NA body expresses concern over violence against women

The National Assembly's special committee on gender mainstreaming expressed deep concern over the surge in violence against women and girls across Pakistan on Friday. Chaired by Dr Nafisa Shah, the committee denounced all forms of violence against women and girls, pledging their solidarity with the victims and their families. In response to recent alarming incidents, the committee urged federal and provincial authorities to guarantee prompt, impartial, and transparent investigations, as well as timely prosecutions adhering to due process.

They demanded accountability for officials who showed negligence, delayed actions, interfered, failed to protect victims, or neglected evidence preservation. The committee members emphasized the need for special mechanisms to monitor the entire legal cycle of such cases, ensuring culprits face justice. They stressed that merely registering cases or forming inquiry committees was inadequate; each case must be closely monitored from the moment of complaint to the final disposal.

The chairperson stressed that the criminal justice system should prioritize convictions, backed by thorough investigations, proper evidence collection, and timely prosecutions. To achieve this, the committee proposed setting up a serious case cell within the Islamabad police to oversee grave cases of violence against women and children, ensuring continuous institutional oversight throughout the legal process.

Additionally, the committee instructed the Ministry of Human Rights secretary to collaborate with the IGs of police in all four provinces and relevant authorities in Islamabad to develop a central dashboard for tracking these cases. This dashboard would log progress at every stage—from registration to final disposal—allowing for comprehensive reporting on conviction rates in violence against women cases.

The committee found these reports crucial for identifying institutional and legal shortcomings, evaluating the performance of investigation and prosecution systems, and supporting regular parliamentary monitoring. The committee heard updates from the Ministry of Human Rights on the progress of a national policy on the care economy, a project initiated by the ministry based on the committee's recommendation.

They applauded the advancements and stressed that the policy must clearly outline care work, assign institutional responsibilities, pinpoint legislative and service-delivery gaps, acknowledge the economic value of unpaid care and domestic work, and outline practical steps for implementation and monitoring. The committee called for coordination with the Ministry of Finance, the Planning Commission, and the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics to allocate dedicated resources for care services and conduct regular time-use surveys aligned with international standards.