Dr Fehmida Mirza, Speaker National Assembly has stressed the need to strengthen the women police force and set up more women police stations to help stop violence against women. "Women in the country were subject to domestic violence, harassment at work place and discrimination in different walks of life and these trends can only be arrested by empowering women, she said while talking to journalists during her visit to Rescue 15 here on Saturday.
She was given a detailed briefing about the performance of Rescue 15 and women police stations in the country. She said that women in Pakistan were the victims of injustices, discrimination and violence and women empowerment was essential to root out poverty from the country.
Women rights protection laws would be enacted to empower them. She said that Benazir Bhutto had a vision for women empowerment and first women police station was established during her premiership, she added. Dr Fehmida said that the women police stations would be strengthened and its ambit would also be extended to other parts of the country by providing them adequate funds, infrastructure, equipment and improved service structure.
She was presented a guard of honour and later briefed by the Inspector General of Police, Asghar Raza Gerdezi about the functions, jurisdiction and problems related to the working of women police stations in Islamabad.
During the briefing IG Police Islamabad said that the salary structure of Islamabad Police should commensurate with that of Motorway Police and Punjab Police. He said that Women Police and Islamabad Police were not getting due patronage from the government when compared to other law enforcing agencies. He also proposed creation of a constabulary force comprising ten thousand personnel. Speaker assured the IGP that their genuine demands would be recommended to the concerned quarters for action.