Shireen Mazari hands over report on women prisoners to PM Imran  

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Human Rights, Dr. Shireen Mazari has presented a report on the plight of women in Pakistan’s prisons to Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday.

Shireen Mazari said she had presented the report to the prime minister. The minister also thanked all the provincial governments, Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, the committee’s two civil society experts, and the staff of the Ministry of Human Rights for their support and contribution in the preparation of the report.

Presented our committee's report on Plight of Women in Pakistan's Prisons. The PM had especially formed this Committee.I want to thank all our committee members from the prov govts, GB & AJK, our two civil society experts, Haya Zahid & Sarah Belal & r MOHR ppl, esp MOHR secretary pic.twitter.com/1bJyvyGtFs

— Shireen Mazari (@ShireenMazari1) August 26, 2020

On May 29, PM Imran had formed a committee to study and investigate the plight of women in prisons.

Prime Minister @ImranKhanPTI has constituted a Committee to study and investigate the plight of women in prisons.

The Committee has been constituted taking into account the plight of the female prisoners, whether convicted or awaiting trial…

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— Prime Minister's Office (@PakPMO) May 29, 2020

In a series of tweets, the PM Office said: “The committee had been constituted taking into account the plight of the female prisoners, whether convicted or awaiting trial, in the overall context of gender biases prevalent in the society at large and issues associated therewith.”

The committee comprises Mazari as its chairperson and the ministry’s secretary as secretary, while the interior secretary, home secretaries and the inspectors-general of prisons of the four provinces and Gilgit-Baltistan, Justice Project Pakistan (JPP) founder and executive director Sarah Belal, and lawyer Haya Zahid were included as its members.

Therefore, there is a genuine need to put in place the institutional arrangements to address the issue in a comprehensive manner.

The composition and Terms of Reference of the Committee shall be as under:

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— Prime Minister's Office (@PakPMO) May 29, 2020

The PM’s Office said that the committee would “assess whether Prison Rules, Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 and international best practices are being adhered to with respect to women prisoners, especially their protection, rights, health, security, and wellbeing”.

While addressing the physical, psychological, emotional, and sociological needs, the committee would ensure the availability of gender-specific services for women prisoners.