Daily Times

Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Human Rights and Women Empowerment, Mushal Hussein Mullik, on Friday said the Women Protection and Rehabilitation Centers (WPRC) were providing early and prompt response to the victims of violence at all levels. Mushal Mullik said WPRC working at the Federal, Provincial and District levels, had been providing early response to the victims of violence by extending medical, legal, psychological support and rehabilitation services.

She was addressing the launch of 16-day Awareness Campaign “Activism Against Gender-Based Violence” including a Transit Advertising Campaign, organized by the Ministry of Human Rights. The advertising campaign will kick start by November 25 in collaboration with the Ministry of Railways and with the support of UN Women Pakistan. Highlighting the importance of the promotion and protection of women rights, the Special Assistant to Prime Minister said that the Ministry of Human Rights was reviewing laws and policies with regard to wmen protection. She informed that Zainab Alert Response and Recovery Act, 2020; Enforcement of Women Property Rights Act 2020; The Anti Rape (Investigation and Trial) Act 2021; and the Protection against Harassment of Women at Workplace (Amendment) Act, 2022 were the significant legislations, aimed at protecting women. Mushal said the Federal Government had enacted the Legal Aid and Justice Authority Act, 2020 to provide legal, financial and other forms of assistance to vulnerable groups, including women, in criminal cases. Human Rights Relief and Revolving Funds have been established in order to provide financial assistance to the victims of human rights violations, she added. She informed the forum that the Ministry of Human Rights had also initiated a National Policy on Ending Violence against Women. The Special Assistant to Prime Minister stressed the importance of the collection of quantitative and qualitative data on the status of women, building partnerships with key line departments and civil society organizations to facilitate women’s access to legal and justice systems. Mushal said that being a strong advocate of gender equality, she had initiated a 100-day Action Plan to support human rights and women empowerment in the country. The Special Assistant to Prime Minister further added that she was focused on highlighting human right violations in Indian Occupied Kashmir and Palestine on national and international forums. Talking about the Transit Advertising Campaign Mushal Hussein Mullik said that the Campaign was a powerful tool to disseminate crucial information on themes such as Zainab Alert, the rights of Transgender Persons, Senior Citizens, and Persons with Disabilities. The campaign would greatly help to connect with diverse audiences, spread awareness and catalyze social and behavioral change.