ISLAMABAD, Minister of State for Climate Change Zartaj Gul Wazir Tuesday said the liberally corrupt goons should not dare to be the leader and representative of our women.
The Minister of State in a joint presser, flanked by Parliamentary Secretary for Law and Justice Barrister Maleeka Ali Bukhari and Parliamentary Secretary for Planning, Development and Reforms Kanwal Shauzab here rendered a clarification to the Opposition parties and so-called social media outcry against Prime Minister Imran Khan’s interview to the foreign media journalist.
Zartaj said there had been repeated efforts made by the liberal brigade to distort Prime Minister Imran Khan’s strong efforts made to project a positive and progressing image of the country.
The Minister of State firmly rejected the accusations raised by the purported critics accusing the Prime Minister for tainting the image of the victims bearing sexual violence.
“Prime Minister Imran Khan is the genuine symbol of women empowerment as for the first time five women parliamentarians have been made cabinet members along with them 12 parliamentary secretaries are women including Maleeka Bukhari, Kanwal Shauzab and Aliya Hamza Malik who represent their ministries in the Parliament,” she said.
Zartaj underlined that the women like her were proud to be a Pakistani women observing Islam as its faith, with one of the finest and unique cultural and traditional norms. “My religion and culture give me respect and we are believers of women rights that are enshrined in the teaching of Islam. Islam gives me freedom and liberty and I am proud to have it,” she added.
The aim, she said of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government’s governance that any legislation and its implementation without women empowerment was futile and should be ensured in true letter and spirit.
Zartaj noted that our culture had numerous precedents of respecting women where men respectfully leave spaces vacant in long queues and crowded places. “Prime Minister Imran Khan is seriously concerned about women and girls and wanted to ensure all possible facilities and protection from facing sexual violence,” she said.
PTI was the only party after the Pakistan Movement that mobilized women across the country where there was the only precedent of the towering figure of Mohtarma Fatima Jinnah accompanied by the Father of the Nation Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
“I am a clear example in this regard where from a feudal tribal society I was elected as a parliamentarian and became the Cabinet member which has been possible only due to strong political support and backing of Prime Minister Imran Khan,” she remarked.
Parliamentary Secretary for Law and Justice Barrister Maleeka Ali Bukhari said the Prime Minister’s first direction to Ministry of Law and Justice was to enact laws for reducing sexual violence and discrimination against women.
Bukhari said, “You cannot decide the Prime Minister’s priorities for women by just interpreting any of his statement out of context.”
She highlighted that the Prime Minister had directed to set up special courts under the Anti-Rape Law passed by the Parliament which was never done by any previous regime or Prime Minister.
Bukhari added that rape was a non-compoundable and complex offence against the state where our government had established joint investigation teams (JITs), Anti-Rape Crisis Cells and Special Courts under the Anti-Rape Law.
“Under the Section-13 of the Anti-Rape Law, the regrettable law of two finger testing to examine a rape victim has been abolished. Women’s character assassination has also been banned under this law whereas the trail process of such cases has been expedited,” she said.
She added that the Anti-Rape Fund to support implementation of the legislation was allocated Rs 100 million funding the current budget where the Budget document also noted the provision of additional funding ahead.
“Our government has passed Enforcement of Women Property Rights and ensured a grass roots level implementation through the Deputy Commissioner and Women Ombudsman. We took strong and positive steps for curing rape,” she added.
Maleeka Bukhari collectively invited all the political parties in the Parliament to partake in the national dialogue with a bipartisan approach to protect women and girls against sexual violence as they all need them.
She concluded that there was a fancy word roaming over social media with the aim to show distorted facts over the matter which should be shunned by the masses as a responsible society.
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