AsiaNet-Pakistan Premier Editorial Content and Press Release Distribution Service
Islamabad: The unanimous passage of a landmark bill “Domestic Violence (Prevention and Protection) Act 2012” by the Senate is a great leap forward for the cause of two most vulnerable sections of society i.e. women and children.
Goodwill Ambassador for Women Empowerment, Syeda Fiza Batool Gilani, expressed these views on the eve of passage of historic bill “Domestic Violence (Prevention and Protection) Act 2012” by the Senate. The Bill has already been unanimously passed by the National Assembly in August 2009.
Given the fact that the issue of domestic violence has long remained a source of public concern, the Goodwill Ambassador termed the passage of the bill as the need of the hour in order to provide relief to the victims of domestic violence by bringing the subject into public domain.
The Domestic Violence Bill makes violence against women and children an offence carrying jail terms and fines. And it has also been stipulated in the bill that the proceedings of domestic violence cases are done expeditiously and time lines in this connection have also been given.
Fiza Gilani emphasized that it has always been the policy of Pakistan Peoples Party to promote the cause of women in all spheres of national activity; Present democratic government’s policy decisions and pro-women legislation passed by the parliament are testament to this effect.
Coming on the heels of “Protection Against Harassment of Women at Workplace Act 2010” , “Prevention of Anti-Women Practices Bill, 2008” and “ Acid Control and Acid Crime Prevention Act, 2011”, this bill, once enacted into law after presidential assent, will herald a significant change in the condition of women and children across the country. Through the passage of this bill, the democratically-elected government has fulfilled one of its promises for the emancipation and empowerment of Pakistani women, Fiza Gilani emphasized.
Fiza Gilani hailed the passage of the bill as the fruit of years of effort of Parliamentary Women Caucus and civil society organizations. The way these organizations have saw through the passage of several pro-women legislation in the parliament demonstrates their commitment to the cause of ending social and economic injustices women suffer at the hands of men in society, she remarked.
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