Issue No. 31 January-March 2010

Founded by Shahla Zia Patron-in-Chief: Nigar Ahmad

By Mahnaz Rahman

Time flies like a swift bird and leaves only hazyevents in its wake. However, some special eventsalways appear clearly no matter how much the sandsof time try to cover them. It was 1975, while work-ing for daily Mussawat, I came to know that UN haddeclared 1975 as year of women and a women's con-ference was going to be held in Mexico City. Thisfirst world conference on women promoted thevision of "equality, development and peace". Iremember Ms. Nusrat Bhutto had led the delegationof Pakistani women in that conference. Then therewas that landmark event of 4th world conference onwomen in Beijing in 1995, where Pakistan was rep-resented by the then prime minister MohtarmaBenazir Bhutto (who left us in utter shock on 27December 2007). Pakistani women's rights groupsand activists played a major role in preparing thenational report for the Beijing conference. There wasBeijing + 5 review in 2000 (I remember my mentorand Aurat Foundation's co-founder Shahla Zia partic-ipated in the event among others) at the UN; andBeijing +10 review, five year later in 2005.

And now after 15 years of the adoption of BeijingPlatform for Action, we the human rights andwomen's rights activists of Pakistan were attendingthe 54th session of the United Nation's Commissionon the Status of Women (CSW). Ms. Anis Haroon,

chairperson of the National Commission on theStatus of Women was leading the government ofPakistan's delegation, which included prominentwomen parliamentarians Ms. Shazia Marri, Ms.Uzma Bukhari and Amna Khan, officials of theMinistry of Women's Development and members ofthe NCSW.

The NGO delegation from Pakistan comprised repre-sentatives from Aurat Foundation (Naeem Mirza &Mahnaz Rahman), Shirkat Gah (Khawar Mumtaz,

Naureen Tawakkal, Sara Ali), ASR (Nighat SaeedKhan), Rozan (Shabana Arif), Sungi (Arifa Mazhar),Khowendo Kor (Maryam Bibi), Bargad (SabeehaShaheen) and Church of Pakistan (Ayra Inderyas).Two members of Citizens' Action Committees ofAurat Foundation, Ms. Amar Sindhu from Hyderabadand Ms. Nigar Rauf from Nowshera were also invit-ed by the Oxfam-GB to share experiences onwomen's political participation at the grassroots levelin Pakistan during this event. Mr. Naeem Mirza andmyself represented Aurat Foundation (AF) at theCSW session and the Global NGO Forum, which wasconvened on the eve of the CSW session.

The 54th CSW session 54 was a review of the imple-mentation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform forAction and the Outcome of the 23rdspecial session ofthe General Assembly (Beijing +5) as a basis for cre-ating a more comprehensive gender equality perspec-tive towards the achievement of MillenniumDevelopment Goals. It was meant to identify linkagesto advance the status of women and women's rights.

One campaign that dominated the entire 54th sessionwas the GEAR (Gender Equality ArchitectureReform) campaign which is a network of more than300 organizations all over the world. Ms. ShabanaArifa from Rozan kept tirelessly advocating and lob-bying for the GEAR campaign by holding frequent

Women of the world unite for equal rights and status54th CSW session and Global NGO Forum spell out strategies and goals for women during Beijing + 15 review

NGO activists, including from Pakistan, at the GlobalNGO Forum during B+15 review at New York.

By Maliha Zia

The Protection Against Harassment atthe Workplace Act 2010 (PAHW) wassigned by the President on 9th March2010, making harassment 'illegal' atthe workplace. This new Act, alongwith the Criminal Law (Amendment)Act 2009, which made an amendmentin Section, 509 Pakistan Penal Code,1898, criminalising sexual harassment,has effectively provided protection towomen all over from harassment in itsdifferent forms. It is a monumentaloccasion for the women's rights move-ment which has been striving for yearsto create a harassment-free work andsocial environment for women inPakistan.

While this has been a substantialmovement towards gender equality inPakistan, the society needs to focus notjust on formal equality but translatingthis into the actual, practical reality.We have been given a tool, we need to

wield it - but importantly, we need toknow how to wield it!! Where doesthe responsibility lie? It lies with theState and State departments, but it alsolies on the society to accept andembody this change.

It is necessary for each and every oneof us citizens, nationals, women's rightsactivists, human rights activists andhuman beings to work towards thisgoal. While acknowledging that a lawhas been passed, celebrating it and con-gratulating ourselves, we have to bedetermined not to leave it at that. It isessential that we educate ourselves notjust with the knowledge of the passingof the legislation but also of its con-tents, how it can be applied and how wecan use it to create the change we wishto create! Accordingly, this articlefocuses primarily on the contents of theAct and the amendment in order to firstand foremost educate ourselves on thecontent to understand the substance ofthe change being created. It then goes

on to outline the necessary next steps tobe taken in order to secure this rightand protection being given to women.

Important definitions in the PAHW

The PAHW contains a number of gooddefinitions, including a wide definitionof 'employee', which includes regularas well as contractual employeeswhether employed on daily, weekly, ormonthly or hourly basis, and includesan intern or an apprentice. The defini-tions of 'employer' states an organiza-tion, a person or body of personswhether incorporated or not, who orwhich employees in an organizationunder a contract of employment.

The definition also extends to andincludes amongst others personsresponsible for the direction, adminis-tration, management and control of themanagement; a contractor or an organ-isation of a contractor procuring labouror services of employees for another;

and office-bearers of a department of aDivision of a Federal or a Provincial orlocal authority who belong to the man-agerial, secretarial or directional cadreor categories of supervisors or agentsand those who have been notified forthis purpose in the official Gazette.

Thereby, the wide scope of the defini-tion also includes manager/supervisorsas well as middle men and office-bear-ers of Federal and Provincial depart-ments and local authorities.

Harassment is defined as 'any unwel-come sexual advance, request for sex-ual favors or other verbal or writtencommunication or physical conduct ofa sexual nature or sexually demeaningattitudes, causing interference withwork performance or creating anintimidating, hostile or offensive workenvironment, or the attempt to punishthe complainant for refusal to complyto such a request or is made a condition

Review of Protection Against Harassment at Work Place Act, 2010Continued on Page 6

Continued on next page

Address to the CSW session by Ms Anis Haroon, head of the Pakistan

delegation on pages 7. See also Editorial

2

for employment'.

The definition of 'workplace' clearlystates that it will be considered harass-ment if it takes place at the place ofwork of premises, whatever form ittakes, as well as any situations whichare linked with official work or activi-ty outside the office - thereby takingaway the necessity that the harassmenthas to take place in the workplace onlyduring work hours.

Procedures of the PAWH

There are two procedures for initiatinga complaint under this Act: through theInquiry Committee or theOmbudsman.

Inquiry Committee

An Inquiry Committee is to set upwithin thirty days of the Act beingpassed in all organizations consistingof three members, one of whom mustbe female: a senior employer, a senioremployee and a third member whocould be from the organization or co-opted from outside.

The committee will receive complaintswhich can be either, oral or written. Onreceipt, it will communicate a formalwritten receipt to the accused statingthe charges and allegations against himand require him to submit a writtendefence within seven days. If he doesnot, the Committee will proceed ex-parte. The Committee will enquire intothe charge examining documentary ororal evidence, allowing cross-exami-nation.

The Committee shall submit its find-ings to the Competent Authority (to bedesignated by the organizations) withrecommendations of penalty. TheCompetent Authority will penalize theaccused within seven days and theCommittee will continue to monitorthe situation to be satisfied that theirrecommendations subject to decision,if any of Competent Authority andAppellate Authority have been imple-mented.

In case the complainant is in traumathe organization will arrange for psy-cho-social counseling or medical treat-ment and for additional medical leave.The organization may also offer com-pensation to the complainant in case ofloss of salary or other damages.Appeals shall be made to theOmbudsman within thirty days - oruntil appointment of the Ombudsman,to the district court.

