ISLAMABAD – PML-Likeminded Secretary Information Kashmala Tariq and ex-chairperson of Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians Monday said that winds of change were sweeping worldwide and it was time for change and action. In a statement issued here on the eve of International Women’s Day, she said that the status of women in Pakistan continued to vary considerably across different classes, regions, and the rural/urban divide due to uneven socioeconomic development and the impact of tribal, feudal, and urban social customs on women’s lives.
She said that according to CWP, UN, MDGs there should be 33% Women representation in the parliament however and that Pakistan with only 17% representation was far behind. “It is unfortunate that implementation of Domestic Violence Bill is yet to be done by the government,” she lamented. “At least 10% minimum party tickets for General Elections should be allocated for women and it should be formed of their manifestoes or constitutions so that the women may actively participate in main stream politics,” she said.
She said that women in parliament had not been particularly vocal in raising the women’s issues and they had not offered any serious legislation other than the Women’s Protection Bill that was tabled and passed. She said that there was a continuing large literacy gap of as much as 45 percent between men and women and the opportunities for rural women’s education remain elusive.
