Faisalabad: October 5, 2013. (PCP) The government must bring reforms in policy, administrative and legal framework for making justice system equitable, accessible and responsive for the citizens. This was emphasized by the speakers during the seminar entitled ‘Legal and Policy change for Enforcement Mechanism of Human Rights’ held at Faisalabad on 30 September 2013 under the umbrella of the Association of Women for Awareness and Motivation (AWAM). The event was joined by large number of people hailing from different walks of life including students, lawyers, representatives of trade unions, political parties and NGOs. The seminar was aimed at spotlighting the lacunae within Policy, Legal and Administrative Framework, and suggesting specific changes that need to be undertaken to make just system for the citizens. Speaking on the occasion, the executive director of the AWAM, Nazia Sardar said, “It is very unfortunate that there are laws, policies, behaviors and provision in the constitution which discriminate with the citizens on various grounds including discrimination on the basis of religion, sect, gender, caste, social status and ethnicity.” “The elected government must ensure that there is no discrimination by the state towards any community or group, and all citizens are by all means treated equally in all matters of life, and should adopt the non-discriminatory policies and ensure rule of law in the country which will definitely help to bring peace and prosperity in the country,” she added. The project director of the AWAM, Naseem Anthony said, “The government of ratified several united nation’s international human rights conventions, which is a legal binding for the state to ensure civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights for its citizens.” “The government itself should pledge to respect, promote and protect human rights, and treat all its citizens equitably, as human rights violations in the country cannot be put to an end until the government itself stops violating human rights,” he added. A lawyer, Syed Mujhaid Hussain Gillani said, “The judiciary is the second most corrupt institution in Pakistan according to the report by the Transparency International, because honorable judges and learned lawyers misuse their positions by getting their relatives and friends appointed on key posts regardless of merit. As a result of injustice and nepotism in our administrative system, eligible and deserving people hailing from middle class remain far behind from the elite class.” “The people’s access to justice is possible only if policy makers themselves start abiding by set policies, and judiciary start working on the basis of neutrality and fairness rather than favoritism,” he added. An intellectual, George Clement said, “There is no concept of citizen and nation in the Objective Resolution, and its existence in the preamble of the Constitution of Pakistan is the main cause behind economic, social and political deprivation of the religious minorities. There are also discriminatory legal framework which causes sense of biases and prejudice towards minority groups in Pakistan. Therefore discriminatory provisions in the constitution, laws and policies must be amended in consultation with scholars of minority groups.” “The religion of the state and its organs is Islam in Pakistan, so there is widespread discrimination from top to grassroots level, and all the matters including minority issues are dealt in light of Islam rather than history and culture, which is a wrong approach,” he added. An intellectual, Dr. Mussadaque Hussain said, “There is widespread disharmony on different grounds in Pakistan which cause hatred, discrimination, intolerance, violence and terrorism. Therefore, it is imperative to have effective policies and competent leadership to root out class division, feudalism and extremism, leading to social harmony among diverse communities in Pakistan.”