The possible penalties are stated in theAct as:

(i) Minor penalties:

(a) censure;(b) withholding, for a specificperiod, promotion or increment;

(c) stoppage, for a specific period,at an efficiency bar in the time-scale, otherwise than for unfitness tocross such bar;(d) recovery of the compensationpayable to the complainant from payor any other source of the accused;

(ii) Major penalties:

(a) reduction to a lower post ortime-scale, or to a lower stage in atime-scale;(b) compulsory retirement;(c) removal from service; and(d) dismissal from service. (e) Fine. A part of the fine can beused as compensation for the com-plainant. In case of the owner, thefine shall be payable to the com-

plainant.

One cause for major concern in thisprocedure is that the InquiryCommittee may recommend toOmbudsman for appropriate actionagainst the complainant if allegationsleveled against the accused found to befalse and made with mala fide inten-tions. This could have severe repercus-sions for the complainant in situationswhere the Committee may be biasedagainst her for any reason, includingbeing biased against very fact thatharassment at the work place has beenmade a penalized crime. A bias isalready seen in this very clause i.e. theaccused, if found guilty, is not referredto the Ombudsman but dealt with with-in the organizations, but a complainantwho makes a 'false allegation' is imme-diately dealt with more harshly and'sent' to the Ombudsman for appropri-ate treatment. If this clause was felt tobe 'necessary', the treatment shouldhave been the same i.e. within thecompany.

Ombudsman

The Federal and ProvincialGovernments are mandated to appointOmbudsman(person) at both levelswho shall have the qualifications of a

high court judge. The Governments arealso mandated to provide financial andfacilitative support to the Ombudsman.

All complainants have the option ofapproaching the Ombudsman directlywith their complaint. The Ombudsmanshall issue a written show cause noticeto the accused within three days ofreceipt of complaint. The accused shallsubmit a written defence within fivedays, failure of which allows proceed-ings to continue ex-parte. TheOmbudsman shall conduct an inquiryinto the matter according to the rulesmade under this Act and conduct pro-ceedings as the Ombudsman deemsproper. The Ombudsman may requireany office or member of the organiza-tion for purposes of investigation, to

furnish any information, document etc.which could be relevant of helpful. TheOmbudsman shall record his decisionand inform both parties and the man-agement of the concerned organizationfor implementation of the orders.

Parties who are aggrieved by the deci-sion may, within thirty days of deci-sion, would like a representation to thePresident or Governor, as the case maybe, who may pass such order thereonas he may deem fit.

The Ombudsman shall have the samepowers as are vested in a Civil Courtunder the Code of Civil Procedures,1908, in respect of matters of investi-gation e.g. summoning, compellingproduction of evidence, issuing com-mission for examination of witnesses.The Ombudsman shall have the samepowers as the High Court has to punishany person for its contempt. On mak-ing a decision in this case, theOmbudsman may impose any of thediscussed in the above section.

Responsibility of Employer

It is the responsibility of the employerto ensure implementation of this Act,including but not limited to incorporatethe Code of Conduct for protection

against harassment at the workplace asa part of their management policy andto form Inquiry Committee and desig-nate a competent authority. The man-agement is mandated to display copiesof the Code in English and the lan-guage understood by the majority ofemployees at conspicuous place in theorganization and the work place withinsix months of the commencement ofthis Act. On failure of an employer tocomply with the provisions of this sec-tion any employee of an organizationmay file a petition before the DistrictCourt and on having been found guiltythe employer shall be liable to finewhich may extend to one hundredthousand rupees but shall not be lessthan twenty-five thousand rupees.

Criminal Law (Amendment) Act 2009

This amendment to the Pakistan PenalCode, 1890, effectively criminalizedsexual harassment. The section makesit a crime to 'insult modesty' or 'causesexual harassment'. It includes not justphysical harassment but also the utter-ance of any word, making any soundor gesture of exhibiting any objectintending that such word or sound shallbe heard, or that such gesture or objectshall be seen, by such woman, orintrudes upon the privacy of suchwoman.

The amendment also includes as sexu-al harassment as any person who 'con-ducts sexual advances or demandssexual behaviour whether written, ver-bal or through physical conducts sexu-al advances, or demands sexualfavours or uses written or verbal com-munication or physical conduct of asexual nature which intends to annoy,insult, intimidate or threaten the otherperson or commits such acts at thepremises of work place, or makes sub-mission to such conduct either explic-itly or implicitly a term or condition ofan individual's employment, or makessubmission to or rejection of such con-duct by an individual a basis foremployment decision affecting suchindividual, or retaliates because ofrejection of such behaviour, or con-ducts such behaviour with the intentionof unreasonably interfering with anindividual's work performance or cre-ating an intimidating, hostile, or offen-sive working environment,

It punishes both of these acts withimprisonment which may extend tothree years or fine up to five hundredthousand rupees or with both.

This is a monumental step as it notonly identifies harassment as a prob-lem, but also declares it to be a punish-able crime! It makes harassment acrime in both public and privatespaces, as well identifying that sexualharassment does not purely need toaffect an individual's work perform-ance, but it also reflects in the workenvironment.�The author is a retain-er consultant of Aurat Foundation

Review of Protection Against Harassment at Work Place Act 2010

As mentioned in the article, the changecreated by both these Acts is appreciat-ed and celebrated but we need to takethem forward.

Some steps need to be indentified inorder to push this into a practical real-ity. Some suggestions are given here:

1. Start lobbying with theGovernment to adopt the Code ofConduct in all of its Ministries,Departments and Offices, includingcontractual and sub-offices;2. Lobby with the Government tochange the rules of incorporation oforganizations to mandate adoption ofthe Code of Conduct in order to beregistered;3. Identify organizations whichhave yet to adopt the Code of

Conduct and set up Committees andreport them and/or lobby with themto adopt the Code;4. Ensure your own organizationhas adopted to Code and set upCommittees;5. Refuse to associate/createbusiness deals/work for or withorganizations that have not adoptedthe Code of Conduct;6. Lobby with the Governmentfor appointment of the Ombudsmanimmediately;7. Lobby with the Governmentfor the creation of Rules to supportthe PAWH with immediate effect.

These steps need to be taken by thesociety as a whole to create a change,but also by us as individuals in ourown lives and those around us.

Future Steps

From Page 1

3

In Pakistan 'honour' killings are preva-lent throughout the country, though insome areas, the incidents of 'honour'have taken an alarmingly high propor-tion in recent years. According toAurat Foundation's statistics, collectedfor its annual reports on violenceagainst women, a total of 604 womenwere killed in the name of 'honour' inPakistan during 2009, whereas, 475women were killed in the name of'honour' in 2008.

'Honour' killings are usually known askaro-kari in Sindh, where pre-meditat-ed honour killings of a condemnedwoman or man or both for maintaining'illicit' relations are condoned torestore lost respect to the family. Kala-kali is a Balochi and Seraiki expressionfor culturally condoned 'honour'killings.

Why this most shameful of all crimesis continuing and its prevalence isincreasing day by day despite the factthat Federal Government made a lawagainst 'honour' killings in 2004through the enactment of a CriminalLaw (Amendment) Act 2004, is a bigquestion?

However, this might not be a big ques-tion for many among those in thewomen's rights groups, and individualactivists, who waged a long strugglefor this law in close collaboration withcommitted women legislators andpolitical party women.

Why this was not a big puzzle for theseactivists and some of the concerned

legal experts, who became closelyassociated with the process of its law-making in 2004, was quite obvious asthe law that was being made, tend toignore two core issues relating to the'honour' crimes. These were:

i) the offence was not beingmade non-compoundable and; ii) the waiver to qisas was not

being finished.

The apologists of the law were of theview that since the Act amended thePakistan Penal Code (PPC) and theCriminal Procedure Code (CrPC) todefine karo kari as murder and withpenal punishments, this was a positivestep towards identifying karo kari asmurder, therefore it should be wel-comed, as anything which is securedthrough the 'window of opportunities'be received and the efforts for more becontinued.

