Funding crunch mars rights directorate’s effectiveness

Directorate deals with domestic issues including child labour, honour killing, sexual abuse both public and private

PESHAWAR: A funding and resource crunch has hamstrung operations at the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Directorate of Human Rights.

Despite a surge in the number of human rights cases, funding has largely remained the same. A large portion of the funds is spent on staff salaries.  Four years ago, the directorate received and resolved some 24 cases. But the figures have swelled since then. More than 300 human rights cases have been catalogued during the first nine months of the current year.

An official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, stated that apart from funds the directorate was also not receiving enough cases.

The directorate deals with domestic issues including child labour, honour killing, sexual abuse, and harassment at workplaces, both public and private.

Another official said, “lack of awareness is the only reason why people don’t know about the directorate though much of the responsibility lies with us,” adding that they had taken up the matter with the finance ministry but nothing had been done so far.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 8^th, 2016.