Govt ‘committed to protecting rights of women’

NA speaker urges coordinated efforts to eliminate violence against women

ISLAMABAD: National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq has said that the government is committed to protecting women from all kinds of exploitation and violence.

“Violence against women is a serious human rights abuse that needs to be eliminated through coordinated efforts,” said Sadiq in his message on the International Day for Elimination of Violence against Women, falling on November 25.

He said violence against women, both physical and mental, “happens everywhere and its consequences last for generations”, and “this poses threats to social fabrics of societies around the globe”.



The speaker said that political forces were determined to make Pakistan a place for everyone to have the same opportunities to participate in all walks of life with dignity and self-esteem. He said parliament is fully aware of its responsibility to protect and guard the rights of women comprising more than half of the country’s population.

He said the government had taken various steps to bring women into the mainstream and ensure their participation in government jobs as their quota had been raised from 5% to 15%. He said that centers for immediate response were being constructed across the country for female victims of domestic violence.



Sadiq also called upon the civil society, NGOs, international development partners, media, corporate sector and particularly women to come forward and play their role for protection of women’s rights against violence.

Meanwhile, Deputy Speaker National Assembly Murtaza Javed Abbasi, in his message, said that women in Pakistan had been greatly contributing towards the development and prosperity of the country. He said that a society could move forward in 21st century “only if it runs on the principles of gender equality and non-discrimination”.