The critics held that the law was tooth-less and would not deliver because itwas not dealing the core issues, i.e.mainly the same issues spelt outabove. It is now sixth year to theenactment of law on so-called honourkillings, and history is proving true theconcerns of the critics. There are otherfactors, indeed, for instance, poorenforcement of law, lack of justicesector and police reforms and rulingelite's support to tribal and feudalpower structures.

The critics were of the view that theAct fell short of providing actual pro-tection to women ensuring punishment

for the perpetrators and supporters ofthis heinous crimes, mostly dealingwith the existing Qisas and Diyat pro-visions in the PPC.

We would take an overview of majorproblems/gaps there are in the bill(with reference to 'honour' crimes)

1. The main and most fatal prob-lem in the Act continues to be that ithas not made punishment for 'honour'crimes mandatory, which defeats thewhole purpose of introducing legisla-tion in this regard. 2. The provisions of waiver orcompoundability, which inevitablypave the way for compromises, par-ticularly since most crimes of thisnature take place within close mem-bers of the family, remain valid incases of 'honour' crimes [no exclusionof the provisions of sections 309,310, 311 & 338E]. 3. Section 311 does not cover sit-uations in which the penalty of qisasis not applicable or enforceable and inwhich, therefore, the question ofwaiver or compounding of the rightof qisas does not even arise. (dis-cussed under point 2)4. There is no provision in theAct to ensure that others who are usu-ally involved in, encourage or vali-date such killings (e.g. jirgas, pan-chayats, family members/elders etc.),and are thus primarily responsible forperpetuating these practices, becomeequally liable to penalty under thelaw. 5. There is no provision in theAct to ensure that when courts allow

compounding of offences, they mustfirst satisfy themselves that theoffence is not an 'honour' crime. Itmust be remembered that if strongerpenalties for such crimes are incorpo-rated in the law, the offenders mightwell choose not to mention honour asa motive for the crime. Therefore, itbecomes important for courts to prop-erly determine the issue before allow-ing compounding of offences.

What needs to be done to make the lawmore effective. Ideally, the Act shouldensure that:

1. There is a minimum mandato-ry punishment for all 'honour' crimes.In the case of murder, this should be aminimum of 14 years and in the caseof other crimes, at least half the max-imum punishment provided. 2. The provisions of waiver andcompounding, as also the exemptionsavailable to close relatives, are madenon-applicable in cases of 'honour'crimes.3. The offence of "honour' killingor any such attempt, under the Thedefinitions of 'honour' killing andother 'honour' crimes are separatedand improved. 4. All those who are usuallyinvolved in, encourage or validate'honour' crimes are made equallyliable to penalty under the law.

5. Courts, before allowing thecompounding of any offence, mustfirst satisfy themselves that theoffence is not an 'honour' crime.� ByNM

Law on 'honour' crimes requires key amendments

I would like to go into past for a littlemore detail as to ascertain how theprocess of law reform for addressingthe issue of 'honour' crimes started andculminated at the enactment of the law.The purpose is to remind and reaffirmourselves of the efforts that have goneinto the process and renew the commit-ment to give it another chance andreform the law so that this stigma isremoved from the face of Pakistan.

I remember that by the end of 2003, thedraft bill prepared by Shahla Zia ofAurat Foundation, in consultation witha few like-minded NGOs, friends andcountry's top legal minds (JusticeMajida (Retd.) Rizvi, Hina Jillani,Anis Haroon, Syed Iqbal Haider,Justice (Retd.) Shaiq Usmani and sen-ior lawyer Rasheed Rizvi). The draftbill was handed over to the MoWD andsenior representatives of all majorpolitical parties. The MoWD was thenheaded by Ms. Nilofar Bakhtiar asAdvisor to PM (she is a Senator now).The draft bill was given to her and shebeing a strong exponent of women'srights among political party womenexpressed all keenness to carry it for-ward and make it a law. The initiativesby some political circles started mate-rializing in the beginning of 2004. ThePPPP submitted its bill on 'honour'

killing in the NA secretariat (February2004) on the personal initiative of itsMNA Sherry Rehman, which wasexactly and gladly the same as pre-pared by Shahla Zia. The bill is part ofthe National Assembly record and itcould be seen that it carried all thoseamendments that made the offencenon-compoundable and also endingthe waiver of qisas to the perpetratorsof the crime, among so many otherpositive things. PML-Q MNAsMehnaz Rafi and M. P. Bhindara alsotried to move a private members bill onthe issue, on the basis of the AuratFoundation's bill, but were stopped bytheir party saying that the governmentwas bringing its own bill.

In February 2004, an intense processof consultation started between theMoWD and Aurat Foundation to pre-pare an official bill. The first meetingin this regard was held on 23 Februarybetween Shahla Zia and the legalexperts of the MoWD. On 3 June, theLegislative Watch Group, Islamabad,comprising Shahla Zia, SabiraQureshi, Tahira Abdullah, FarzanaBari, Shehnaz Ahmed and NaeemMirza had a meeting with Nilofar

Bakhtiar and her team for a discussionon the proposed content of the officialbill. The group reiterated their positionthat if the government was sincere toreform the law, it must stick to thebasic features of the civil society bill.The MoWD while agreeing to thebroad points of the civil society bill,expressed concern that it was meetingtough resistance from certain quarters.On 30 July, the government silentlysubmitted the bill in the NationalAssembly and the Speaker referred itto the concerned Standing Committee.The copy of the bill obtained by theAurat Foundation revealed that it wasan extremely weak, as well as, highlyconvoluted piece of legislation, whichAurat Foundation felt, if enacted in itspresent shape, would offer nothingsubstantially to address the issue. On 9August, another meeting took place atthe women's ministry, where ShahlaZia and Naeem Mirza tried to convincethe Advisor to PM and her team aboutthe glaring defects in the bill. The min-istry in turn requested Shahla Zia togive suggestions in writing how thesecould be removed, on an urgent basis,as the Standing Committee was meet-ing on 11 August to review the bill.

Shahla while overcoming her extremesense of frustration with the officialbill, and privately telling her col-leagues that the government is not atall serious in bringing a strong bill,worked on it on 9-10 August and com-pleted a set of alternative amendmentsto improve the bill (the text of theamendments along with the critique ofthe official bill was later published bythe Aurat Foundation as a booklet "WeDemand Strong and EffectiveLegislation to Eliminate 'Honour'Crimes"), which was handed over toNilofar Bakhtiar and some other mem-bers of the Standing Committee beforethe start of the meeting on 11 August.The suggestions, it was learnt later,actually divided the committee andstopped it from rushing to clear it in itspresent form. In a last ditch attempt tosave the bill from complete disaster,another meeting was held at theMoWD on 11 September betweenShahla Zia, Naeem Mirza and NilofarBakhtiar along with her team, includ-ing representatives from law ministry,where the government plainly told theAF people that the ruling party, the lawministry and some other elements inthe government were not ready toincorporate civil society\s vierwpointin the bill.

Herstory of the law!By Naeem Mirza

Continued on next page

4

In the meantime, sensing the mood ofthe government, the civil societyorganizations held a rally against 'hon-our' killings on 8 October inIslamabad, to press the governmentand the parliamentarians for a strongposition on this core issue of violenceagainst women. On 15 and 16 OctoberShahla Zia was again invited to thewomen's ministry and requested that ifcivil society organizations wanted tosuggest changes in the existing officialbill, except for the issue of Qisas andDiyat, they could even suggest thesenow. Very reluctantly, Shahla Zia pre-pared another set of amendments, withthe purpose of making the bill a bitmore effective, and handed over theseto the ministry with a letter (which wassuggested by Nigar Ahmad) that AuratFoundation did not agree with thecomplete eyewash of the core issues inthe bill, particularly the issue of com-poundability and minimum mandatorypunishments.

