Pakistan People's Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari Wednesday said basic human rights violations are being committed in Indian-held Kashmir. Speaking at a seminar organised by Jinnah Institute, Bilawal, as a keynote speaker said democratic people should understand that the people of the held valley will not compromise on basic human rights and will continue their struggle for achieving the right to self-determination as acknowledged by the United Nations (UN) and other global bodies.
Speaking on the subject "Pakistan, Constitution, Security and Citizenship" Bilawal urged, "As we have made gains against terrorism, now there is a need of transition from a security state to a rights-based state." He said since the creation of Pakistan no prime minister has been allowed to complete due constitutional term, while military dictators kept on ruling for decades. He said now the people are cognizant of their rights; therefore, the hidden forces have adopted the option of "selected" prime minister. He said that human rights situation in Pakistan under Prime Minister Imran Khan is not good.
While shedding light on paramount significance of democracy and education, Bilawal was of the view that there is a need to educate citizens of Pakistan in this regard as it is only solution to all problems including economy, terrorism and fundamental rights issues, etc. Human rights activist Hina Jillani deliberated upon the importance of fundamental human rights as the premise of a secure state. She said, "We are not happy with the politicians but our hope lies only in democracy. The process must go on."
Speaking at another session titled "Breaking Bad, Women and Modernity Featuring" Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy, Afiya Zia and Farzana Bari were of the view that a silent revolution is underway among rural and urban Pakistani women.
They said while women are more aware of their rights, archaic social structures still inhibit implementation of pro-women laws. Very few women work on women in agriculture, women in labour, or pro-women policies. To this end, men have an important role to play in promoting and helping the cause of mainstreaming women in prominent roles and feminism.
In the third session titled "Language, Literature and Resistance," poets Kishwar Naheed, Iftikhar Arif and Noor-ul-Huda Shah engaged in a lively discussion on role of literature in the political history of Pakistan. The panellists discussed the inevitability of all literature being political in nature.
They remembered revolutionary poets such as Faiz Ahmad Faiz who wrote on every political moment he confronted with, reminding the audience of the resistance he faced like all the poets who challenged the status quo with their work. The poets also lamented the suppression and subsequent erasure of literature in the regional languages from mainstream consciousness, noting that this has resulted in the marginalisation of many ethnic groups. The panel wrapped up with the poets recited a few verses of their work on the theme under discussion.
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