Summary The CII will present its recommendations after clause-wise review of the act.
ISLAMABAD (Web Desk) – Meeting of the Council of Islamic Ideology headed by Chairman Maulana Muhammad Khan Sherani is underway in Islamabad.
According to sources, the council has received a copy of women protection bill passed recently by the Punjab Assembly.
The CII will present its recommendations after clause-wise review of the act.
Earlier on Wednesday, members of the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) stated that Punjab’s women protection bill is against the Constitution and two-nation theory.
The meeting was summoned to review matters pertaining to formation of Quran board, elimination of interest and use of dead bodies for scientific research but apart from yesterday’s agenda, the women protection bill was also discussed during the meeting.
Lawmakers in Pakistan’s largest province last Wednesday gave unprecedented protection to female victims of violence, in a bid to stem a rising tide of gender-related abuse in a country ranked as the world’s third most dangerous place for women.
The new law criminalises all forms of violence against women, whether domestic, psychological or sexual, and calls for the creation of a toll-free abuse reporting hot line and the establishment of shelters.
Pakistan, home to roughly 190 million people, sees thousands of cases of violence against women every year, from rape and acid attacks to sexual assault, kidnappings and so-called "honour killings".
In 2013, more than 5,800 cases of violence against women were reported in Punjab alone, according to the Aurat Foundation, a women’s rights advocacy group.
Those cases represented 74 percent of the national total that year, the latest for which data is available.
The new law establishes district-level panels to investigate reports of abuse, and mandates the use of GPS bracelets to keep track of offenders.
It also sets punishments of up to a year in jail for violators of court orders related to domestic violence, with that period rising to two years for repeat offenders.
Rights groups welcomed the law, but warned that its implementation remained a concern.