As the last session of the 2nd parlia-mentary year of the NA had begun,the government apparently looked ingreat hurry to enact legislation on theissue. The bill came up on the agen-da in the NA on 22 October (Friday).On Saturday and Sunday (23-24March) the NA was in recess. On 25March, the concerned StandingCommittee presented its report on thebill; the House also had its first read-ing and a short debate the same day.The next day, on 26 March, also beingthe last day of the second parliamen-tary year of the NA, the bill waspassed with a simple majority in theabsence of the opposition members.Unfortunately, except for a fewchanges of a minor nature introducedby Mehnaz Rafi and M. P. Bhindaraamong others, none of the mainamendments suggested by AF (ShahlaZia) were incorporated by the treas-ury benches when the bill was finallypassed by the NA. However, since theissue of 'honour' killing had become afocal point in national politics, and asizeable section among political par-ties and media had already highlight-ed the core issues of compromisesand compoundability in the cases of'honour' crimes, several MNAs fromPPPP and MQM strongly opposed theofficial bill when it was being passed.The CSOs issued a strong press state-ment on 27 October, rejecting the billin its present form. A press confer-ence was held in Islamabad on 29October denouncing the bill. In purs-ing the advocacy further with legisla-tors, a strategy meeting was held withthe Senators at the Parliament House,where Shahla Zia, Tahira Abdullah,Rashida Dohad, Nasreen Azhar andNaeem Mirza talked to a group ofSenators that included Senator RazaRabbani, Senator Latif Khosa andSenator Asfand Yar Wali , as the billwas awaiting the Senate approval;and briefed them about the lacunas inthe bill. Anyway the bill became lawlater.

Herstory of the law!From Page 3

1. Short Title and Commencement (1) This Act may be called the AcidControl and Acid Crime Prevention Act,2009. 2. Amendment of Section 332, Act XLV of1860 In the Pakistan Penal Code, 1860 (ActXLV of 1860), section 332 sub-section (1)shall be amended as following:- "332. Hurt (1) Whoever causes pain, harm, disease,infirmity or injury to any person orimpairs, disables, disfigures, defaces ordismembers any organ of the body or anypart thereof of any person without causinghis death, is said to cause hurt." 3. Insertion of Section 336A, Act XLV of1860 In the Pakistan Penal Code, 1860 (ActXLV of 1860), after section 336, the fol-lowing new Sections 336A and 336B shallbe inserted, namely:- "336A. Voluntarily causing hurt by dan-gerous means or substances (i) Whoever voluntarily causes hurt bymeans of fire or any heated substance, orby means of any poison or any corrosivesubstance or acid, or by means of anyexplosive or arsenic substance or by meansof any substance which is deleterious tothe human body to come into contact with,to inhale, to swallow, or to receive into theblood is said to cause hurt by dangerousmeans or substances. 336B. Punishment for causing hurt bydangerous means or substances (i) Whoever, by doing any act with theintention of causing hurt to any person, orwith the intention that he is likely to causehurt to any person, causes hurt by danger-ous means or substances to any person,shall be punished with imprisonment for aterm which may extend to life, or with finewhich may not be less than five hundredthousand rupees, or with both. (ii) Notwithstanding the provision con-tained in sub-section (i) hereof, the courtmay, at any stage of the trial on an applica-tion by the aggrieved person, direct theaccused to pay monetary relief to meet theexpenses incurred and losses suffered bythe aggrieved person and such relief mayinclude, but is not limited to:- (a) loss of earning; and (b) medical expense. (iii) The accused shall pay monetary reliefto the person aggrieved within the periodspecified in the order made in terms ofsub-section (ii) and in accordance withterms thereof. (iv) The court may, upon failure on part ofthe accused to make payment in terms ofthe order under sub-section (iii) direct anemployer or debtor, of the accused, todirectly pay the aggrieved person or todeposit with the court a portion of thewages or salaries or debt due to or accruedto the credit of the accused, which amountmay be adjusted towards the monetary

relief payable by the accused or recoverthe same as arrears of land revenue." 5. Amendment of Section 2(1), Act XII of1919 In the Poisons Act, 1919 (Act XII of 1919),Section 2 sub-section (1) shall be amend-ed, namely:- "(1) The Provincial Government may byrules consistent with this Act regulate orprohibit, within the whole or any part ofthe territories under its administration,except under and in accordance with theconditions of a license granted as providedby this Act and those rules, the manufac-ture, possession, use, sale and purchase,whether wholesale or retail, of poisons orany specified poison." 6. Amendment of Section 2, Act XII of1919 In the Poisons Act, 1919 (Act XII of 1919),in Section 2, after sub-section (2), the fol-lowing sub-sections (3), (4) and (5) shallbe added, namely:- "(3) Except as provided by sub-section (4),a person shall not manufacture, distribute,supply or sell by wholesale or retail anypoison unless he is licensed pursuant to theprovisions of Section 2A to do so. (4) Subject to this Act and the rules, (a) a pharmaceutical chemist is authorizedto manufacture, have in his possession, andto use, supply or sell at his pharmacy in theordinary course of his retail business anypreparation, admixture or extract contain-ing any poison; (b) a medical practitioner or veterinary sur-geon is authorized to have in his posses-sion and to use, supply or sell in the lawfulpractice of his profession any poison; and (c) any dentist is authorized to have in hispossession and to use in the lawful practiceof his profession any poison. (d) any other category of person notifiedby Provincial government in the officialgazette. (5) Subject to this Act and the rules, (a) it shall not be lawful to sell any non-medicinal poison to any person unless thatperson is either:- (i) certified in writing in the prescribedmanner by a person authorized by the[rules] to give a certificate for the purpos-es of this section, or (ii) known by the seller or by a pharmacistin the employment of the seller where thesale is effected, to be a person to whom the poison may beproperly sold; (b) the seller of any such poison shall notdeliver it until:- (i) he has made or caused to be made anentry in a book to be kept for that purposestating in the prescribed form the date ofthe sale, the name and address of the pur-chaser and of the person (if any) by whomthe certificate required under paragraph (a)above was given, the name and quantity ofthe article sold, and the purpose for whichit is stated by the purchaser to be required,

and (ii) the purchaser has signed the entry." 7. Insertion of new Section 2(A), Act XIIof 1919 In the Poisons Act, 1919 (Act XII of 1919),after Section 2, the following new Sectionshall be inserted namely:- "2A License to sell poisons (1) Subject to this Act and the rules, alicensing authority may grant a license:- (a) to make any poison; (b) to manufacture and distribute or sell bywholesale any poison; (c) to sell by wholesale any poison; (d) to sell by retail any poison; or (e) to import across a customs frontier anypoison. in or at any pharmacy or other premises orplace of business specified in the license,to any person who satisfies the licensingauthority that he is a fit and proper personto be the holder of such a license. (2) An application for a license under thissection shall be made in the prescribedmanner to the licensing authority, whichmay in its discretion grant or refuse thelicense. (3) The licensing authority shall not grantany license under this section unless anduntil it is satisfied that the premises of theapplicant are suitable for the purpose inrespect of which application is made forthe license, and are properly and hygieni-cally equipped for that purpose. (4) All existing pharmacies, dealers, ven-dors, manufacturers, suppliers and otherpersons who require a license pursuant tosub-section (1), shall apply to the licensingauthority for the relevant license not laterthat six months from the date of promulga-tion of rules under the Acid Control andAcid Crime Prevention Act, 2009." 8. Amendment of Section 6(1), Act XII of1919 In the Poisons Act, 1919 (Act XII of 1919),Section 6(1) shall be amended as follow-ing:- "6. Penalties (1) Whoever--- (a) commits a breach of any condition

contained in Section 2 or of any rule madeunder Section 2, (b) imports without a license into Pakistanacross a customs frontier defined by theFederal Government any poison theimportation of which is for the time beingrestricted under Section 3, or (c) breaks any condition of a license grant-ed to him under Section 2A, shall be punishable- (i) on a first conviction, with imprisonmentfor a term which may extend to one year orwith fine which may extend to one hun-dred thousand rupees, or with both, and (ii) on a second and subsequent conviction,with imprisonment for a term which mayextend to two years, or with fine whichmay extend to two hundred thousandrupees, or with both."

