistan, recently became operational. This development follows the opening of Balochistan’s first ever women’s police station in the provincial capital Quetta. Another women’s police station in Gwadar is also in the works, with the government having planned to recruit a total of 280 new female police officers for the new stations in Turbat and Gwadar. While Pakistan is no stranger to prejudice and discrimination keeping women out of the workplace, particularly when it comes to more public-facing roles, the situation is particularly acute in some areas more than others. In Pakistan as a whole, women accounted for a paltry 1.5 per cent of the police force as recently as 2021, according to the UNODC.

The result of this chronic gender disparity is a system that fails to protect women and take their concerns seriously, with often devastating results. Take the issue of sexual assault and gender-based violence, for example. The lack of women police, judges and lawyers makes survivors of sexual assault and gendered violence more reluctant to come forward and take a stand against their accusers. Consequently, violence against women, particularly sexual violence, remains rampant as the authorities struggle to bring the perpetrators to book despite the passage of tougher punishments and more legal protections for survivors.

It is in this context that the opening of new women’s police stations in Balochistan is so important. Without actually having more women in key roles, it becomes hard to deliver on any of the promises the state makes to women through the courts and the assemblies. And this is not just the case when it comes to policing, but also applies to a whole range of fields including education and healthcare. Unfortunately, this makes achieving gender equality much more difficult. Issuing bills and edicts is one thing, but actually boosting women’s participation requires a more direct confrontation of the prejudicial attitudes holding women back. Overcoming a calcified mindset built up over generations takes time. While the women’s police station in Turbat is clearly a step in the right direction, it is only the second in the province and it has come 28 long years after the establishment of Pakistan’s first ever women’s police station in 1994. By the time we do attain equality it will be too late for too many women. One can only hope that efforts to boost female participation in policing and other fields will be expedited and we can limit the number of women whose plight will be ignored as a result.

Source: Dawn

February 16, 2023

Supreme Court (SC) told abducted daughters of Dr Mehreen Baloch recovered

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court directed the Sindh inspector general of police on Wednesday to identify those allegedly involved in the kidnapping of Dr Mehreen Baloch’s two daughters and submit a report within two weeks.

A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice Umer Ata Bandial, heard a case involving Dr Mehreen Baloch of Karachi and his father, Asif Baloch. In pursuance of the court’s last order passed on January 27, the court was informed that two daughters of Dr. Mehreen Baloch had been recovered.

The counsel for Asif Baloch, father of two girls, told the court that the girls were not recovered but had been handed over to the magistrate. Justice Athar Minanaalh said that it could be considered a recovery as they had been missing for the last five years.

During the hearing, The Sindh Police DIG told the court that, at present, both the daughters were in a shelter, adding that their mother had also met their daughters. The official informed the court that the two girls had been kept in Faisalabad, Jarawala, Lahore, and Badin, adding that their father had already taken the bail before arrest.

Chief Justice Umer Ata Bandial said that it was clear both the families were highly influential. The chief justice directed the Sindh police to inquire as to who was involved in the whole process of abduction. The chief justice further directed the police that if they felt that the arrest of the father was necessary, they should approach the appropriate forum.

Meanwhile, the chief justice lauded the efforts of the chief secretary and the whole team for the recovery of two girls, besides praising the role of the investigating agencies. Later, the court adjourned the matter for two weeks.

Source: Dawn

February 16, 2023

International moot advises women to opt for entrepreneurship

HYDERABAD: Emphasising the need for encouraging women to become entrepreneurs instead of looking for government jobs alone, speakers at a moot said they could become successful businesswomen as well.

They were speaking at a two-day international conference titled the “Women Entrepreneurship: Challenges and Opportunities” which began on Wednesday at the Sindh University (SU). Vice-Chancellor Prof (meritorious) Dr Mohammad Siddique Kalhoro chaired its inaugural session.

The VC said the university was playing its role in higher education as the number of female students getting higher education had increased over the years. He said the SU was trying to get more scholarships for girls. “We have won confidence of donors and scholarship providers are giving cash for the purpose,” he said.

He added that employment opportunities were being created through Technology Incubation Center and National Incubation Center Hyderabad established on the SU campuses.

CM’s special assistant for science & technology, Tanzila Umm-i-Habiba Qambrani, said today’s women were more powerful than men in terms of strength, courage, determination, tolerance and endurance.

Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Medical University Larkana Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Nusrat Shah said women were not considered equal in economic development and income. “Women have more complaints from men who have to redress their (women) grievances,” she said. She added that girls were seeking admissions to various disciplines more than boys in educational institutions, especially medical universities, which she said was a ‘good omen’.

She said women were reluctant to enter business or entrepreneurship; one of its reasons might be social problems created for women in society. “We just think we must get job after degree, but we don’t want to become entrepreneur. Women are confined to small businesses at home and they don’t earn much,” the VC said and lamented that women were not allowed in business due to social constraints.

She said girls should be encouraged to move towards entrepreneurship rather than looking for government jobs.

Source: Dawn