Seminar: ‘Law needed to curb domestic violence’

PTI’s information secretary Andleeb Abbas says Pakistan ranks 135th in 136 countries rated on gender equality gap.

LAHORE: “We need a law against domestic violence which includes physical and emotional abuse in its definition of exploitation,” said Fauzia Vaqar, advocacy and communications director at Shirkat Gah said on Monday.  She was speaking a seminar organised by the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf Women Action Forum.She said the domestic violence bill should also address exploitation of house maids. PTI’s information secretary Andleeb Abbas in her presentation said Pakistan ranked 135th in 136 countries rated on gender equality gap. She said the only country below Pakistan was Yemen. She said every two hours a woman was raped and a gang rape occurred every four days. She said 90 per cent of women in Pakistan were suffering from domestic violence and so far Pakistan was the only country in South Asia which did not bill specifically on domestic violence.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 14^th, 2014.