Ministry of Law and Justice and UN Women Pakistan here on Thursday organized a one-day consultation on the issues and challenges in the implementation of pro-women laws in Gilgit Baltistan. The aim of the consultation was to develop an agenda and roadmaps for implementation of pro- women law in the GB region. Parliamentary Secretary Law and Justice, Ms. Mehnaz Akbar Aziz in her opening address said, “Although Pakistan has established a good legal framework for women through a number of pro-women legislation yet the conviction rates remain low.
The main challenge faced by the women and girls across Pakistan is access to justice. But through legislative measures, knowledge sharing, capacity building and continuous advocacy, we can overcome these challenges.” The meeting was apprised that during last two quarters of 2022, UN Women’s team has conducted a series of provincial consultations to develop legislative agenda and roadmaps for implementation of pro-women laws at provincial level in KP, Balochistan, Sindh and Punjab.
UN Women’s portfolio Manager EVAW, Saman Ahsan highlighted the organizational commitments and programmes for strengthening institutions, improving response mechanisms, and facilitating survivors and victims of gender-based violence. She said, “Despite many women focused legislations in place, yet Pakistan continues to rank low in gender index on account of weak implementation mechanisms at institutional level.