National Assembly passes Zainab Alert Bill with majority vote

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly on Wednesday passed “The Zainab Alert, Response and Recovery Bill, 2020 with a majority vote, days after the Senate had passed the bill after making certain amendments.

The bill is aimed at making provisions for raising alert, response and recovery of missing and abducted children. The bill now requires the president’s assent before becoming law nationwide.

The landmark bill was first tabled by Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari in June last year after multiple cases of horrific crimes against children emerged, mainly from Kasur.

The bill named after nine-year-old Zainab Ansari, who was murdered after being raped in Kasur in 2018, sparking outrage and raising questions over the security of children and responsibilities on the part of the authorities concerned to prevent increasing incidents of child abuse in Pakistan.

The bill was first passed by the National Assembly in January this year, and approved by the Upper House last week with some amendments including expanding the scope of the bill to the entire country, which was earlier limited to Islamabad.

The amended bill was tabled in the Lower House by Mazari, and was passed by an overwhelming majority through a voice vote despite receiving some criticism from the Jamaat-e-Islami. 

Later in a statement on Twitter, Mazari said the bill will now be sent to President Arif Alvi for his assent, after which it will be promulgated into law.

“Finally today Zainab Alert Bill was passed with Senate amendments by NA and will now go to President for signing into Law. It has been a long struggle which @Asad_Umar began in last NA, Has had many hiccups along the way but thank God the Bill is on its way to becoming law,” she said.