Women’s rights bills in Pakistan

Introduction

Past women protection bills

2016’s bill

Limitations of bill

Islamic laws & women bills in Pakistan

Opposition views

Conclusion

Contents

President Gen Pervez Musharraf signed into law the Protection of Women Bill, 2006,

Women Protection Bill 2006 passed by the parliament in November 2006 called “Protection of Women (Criminal Laws Amendment) Act, 2006.

Women protection bill 2006.

The protection Punishment against harassment of women at workplace bill 2009.

President Asif Ali Zardari signed the bill. Providing increased punishment over harassment of women at workplace.

  The Protection against Harassment of Women at

Workplace Bill 2009” Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2009 amends both the Pakistan Penal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure, “increasing the punishment for the crime up to three years in prison and a fine of up to Rs 500,000.

Women protection bill 2009.

Protection of Women Against Violence Bill 2015.

The Protection of Women Against Violence Bill 2015 declares physical violence, abusive language, stalking, cyber crimes against women a crime in Punjab.

 Offering resistance to protection officers will be punishable by up to six months imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs500,000. Once a complaint is received, it will be updated into a database which will soon be set up.

Women protection bill 2015

PUNJAB PROTECTION OF WOMEN AGAINST VIOLENCE ACT 2016

Any offence committed against a woman including abetment of an offence, domestic

violence, emotional, psychological and verbal abuse, economic abuse, stalking or a

cyber crime.

What is violence?

A district protection committee

A helpline

Women protection officers

Protection centers and shelter homes

Residence and monetary support for victims

Protection mechanisms

not to have any communication with the aggrieved person

stay away from the aggrieved person

wear ankle or wrist bracelet GPS tracker for any act of grave violence or likely grave violence which may endanger the life, dignity or reputation of the aggrieved person

Orders of the Court

move out of the house in case of an act of grave violence

surrender any weapon or firearm which the defendant lawfully possesses

refrain from aiding or abetting an act of violence

refrain from entering the place of employment of the aggrieved person or any other place frequently visited by the aggrieved person

refrain from causing violence to a dependent, other relative or any person who provides assistance to the aggrieved person against violence

To protect life, dignity and reputation of the aggrieved

A woman protection officer may direct the defendant to move out of the house for 48 hours

The WPO will institute case on her behalf before the Court to obtain for her protection, residence or monetary order in her favor against the defendant.

Women Protection Officer

Will be responsible for training of the staff, reporting and documentation of the protection system in the district

Will provide counseling services to the aggrieved persons in the Protection Centre and shelter home

The DPC will supervise working of the protection centers and shelter homes and take steps to improve the relief and rehabilitation services.

Try mediation and reconciliation between the parties for resolution of disputes.

Suggest measures for better protection of women or improvement in the protection system to the Government

District Protection Committee

Any person, who will obstruct the District Woman Protection Officer in the

performance of her duties under this Act, shall be imprisoned for six months or fined of Rupees five hundred thousand or both.

Penalty for obstructing a Protection Officer

Filing a false complaint or leveling false accusations can cause up to three months

in jail and or a fine of between Rs.50,000 to Rs.100,000

Penalty for filing false complaint

Attempting to remove the tracking bracelets will be jailed for up to one year and fined

between Rs.50,000 to Rs.200,000.

Penalty for tampering GPS tracker

Limitations &Reactions

of Bill

Defines violence as:any offence committed against the human body of the

aggrieved person including abetment of an offence, domestic violence, sexual violence, psychological abuse, economic abuse, stalking or a cybercrime”

The bill mentions several forms of violence, and includes stalking and other cybercrimes. However, the bill fails to provide clear indications and explanations of what those terms mean and entail; in comparison, the newly added terms “economic abuse” and “psychological violence” are further elaborated upon in greater length.

Limitations of Bill

Does not explain cybercrime Rise of cybercrime cases Cyber stalking, harassment through social media,

sharing of inappropriate (and usually stolen) material, unauthorized power and access of computer systems, and the distribution of personal information belonging to other people all constitute cybercrimes; it is important that the legislation mentions this salient point, so that laypeople, women in particular, can easily understand what manner of acts can be reported, and what the penalties are.

But what’s a cybercrime?

The bill fails to clearly mention which authority body will be looking into cybercrime, and whether it is the role of the police or the Federal Investigation Agency to take on cases relating to it.

Authority body … ?

The bill also utilizes abstracts without clear definitions for defendant instance

“wear ankle or wrist bracelet GPS tracker for any act of grave violence or likely grave violence which may endanger the life, dignity or reputation of the aggrieved person;"

Does not clarify in what is defined by “dignity or reputation.”

GPS Tracker Problem

Moreover , the GPS will be useless when it comes in case of offline or online harassments.

And when it comes to the wife’s complaint

and her husband leads to being tracked with a GPS wrist. Socially, it leads to an end of relationship and he will react more violently.

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There are no provisions to indicate who will be monitoring on the GPS trackers.

We also do not know whether Pakistan even has the mechanism or capacity to handle such a medium of monitoring someone.

Who will prevent this provision from being abused and how?

Will the police, which is already lacking in resources, be able to react in time to a man violating the GPS order and staying away from his victim?

Pakistan able to handle…?

The recent wave against the ‘controversial’ Women Protection Bill adopted by the Punjab Assembly and duly signed by the Governor of Punjab, is based on the assumption that it stands in clear contradiction of article 31 of the Constitution of Pakistan, which defines the Principles of Policy for lawmakers. According to this article, the state is to enable Islamic way of life in society, which it already does.

Contradiction with constitution

Islamic Teachings

Reactions

Zaeem Qadri

a resolution for the rights of men should also be tabled and passed in the assemblies.

 such laws wouldaffect the domestic lives.

Punjab Government spokesman

Mocked the Punjab governmentThat they didn’t have to give such lengthy bill in assembly and shouldrather acted on his two words suggestions by saying “husband as wife and Wife as husband” The bill passed in mushraf era was Opposed by them and now they arePresenting it to spoil the social system

Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman

Women protection bill will cause divisions within families and increase divorce rate: JUI-F chief

the law was in conflict with both Islam and the constitution of Pakistan.

This law makes a man insecure,” .“This law is an attempt to make Pakistan a Western colony again.”

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openly criticized the protection law by terming it against our culture and Islamic Sharia.

He accused the Sharifs for promoting secularism and liberalism by following western values. 

Mufti Muhammad Naeem

“The whole law is wrong , by reciting Quran verses.

Chairman Council of Islamic Ideology, Maulana Muhammad Khan Sheerani

 Jamaat-i-Islami 

 representatives of more than 35 religious parties and groups came together for a conference called by the Jamaat-i-Islami and condemned the women's protection law as un-Islamic.

The controversial law to protect women was promulgated to accomplish the West's agenda to destroy the family system in Pakistan,

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Nawaz Sharif heard our reservations against the Punjab Protection of Women Against Violence Act 2016. He promised to amend the law so that it doesn't contravene the teachings of the Holy Quran,”  said fazul ur rehman.

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http://www.samaa.tv/pakistan/2016/02/punjab-govt-spokesman-opposes-women-rights-bill/

http://www.samaa.tv/pakistan/2016/03/religious-parties-maintain-opposition-to-women-protection-bill/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2V_G72ydzc

http://www.unewstv.com/74022/federal-government-have-made-women-protection-bill-controversial-imran-khan

http://siasattv.pk/maulana-fazal-ur-rehman-making-fun-of-women-bill-outside-assembly/

http://paktvshows.com/index.php/2016/03/16/imran-khan-comments-on-women-protection-bill/