Bill on �acid throwing� awaits NA nodAcid throwing is the most ignominious of all gender-based crimes. The attack leads to severe burning and badlydamages skin tissues often exposing and sometimes even dissolving the underlying bones. The consequences of theseattacks include blindness and permanent scarring of the face and body. A total of 53 cases of acid throwing wereregistered across Pakistan. Four women legislators from different political parties submitted a private members billwith National Assembly Secretariat in December 2009 suggesting severe punishment to the culprits of heinous actof acid throwing. PML-Q MNA Marvi Memon is the principal mover of the bill, which has been co-authored byPPP MNA Shehnaz Wazir Ali, PML-N MNA Anushay Rehman Khan and PML-Q MNA Shehnaz Sheikh. The sel-ceted contents of the Acid Control and Acid Crime Prevention Bill, 2009, are as follows:

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Legislative Watch is produced by the ResourceService of the Legislative Watch Programme forWomen�s Empowerment of Aurat Publication andInformation Service Foundation at Islamabad.

Advisory Board: I.A. Rehman, Tahira Abdullah

Editorial BoardNaeem Mirza, Wasim Wagha

Letters, opinions and contributions are welcome.Please write to House 28, Street 39, G-6/2, IslamabadTel: (051) 2277512 - 2277547, Fax: (051) 2822060Email: lwprs@af.org.pkWebsite: www.af.org.pk

The 54th session of the United Nations'Commission on the Status of Women was heldfrom 1 to 12 March, 2010, at the General AssemblyBuilding of the UN. The CSW undertook a fifteen-year review of the implementation of the BeijingDeclaration and Platform for Action and the out-comes of the twenty-third special session of theGeneral Assembly. Member States, representa-tives of non-governmental organizations and ofUN entities participated in the session. The over-whelming emphasis of the 54th session of the CSWafter two weeks of deliberations was on prioritizinggender equality and empowerment of women innational policies, strategies, programmes andactions, based on the Platform for Action, for theachievement of all Millennium DevelopmentGoals. It called upon the Member States to review,amend and abolish all laws, regulations, policies,practices and customs that discriminate againstwomen, in accordance with international humanrights instruments, including the Convention on theElimination of All Forms of Discrimination againstWomen, the International Covenant on Economic,Social and Cultural Rights and the ILOConventions. Member States were urged tostrengthen the capacity of national mechanisms forgender equality to effectively participate in theplanning, development, implementation and evalu-ation of all policies, programmes and strategies, aswell as in data collection and analysis.

Pakistan reiterated its resolve to carry forward itnational gender reform agenda under the vision of'Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto for women'sempowerment under a four-pronged strategy,which includes, reducing feminization of poverty;promoting gender equality; ending violenceagainst women; and introducing necessary legisla-tive stricture to empower women.

This time apart from the main Global NGO Forumthat was held for two days on the eve of the CSWsession, it was an unprecedented show of parallelevents arranged by NGOs, mainly by Americanwomen's rights organizations, in addition to by otherdonors and UN agencies. Prominent activists fromthe women's movement across ethnic, cultural, reli-gious and geographical boundaries were speakingwith one voice and a shared vision. The enthusiasmand commitment to the cause of women's empower-ment was amazing and moving. It looked as if"another Beijing" was being held there; the moodand sensibility was overwhelming conveying a clearmessage that 'world cannot be a better place withoutwomen's fullest participation in all walks of life,particularly in the decision-making."

EDITORIAL

23 March 2010, Lahore

WHEREAS the people of Pakistan have in the pastsix decades been denied the rights and benefits ofthe citizenship of an independent and sovereignstate;

WHEREAS the provinces of Pakistan have notenjoyed the autonomy promised in the LahoreResolution of 1940;

WHEREAS the country has failed to evolve institu-tions of peace, human security and service delivery.

THEREFORE, concerned citizens gathered togeth-er in People's Assemblies all across the country andvoiced their support for a new social contract.

NOW, this Peoples Assembly held at the birthplaceof the Lahore Resolution on its 70th anniversary, asa collective voice of all the People's Assembliesheld hitherto,

RESOLVES that adequate, effective and mandatorysafeguards must specifically be provided in theConstitution of Pakistan to all citizens includingnon-Muslims for the protection of their religious,cultural, ethnic, linguistic, economic, and politicalrights and interests, in consultation with them.These safeguards must encourage transparency andaccountability, the pillars of a true democracy witha view to creating a politically stable and sociallyresponsive state that ensures all its citizens a life ofdignity.

That equal opportunity and rights must be ensuredto all citizens through the strengthening of institu-

tions and the supremacy of the parliament thatthrough its laws, policies and governance mecha-nisms transforms it from a security to a welfare stateand a judiciary that dispenses justice to all withindependence and equity. It ought to become a statethat provides justice, quality healthcare and educa-tion, and livelihood for all citizens; a state that pro-motes peace in the region through a policy of non-interference and regional trade with all particularlyits neighbours, and a state that lives in peace andactively enables its citizens to do so.

It is also the considered view of this Assembly thatno constitutional plan would be workable in thiscountry or acceptable to its people unless provincesare autonomous and governed according to the aspi-rations of people of the province that exercise com-plete control over their resources that are used equi-tably for the benefit of the citizens.

It is the sense of this Assembly that the parliamentmust frame all laws and oversee their implementa-tion so as to protect citizens particularly the poorand the marginalized from oppression; the statemust protect the rights of all its citizens through theprovision of justice and the rule of law that holdspeople, particularly the powerful, accountable fortheir acts and omissions.

The Assembly further resolves that a social contractmust be framed between citizens, and between citi-zens and the state. All laws that are framed andmechanisms for their implementation must be inharmony with this document that all policies, inter-national and inter-provincial relationships, mustconform to the collective will of the peopleexpressed as the new social contract.

Peoples� Resolution for a new social contract

Women's Reservation Bill or the The Constitution(108th Amendment) Bill, is a pending bill in Indiawhich proposes to provide 'thirty three per cent ofall seats in the Lower house of Parliament of Indiathe Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies shallbe reserved for women.

The Women's reservation Bill was passed by theRajya Sabha on 9 March 2010. It will now go to theLok Sabha, and if passed there, would be imple-mented. The seats to be reserved in rotation will bedetermined by draw of lots in such a way that a seatshall be reserved only once in three consecutivegeneral elections.

14 years after the first attempt was made in the LokSabha and repeated failures subsequently, theConstitution amendment bill was adopted in the

mandatory division with 186 members voting for itand one voting against. The bill seeks to reserve forwomen 181 of the 543 seats in the Lok Sabha and1,370 out of a total of 4,109 seats in the 28 StateAssemblies.

"The women's reservation bill will ensure thatwomen of Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, OtherBackward Classes, poor women and Muslimwomen would benefit from it," Brinda Karat, aMPA said, addressing concerns that the bill wouldbenefit only some sections.

JD(U), whose present Sharad Yadav is a staunchopponent of the Bill, appears to have backed the Billfully with most of its 7 members voting for it inresponse to the call by one of its senior leaders andBihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

Indian bill for 33% quota for women in legislatures

Since June 2009, the civil society in Pakistan has been thinking of pathways to peace, and their role in it.These deliberations reaffirmed peace as an overarching and holistic goal, which demands a re-structuring ofthe relation between citizen and state, between the state and the socially excluded, and between the state andthe region - and beyond. The process resulted in an informal launch of the Aman Ittehad, in October 2009,a platform of human rights organizations and different public interest groups and individuals from acade-mia, educational institutions, media, lawyers community, parliamentarians, councilors etc. Charged withcollective objective of building bridges between citizens and citizen organizations across Pakistan, AmanIttehad organized a series of activities at mass level all over the country. On 1st January 2010 - at the dawnof a new year and decade -- ordinary citizens observed a Solidarity Day in 53 locations across Pakistan toreaffirm their resolve to overcome and to prevail. The rapidly changing context and circumstances inPakistan demanded a more active citizenry. The next was the planning and holding of a series of 'PeoplesAssemblies' in all major cities.

