PM restructures Treaty Cell to improve compliance. PHOTO: FILE
ISLAMABAD: In order to improve trade with the European Union under the Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP) Plus status, the federal government has restructured the Treaty Implementation Cell (TIC) by inducting civil society representatives to meet the obligations.
This was stated by TIC Convener and Attorney General of Pakistan Ashtar Ausaf Ali while chairing the 11th meeting of the cell at the Ministry of Commerce on Friday.
“In order to improve compliance with 27 UN conventions signed by Pakistan, the prime minister has restructured the Treaty Implementation Cell,” he told the meeting, which was attended by representatives of the EU, International Labour Organisation, civil society, Ministry of Human Rights, Law and Justice and provincial governments.
Pakistan is signatory to the 27 UN conventions and their implementation involves legislative measures in consultation with the stakeholders.
The EU has attached the condition of protection of human rights with the GSP Plus and asked the government to ensure effective implementation of the 27 conventions to meet criteria for the GSP Plus status.
The meeting decided to device an effective monitoring and reporting mechanism for matters related to human, labour, children and minority rights, climate change, narcotics control and anti-corruption, said a commerce ministry officer.
The officer said the meeting was told that the government had made it clear to the EU that Pakistan was facing serious security challenges from the militants and capital punishment was an extraordinary measure to cope with the situation.
Speaking to the meeting, the attorney general said the new TIC arrangement would help the cell coordinate with the departments and agencies concerned more efficiently and would provide a platform to join hands with the international partners working in the areas of human and labour rights to bring more clarity and reality checks.
He said the EU had reposed trust in Pakistan’s efforts to establish the TIC and had decided to replicate the same in other GSP Plus beneficiary countries.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 25th, 2016.
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