Faisalabad: December 12, 2012 (PCP) The government must create new laws against undefined crimes in Pakistan for human rights protection, this was emphasized by the speakers during the Conference entitled “Mainstreaming Rights of the Women and Religious Minorities” to mark international human rights day, held on 9th December 2012 at Faisalabad under the aegis of Peace and Human Development (PHD Foundation) and Association of Women for Awareness and Motivation (AWAM) in collaboration with Global Human Rights Defence (GHRD). Speaking at the occasion, the director of the Women in Struggle for Empowerment (WISE), Bushra Khaliq said that there was a need for reformed system, giving freedom to everyone to profess, practice and propagate one’s faith, and protecting rights of the unregistered women workers engaged in informal sectors including home-based workers, peasant workers and domestic workers, and recognizing them as part of the labour force. She added that the blasphemy laws were introduced with the intention to control the freedom of religion and expression, and were being used as a tool for causing disharmony, hatred, sectarian and religious-driven intolerance in the society, therefore blasphemy laws must be amended to end its misuse by many against opponents to settle personal scores or biases. “More than a thousand cases of torture are reported each year in Pakistan, but many people are afraid to report torture and access state machinery for protection, as they are required to report to the law enforcement agencies, which are the ones to torture them physically and mentally. Therefore, government must pass and enforce law banning and penalizing the torture perpetrated or condoned by the law enforcement and security agencies on detainees, and holding the perpetrators of torture accountable without any impunity,” she added. The director of the Women’s Organization for Rights and Development (WORD), Aqsa Khan said, “The conservative value and patriarchal system is the root cause behind domestic violence, which is considered acceptable and part of culture in Pakistan, therefore legislation must be passed and enforced to protect females against domestic violence.” “The females from the minority community are soft targets; therefore they are abducted, forcibly converted and brought to the wedlock without their consent, particularly in the Sindh and Balochistan provinces. The government should pass Sikh and Hindu marriage registration act to register their marriages, as there is no such arrangement in place in Pakistan,” she added. The director of the AWAM, Nazia Sardar said, “The representation of the women must be increased from seventeen percent (17%) to thirty-three percent (33%) in the national as well as provincial assemblies.” An intellectual, George Clement said, “There is no concept of citizen and nation in the objection resolution, and its existence in the preamble of the Constitution of Pakistan, is the base of religious discrimination in Pakistan, therefore its discriminatory provisions must be amended with the consultation of minorities’ scholars.” “The political parties must involve religious minorities in the general elections by awarding party tickets to minority candidates on general seats for national and provincial assemblies with a proportion of 5 percent, as there are ten thousand (10,000) to thirty thousand (30,000) minority voters in the 98 constituencies out of 272 constituencies,” he demanded. A member of the national assembly, Khalida Mansoor said, “The implementation on teaching of the Islam protecting women’s rights is imperative for eliminating gender-motivated crimes in Pakistan.” “The govt. must follow the speeches of the Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah as a model to safeguarding rights of the religious minorities and the women,” she added. A member of the Punjab assembly, Anjum Safdar said, “The government is committed to resolve the challenges confronting marginalized groups, and the govt. will soon pass and enforce laws on the rights of persons with disabilities, home-based workers and domestic workers. There is a need to train forces responsible for the implementation of laws protecting vulnerable groups.” In a statement issued on international human rights day, the executive secretary of the AWAM, Naseem Anthony said, “The government itself should pledge to respect, promote and protect human rights, and treat all its citizens equally, as human rights violations in the country cannot be put to an end, until the government itself stops violating human rights.” The director of the PHD Foundation, Suneel Malik said, “The government must pass legislation against enforced conversion; embark on clear initiatives directed towards respecting religious diversity in real terms. The abducted girl must be kept at a neutral place to keep her away from any religion specific indoctrination, and before a court decision as to whether she converted by will or coercion.” Meanwhile, a Rally entitled ‘Make our Voice Count’ was held from starting from Press Club to Circular Road in Faisalabad, demanding creation of legislation against domestic violence, custodian torture and forced conversion to prevent human rights violations. The rally was staged by the Association of Women for Awareness and Motivation (AWAM) and Peace and Human Development (PHD Foundation) in collaboration with Global Human Rights Defence (GHRD), Idara Samajhi Behbood (ASB), CARE Foundation, Insan Welfare Foundation Pakistan (IWFP) and Aitbaar Foundation. Anjum Safdar (legislature), Bushra Khaliq (Director-WISE), Nazia Sardar (Director-AWAM) and Yousaf Adnan (President-CARE Foundation) led the rally. The participants raised slogans against different forms of human rights violations in Pakistan. They strongly condemned the inhuman and unethical treatment towards women and religious minorities witnessed in Pakistan, and urged the government to take tangible steps for the protection of rights of the women and religious minorities. They were also holding placards and banners criticizing various forms of discrimination and violence towards the women and religious minorities. They demanded that government must safeguard life, liberty, properties, religious sites and graveyards of the religious minorities, and increase the political representation of the religious minorities in the all-tiers of the government. They also urged political parties to get the candidates of women and religious minorities directly elected on general seats rather than reserved seats by awarding them party tickets for general elections in 2013.