One objective, among others, of the proposed peoples' assemblies was to reflect on the original spirit of the'1940 Resolution' and to develop a 'People's Resolution' and share it with the citizens at large on the occa-sion of the 70th anniversary of the Lahore Resolution. 'The People's Resolution', prepared and agreed dur-ing the process of the peoples assemblies was read and passed at the final peoples' assembly held at Lahore,on March 22-23, 2010. The Peoples' Resolution provides the vision for a social contract that makes a par-adigm shift from a security state to a state that is responsive to the needs and rights of its citizens. Below isthe text of the Peoples' Resolution:

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meetings with different people andinstitutions, including Pakistan'sEmbassy officials.

On 27th and 28th February, AF teamalong with other members of the NGOdelegation attended the Global NGOForum for Women: Beijing +15, at theSalvation Army Auditorium, NewYork City. There were so many womenwaiting in front of the registration win-dow that we thought we would neverbe able to get in but the kind volunteerskept on reassuring us that they wouldarrange seats for us. When we enteredthe auditorium, Dr. Sima Samar, Chairof Afghanistan Independent HumanRights Commission was delivering thekeynote speech.

Dr. Sima Samar, while taking note ofthe present world situation that is fullof chaos and problems, injustices andinequalities, wars and conflicts, repres-sion and violence, made a statementthat nobody among the participantscould disagree with and the statementwas: "We (the women) are the mothersof these bad men". There were variouspanel discussions on different women'srights issues, such as "Advancingwomen's rights 1975-2010: what theworld conferences on women accom-plished" and "the state of the world'swomen: patriarchy, violence againstwomen and girls; women's health andclimate change". Renowned activistsand experts spoke on almost every-thing concerning women in a focusedmanner; then prioritized issues to pre-pare the final recommendations.

The most unforgettable event of theNGO forum was a tableau on feministhistory presented by school children.This was the presentation of TheChildren's Theatre Company which isrooted in the conviction that throughthe magic of theatre, children andyouth can be the voices of change andthe agents of healing. It presented thejourney of the struggle for women'srights throughout the history. A groupwork took place after that. Our Asia-pacific group was facilitated by aNepalese activist. When she askedabout positive things that happened towomen during past fifteen years, theresponse of Aurat Foundation was:"enhanced political participation ofwomen". After initial disagreementand some discussion, everybodyagreed with the statement.

On 28th February, Naeem, Arifa and Ihad to go to the main UN building tobecome a part of an endless queue to getregistered for the CSW session.However, despite some obvious net-working problems, the brighter side ofsuch long queues was a sense of solidar-ity among the participants that pre-vailed and nobody complained. Oncepeople did manage to get badges, andwere ID'ed and photographed, the nexthassle was getting into the sessions.There were passes for official meetings

which of course ran out; and in theNGO parallel space, large number ofpeople and fire restrictions meant thateven those willing to stand or sit on thefloors were being turned out. It is esti-mated that over 8,000 women werethere.

From 1st March, the CSW events start-ed in main UN building while most ofthe parallel NGO events took place inthe UN Church Center. The CSW ses-sions focused on high level plenaryreview of the implementation of theBeijing Platform for Action. The head ofeach country's delegation was given fiveminutes for sharing experiences andgood practices of his/her country onimplementation of the platform foraction.

On 3rd March, the CSW had plannedto devote one session to celebrateInternational Women's Day. However,on Wednesday, the 3rd March, themorning began with a light snowshower and the walk from our hotel tothe United Nations main buildingbecame a little adventurous. Theweather didn't stop hundreds of peopleattending the celebrations of theInternational Women's Day. The morn-ing's event featured the United NationsSecretary-General Ban Ki-Moon as thechief guest. Also attending were MengXiaosi, minister and vice-chairpersonof the National Committee on Womenand Children, People's Republic ofChina, and Audun Lysbakken,Minister for Gender Equality andChildren's Affairs, Norway. After theiropening remarks, there was an interac-tive panel discussion, moderated by awell-known journalist María Hinojosa.

The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon made a historic speech andhighlighted UN's commitmentstowards gender equality and theachievements women had alreadymade. He said in his address: "sincethe time of the fourth world conferenceon women in 1995, there are signs ofprogress. Most girls now receive edu-cation, especially at the primary level,while a growing number of countrieshave policies and legislation support-ing gender equality and reproductivehealth in place. Last September it wasannounced that four UN agencies andoffices - including the UNDevelopment Fund for Women(UNIFEM) - will be amalgamated tocreate a new single entity within theworld body to promote the rights andwell-being of women worldwide andto work towards gender equality".

Mr. Ban called upon the GeneralAssembly to adopt a resolution "with-out delay" to set up this new entity. Hisspeech followed thunderous applauseamid a huge uproar in the hall and thevisitors' gallery. We saw that theSecretary-General was waving smil-ingly towards the gallery where agroup of women activists in the firstrow had stood up with one placard ineach activist's hands making a sen-

tence: GEAR UP NOW.

Pakistani NGOs were anxiously wait-ing for the report of the government ofPakistan that was to be presented byMs. Anis Haroon, the Chairperson ofthe NCSW on 3rd March, in the after-noon session. Ms. Anis Haroon saidwhile addressing the 54th CSW ses-sion that the government was movingforward to realize the vision of formerPrime Minister Shaheed BenazirBhutto for empowerment of womenunder a four-pronged strategy. Thestrategy aims at reducing feminisationof poverty, promoting gender equality,ending violence against women andintroducing necessary legislative struc-ture to empower women, she added.

We also attended the UNIFEM session"Responses to the crisis from a femi-nist/women's rights perspective".Panelists included: RadhikaBalakrishnan, Executive Director ofCWGL, Hameda Deedat, Researcherat Gender and Economic Reforms inAfrica, Emily Sikazwe, ExecutiveDirector of Women for Change forZambia at Social Watch, Gul Unal,Assistant Professor of Economics atBard College, and Marina Durano,Coordinator at Political Economy ofGlobalization, DAWN,WWG-FfD.

While much was said, the followingwere the key points: a) crises are notnew for many countries in the world.Instead, much of the global South hasfaced a perpetual set of crises, com-prised of continuous food, care, cli-mate, water, and energy emergencies;b) these crises - like all others - havenot come out of thin air. These werecaused by changes in the regulatorysystem of the leading capitalist coun-tries that allowed the financial systemto expand unsustainably.

On 2nd March, the AWID and SocialWatch and Development Alternativeswith Women for a New Era (DAWN)convened "Eyes on Gender: RegionalPerspectives on the Impact of theFinancial Crisis." This session broughttogether gender equality/women'srights advocates from Latin America,Africa, Europe and Asia to speak to,investigate, and analyze the impact ofthe systemic crisis on women from aregional, national and local perspective.

An NGO parallel event that wasattended by the majority of the NGOactivists was "What Women want fromthe UN women's agency". This eventwas arranged by Oxfam and Novib.There was a long list of expectationsand everybody agreed that the newwomen's agency urgently needs sus-tained political commitment from allgovernments and immediate, substan-tial funding to ensure it. The newagency for women must have: Worldcoverage and the necessary countrypresence and strong policy and pro-grammatic mandate to effectivelyimprove the lives of women world-wide; accountability mechanisms in

place at both national and internationallevels, including through meaningfulinvolvement of civil society, particu-larly women's non-governmentalorganizations; substantial and pre-dictable resources to ensure the capac-ity to meet expectations and deliverresults at all levels; it must be fundedinitially at a minimum level of $1 bil-lion USD, with increases over timeand; an Under-Secretary-Generalshould be appointed immediately, inorder to lead the agency.

