Faisalabad: September 25, 2011. (PCP) Peace and Human Development (PHD Foundation), Association of Women for Awareness and Motivation (AWAM), Lyallpur Development Organization (LDO), Liaison for Enforcement of Human Rights (LEHR) and Youth Together for Human Rights Education (YTHRE) jointly staged a peaceful rally titled “Yes to Peace and Non-Violence” to observe the international day of peace in Faisalabad on 21st September 2011. The purpose of the rally was to show gesture of support towards peace, harmony, tolerance, non-violence and human rights. This rally was led by M.N.A Khalida Mansoor and was joined by over 150 people from different walks of life including students, lawyers and representatives of trade unions, workers’ unions, political parties and NGOs namely; SHE Foundation, NCJP, CARE Foundation, LDO, AWAM, PHD Foundation, DOST, Rural Development Society, Workers Party Pakistan, Idara Samajhi Behbood, Salvation Army and Voice of Human Rights. At this juncture, Khalida Mansoor (M.N.A), Shazia George, Nazia Sardar and Kamal Chugtai Advocate shared their views on the prospects of peace in the county. They stressed on the need of unity and reconciliation among citizens for building culture of peace in Pakistan, and urged the government to take stern action against extremists and terrorists elements for their involvement in destructive and unlawful activities, and for inciting conflicts, hatred, fear and terror in the society. The participants of the rally marched at Circular Road, and chanted slogans against violence, intolerance, extremism, terrorism, bloodshed, chaos and strife. The participants were carrying peace symbols and placards rejecting suicide attacks, target killings, kidnappings, extortions, extra-judicial killings, discrimination and violence on the basis of religion, sect, ethnicity and gender. They were also carrying banners inscribed with their demands to promote peace and end violence that: The education system and educational curriculum must be made free from all kinds of biases, discrimination and prejudice, and material based on peace, harmony, tolerance and human rights should be included in the syllabus for creating sense of respect for all human beings among students, and for promoting religious, sectarian and ethnic harmony; Appropriate measures must be taken to end conflicts on the basis of religion, sect and ethnicity; Solid steps must be taken to protect the religious sites of all communities, and the life and properties of the citizens; Pertinent steps must be taken to minimize the ratio of unemployment and inflation; Sincere efforts must be put to overcome the loadshedding of gas and electricity; New legislation must be created to combat all forms of violence and discrimination against women; The unrecognized women workers engaged in informal sectors including home-based workers, peasant workers and domestic workers should be recognized legally as part of the labour force; The women workers must be provided protection against harassment and discrimination at work places, and safe women friendly atmosphere should be created at work places.