The National Assembly Standing Committee on Human Rights on Friday expressed concern over the performance of insurance companies and directed them to ensure implementation on Insurance Ordinance, 2000 in letter and spirit. Chaired by its chairman, Riaz Fatyana, the committee expressed resentment, as insurance companies admitted that the Ordinance was issued in 2000, but was not implemented yet.
The committee directed the insurance companies that necessary measures should be taken to address the complaints of the clients and also asked them to constitute special committees to resolve small disputes. The Chairman of the Committee said that he himself was victim of the insurance companies. "This is your performance in dealing with a member of the National Assembly what will be your attitudes in common man cases," he said while giving his observations.
The committee directed the insurance companies to improve their performance based on the Insurance Ordinance, 2000 and also recommended that they should ensure that every client must receive annual letter comprising information regarding the details of polices as well as received or pending instalments. It was further recommended to publish agreements in local languages, being signed with the clients.
Officials of insurance companies informed the committee that progress on the directives by President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani was under way to give health and disability cover to the clients within a month. The committee, while taking up the issue of status of human rights in the country, expressed serious concern over the worst human rights violation across the country particularly with regard to members of the minorities in Sindh and Balochistan.
The committee directed inspector general of police of all provinces to set up special cells in their respective provinces to monitor and stop violence against members of the minorities. The committee also directed officials concerned of Balochistan to take stringent measures to stop kidnapping of the member of the Hindu community and also recover the abducted five members of the Hindu community and their spiritual leader who have been kidnapped in separate incidents from Qalat and Quetta.
The committee condemned the killing of Salmaan Taseer, parents of Justice Javed Iqbal and the murder of a journalist in Karachi Wali Khan Babar, as the panel urged the government to arrest the killers and give them exemplary punishment. Committee member Marvi Memon raised the issue of eight journalists who have been killed during 2010 and also expressed serious concern over the increasing incidents of killing of the media persons. However, the committee directed the government to ensure security to journalists.
The committee also took strong notice of a woman belonging to Ghotki district, Haleema Bhutto who appeared in the committee and alleged that a sitting MNA of ruling PPP has allegedly occupied her land. The committee urged its members Fouzia Habib and Farha Ispahani to take up the issue with President and get restored the occupied land of the victim lady.
The committee also took notice of non-implementation of the Supreme Court directives by the management of the sate-run television for not regularising its employees. Some employees of the state run television appeared before the committee and expressed the fear that they might face termination, as the management was not abiding by the apex court verdict regarding regularisation of 900 employees. The panel, however, directed the secretary information and broadcasting to implement the apex court decision and asked the management of the state run television to submit reply within 10 days.