On March 5, 2010, the two representa-tives of the Citizens' ActionCommittees of Aurat Foundation madepresentations to a jam-packed audi-ence at an event arranged by Oxfam-GB; and spoke about their work at thegrassroots level that highlighted theachievements made by women in thearena of women's political participa-tion. Ms. Amar Sindhu and Ms. NigarRauf, both explained how women weregetting empowered through local gov-ernment system and how they weretaking bold initiatives to secure gen-der-oriented development schemesamidst huge constraints. They alsospoke about Aurat Foundation's pro-gramme "Raising Her Voice", underwhich Groups of Women LocalLeaders had been formed in 30 dis-tricts of Pakistan.

On 5th March, we also participated inthe parallel event entitled: 2020VISION: Mobilizing for Women'sRights and Eliminating Violenceagainst Women. This event was organ-ized by Women's Learning Partnership(WLP) in cooperation with SocialResearch Journal at the New Schoolfor Social Research. Ms. MahnazAfkhami, president of WLP and Ms.Arien Mack, editor of Social Researchwere the moderators. Keynote speak-ers were Ms. Shirin Ebadi (NoblePeace Laureate, 2003 Founder,Defenders of Human Rights Centre,Iran), Ms. Thoraya Obaid (ExecutiveDirector of UNFPA; Under SecretaryGeneral of the United Nations), Ms.Mary Robinson (President, RealizingRights; former President of Ireland)and Ms. Melanne Verveer (UnitedStates Ambassador at Large for GlobalWomen's Issues).

Most of the Pakistani NGO activistsflew back to Pakistan on the night onthe 5th March. My flight was on thenight of the 6th, so I also attended twoNGO events on 6th as well. One wasabout gender, climate change and foodsecurity and the other event wasarranged by Ms. Chandni Joshi, who isa popular figure especially amongSouth Asian development practition-ers. The topic was political violenceagainst women, and speakers fromNepal, India, and Bangladesh, all men-tioned Benazir's assassination, in par-ticular. Ms. Arifa Mazher of SungiDevelopment Foundation also sharedtwo case studies of Pakistan. � T h eauthor is Resident Director ofKarachi office of Aurat Foundation

Women of the world unite for equal rights and statusFrom Page 1

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Ms Anis Haroon, Chairperson,National Commission on the Status ofWomen and Head of the PakistanDelegation, at 54th Session of theUnited Nations Commission on theStatus of Women, at New York, on 03March 2010. Below is the text of heraddress:

Chairperson,Excellencies,Ladies and Gentlemen,

I wish to congratulate the Chairpersonand the entire bureau on assuming theiroffice for the 54th Session of theCommission on the Status of Women.

My delegation aligns itself with thestatement made by the distinguishedrepresentative of Yemen on behalf ofthe Group of 77 and China. We thankthe Secretary General for his reports.

The Commission on the Status ofWomen is moving forward the Beijingtorch. This year we are undertaking thefifteen-year review of the implementa-tion of the Beijing Declaration andPlatform for Action and the outcome ofthe twenty-third special session of theGeneral Assembly. As we gather hereto share our experiences and learnfrom good practices with a view toovercome the remaining obstacles andnew challenges, including those relat-ed to the Millennium DevelopmentGoals (MDG's), it is also a time forintrospection and reaffirm our commit-ment to the areas identified in theBeijing Platform for Action to achievea safer and brighter future for thewomen of the World.

Chairperson,

In Pakistan, the inspiration for genderequality and empowerment of womencomes from the vision of our foundingfather Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad AllJinnah who said "No nation can rise tothe height of glory' unless your womenare side by side with you".

Pakistan's Constitution guaranteesequal rights for all its citizens withoutany discrimination on the basis of east,

colour, sex, or race. It further ensuresfull participation of women in allspheres of national life.

Noting the role of women in our nationbuilding Shaheed Mohtarma BenazirBhutto wrote in her book"Reconciliation Islam, Democracy,And the West" that "When the timecame to pick up my father's mantle andlegacy and lead the Pakistan People'sParty, I, as his eldest child present inPakistan, led the struggle for democra-cy. No one among my father's follow-ers opposed this onthe ground of gen-der. This was thegender equality inIslam under which Iwas brought up."

The democraticallyelected Governmentin Pakistan is mov-ing forward thevision of' ShaheedMohtarma BenazirBhutto for womenempowerment undera four pronged strat-egy, which includes:Reducing femi-nization of poverty:Promoting gender equality; Ending violence against women;and Introducing necessary legislativestricture to empower women.

Chairperson,

I would take this opportunity to sharewith the Commission some of the stepsthat Pakistan has taken to realize gen-der equality and empowerment ofwomen:a) Pakistan's National Plan of Action toimplement various commitments ofBeijing Declaration and Platform forAction has been prepared on the basisof observations made by theCommittee on Elimination ofDiscrimination Against Women on ourlast country report.b) The National Commission on Statusof Women was established in year2000, to examine the relevance and

efficacy of all laws, policies, pro-grammes and measures for womenempowerment and gender equality.The process to make the Commissionfully autonomous is underway.c) Women have gained increased rolein every sphere of life in Pakistan.Women of Pakistan are now workingin Civil Service, Foreign Service,Police and Military services.d) Pakistan has the honour of electingShaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto asthe first woman Prime Minister of theMuslim world. Today, we proudly

have the firstwoman Speaker ofthe NationalAssembly in SouthAsia, 17 womenSenators (17% outof 100-memberupper House) and76 women parlia-mentarians (22.5%out of 338 membersof Lower House).e) We have recentlyadopted laws toprotect the rights ofwomen, theseinclude theCriminal Law(Amendment) Act,

2009 and Protection againstHarassment at Workplace Bill 2009.The Domestic Violence (Preventionand Protection) Act is under considera-tion. These legislative measures havebeen undertaken with the involvementof all stakeholders including the civilsociety organizations. Thanks to thevibrant women's movement inPakistan for their support.

Among other initiatives taken for eco-nomic empowerment of women, theBenazir Income Support Programme isan innovative scheme, which providescash grants to female head of a poorhousehold. This improves the decisionmaking role of the female head of thefamily and allows her to spend thatcash grant on a priority laid down byher. Another initiative is a Programmefor the grant of State Land to poorwomen tenant farmers in the ruralareas.

Acknowledging that adult functionalliteracy for women particularly in ruralareas contribute substantially toempowerment of women, the NationalCommission for Human Development(NCI ID) has helped gained functionalliteracy to over 2 million women inrural areas. Pakistan's Gender ParityIndex for adult literacy has increasedin the last six years.

The Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper(PRSP) and Medium Term BudgetaryFramework have incorporated variousgender-sensitive amendments.

The Ministry of Women Development's"Gender Reform Action Plan (GRAP)"is aimed at undertaking a coherent gen-der reform agenda through phasedimplementation processes, includingpolitical participation, institutionalrestructuring, women employment inthe public sector, and gender respon-sive policy and budgeting.

Chairperson,

While we review the progress made inthe last fifteen-years, there are contem-porary and emerging challenges. Weare only starting to know the negativefall out of the multiple crises of food,fuel and finance. The Beijing Platformprovides us a comprehensive docu-ment to incorporate our responses tothe emerging challenges and look fornew development paradigms.Pakistan fully supports the new GenderEntity at the United Nations andbelieves that the Gender Entity willhelp to achieve gender equality andempowerment in a more co-ordinatedand coherent fashion.

Chairperson,

Let us remember the words of, Goethe:"Freedom has to be re-made and re-earned in every generation." Fifteenyears ago Pakistan was represented inBeijing by Shaheed Mohtarma BenazirBhutto, let me pay tribute to this braveicon of women's empowerment andquote from her statement "We must domuch more than decry the past. We

Pakistan resolves to realize gender equally Anis Haroon makes statement before 54th CSW session

The Bill on Domestic Violence will bepresented in the National Assemblysoon, informed the Advisor, Ministeron Women's Development, MsYasmeen Rehman, during a meetingwith a team of Aurat Foundation at heroffice.

The Domestic Violence Bill (DVB),after being lapsed in the Senate ofPakistan last year, was referred to theMediation Committee to reflect intothe issues/objections raised on the billand create consensus. The Committeewould then send the Bill for approval

first in the National Assembly and thento the Senate. The MediationCommittee has so far held two meet-ings under its Chairperson Ch AbdulGhafoor. Ms. Attya Inayat Ullah, aveteran member of the committee, isactively pursuing the bill to convinceother legislator. The Committee mem-bers have also held meetings with therepresentatives of the Council ofIslamic Ideology (CII) to discuss theobjections raised by them. This billwas moved by a distinguished parlia-mentarian, Ms. Yasmeen Rehman, whois presently the Advisor, Ministry of

Women's Development.

Two similar bills, submitted by Ms.Sherry Rehman and Ms. Mehnaz Rafi,in the previous National Assembly in2004 and 2005, got also lapsed. It couldbe said that the efforts for positive andeffective legislation on domestic vio-lence have entered its seventh year. Wecall upon all members of both the hous-es of the Parliament to deliberate uponthe bill with a view to removing seriousflaws in the bill, and enact an effectivelaw putting an end to gender-baseddomestic violence in Pakistan.

Mediation Committee discusses DVBmust change the future". We must allwork together to change the future andearn our freedom.

Chairperson,

Women continue to bear the burden ofwars and threats to security whichhampers their development. They needthe support of the international organi-zations to give a voice to their con-cerns about peace and security.Chairperson, unless women are givena fair representation in the peaceprocess, the world peace will be anelusive dream. To give peace a chance,give women a chance.

I thank you.

8

8 March - Lahore:First time in the history of Pakistan,the International Women's Day wascelebrated in a provincial assembly,the Punjab Assembly, on the theme of'Equal Rights, Equal Opportunitiesand Progress for All'. Women parlia-mentarians in the Punjab Assemblypresented a joint statement and reiter-ated their overwhelming support tojoining hands with women's rightsmovements at international level.They expressed their solidarity withthe women, children who fall victimof terrorism and vowed to struggle fora society based on justice, tranquility,peace and equality. Women parlia-mentarians, who joined hands acrosstheir party divide, issued followingstatement:

" We strongly recommend that govern-ment should fulfill its commitments tobring women in mainstream through

socio-economic development in accor-dance with the international conven-tions and treaties, ratified by Pakistan,particularly CEDAW Conventions,Human Rights Convention,Millennium Development Goals,Child Rights Convention and otheragreements and a parliamentary moni-toring committee should be formed toeffectively implement on all interna-tional commitments to achieve equalparticipation of women in socio-eco-nomic and cultural activities. We alsorecommend that a quota of 10 % jobsfor women in all the public and privatesector should be implemented effec-tively. It is strongly recommended thatthe lady doctors, psychiatrists andlawyers be appointed immediately inall Dar-ul-Amans, and women jails.Women should be included as memberof the Election Commission ofPakistan and its bodies at federal andprovincial level."

International Women�s Daycelebrated at Punjab PA

8th March Declaration: Equal Rights and Equal Opportunities for All, signed bywomen parliamentarians to celebrate the International Women's Day at PunjabAssembly, Lahore.

Ms Asma Jehangir addressing the rallyon peace; with her stand I A Rehman,Mumtaz Mughal and others at Lahore.

In order to start the new year with astrong message of 'need for peace inthe country', the Aman Itehad, apeace alliance of civil society organi-zations, decided to hold peace ralliesin remembrance of thousands ofinnocent citizens who lost their livesin the suicide attacks, on January 1,2010, all over the country simultane-ously. Aurat Foundation, being activemember of the alliance, actively par-ticipated in the peace rallies throughits regional offices and CitizenAction Committees (CACs).

Peace March - KarachiAmman Itehad organized a 'peacemarch' in Karachi on January 1, 2010.Aurat Foundation Karachi office active-ly participated in the rally and alsomobilized other civil society organiza-tions, members of political parties,women councilors and famous celebri-ties like Shima Karmani to join in.

The participants of the rally carried bal-loons, banners and placards inscribed

with slogans expressing the need forpeace and end to violence. They saidthat lawlessness had badly damagedpeace and harmony in the society,destroyed the economy of the province,thus rendering thousands of people job-less. The participants marched fromPress Club to the Governor House.

Peace March - LahoreThe new year peace rally in Lahorewas organized from Regal Chowk toCharring Cross in front of the PunjabAssembly. Other members of AmanItehad included SAP-Pk, AGHS,Shirkat Gah, GJTMAP-Punjab, KashfFoundation and MDM.

Lawyers, representative of non-gov-ernment organizations, human rightsactivist, members of political partiesand media participated in large num-ber. Asma Jahangir, Chairperson(HRCP), while addressing the rally,said the nation should stand unitedagainst terrorism and militant forcestrying to destabilize the country.

Peace rallies across Pakistan

Civil society activists carrying pigeonsand balloons as sign of peace at aKarachi rally.

In order to bring peace message to theresidents of the violence ridden city ofPeshawar, Aurat Foundation Peshawarteam organized a Peace Mela onJanuary 26, 2010, at PC, Peshawar.The main objective behind the activitywas to depict the 'True Face of NWFP'through local culture and literature.Hundreds of peoples participated in the'peace mela' to celebrate culture and lit-erature which face serious threats frommilitancy in the province. Aurat's teampresented bouquet to police, journal-ists, and activists of Aman Tehreek toacknowledge their service for peace.District Nazims of Swabi and Mardanwere also presented bouquets toacknowledge the services of people ofthe districts for their generous andunconditional support to internally dis-placed persons (IDPs) from Swat .

Mr Aqil Shah, provincial Minister forSports and Culture, Sardar HussainBabak, provincial Minister forEducation and Ms Sitara AyazProvincial Minister for WomenDevelopment and Social Welfare par-ticipated as chief guest in various ses-sions. The mela started with the tradi-tional Pashtun dance Attann. Childrenfrom Swat and Mardan, and womenfrom DIK presented tableau whichexpressed their sentiment about war

and peace.

A collection of poems from renownedmystic poets of Pashtu language, com-piled by Aurat Foundation, titled'Silence of the Birds' was also launchedat the occasion. Other activities on theoccasion included photo exhibition andPashtu Mushaira. The musical eveningperformed by famous singer AnwarKhayal, also added into peace messagethrough diversity of music in Pashtu,Urdu and Seraiki languages.

Peace Mela �True Face of NWFP�

Dr Saad Alam Mehsood and Mr IdressKamal of Aman Tehreek receiving bou-quet from Mr Aqil Shah, ProvincialMinister for Sports and Culture, MrNaeem Mirza, COO, AF and Ms ShabinaAyaz, RD, AF, Peshawar, also present.

Policy Data Monitoring on Violence Against Women (PDM-VAW) programmeteam of AF Quetta, organized a focused group discussion on 'Domestic Violenceand Suicide Cases in Baochistan', on March 30, 2010 at Serena Hotel, Quetta.Ms Raheela Durrani, Provincial Minister for Prosecution, participated in the dis-cussion as Chief Guest. Professor Naseem Achakzai, resource person, gave adetailed presentation on the increase in suicide cases in Balochistan. In his ses-sion, he discussed and highlighted psychological reasons of suicide and attemptto suicide. He also shared the impact of such incidents on the society, family andindividual survivor of attempt to suicide. Chief guest Ms. Raheela Durraniappreciated the idea of collecting information and data on the incidents of vio-lence against women by Aurat Foundation. The chief guest and the participantsasked AF to further arrange such discussion on different aspects of increasingnumber of suicide incidents in Balochistan with wider.