Authorities Urged To Ensure Protection Of Rights Of Women With Disabilities

The speakers at a media briefing urged the authorities to ensure the protection of the rights of women with disabilities in addition to taking measures to eliminate gender-based discrimination

FAISALABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 4th Jul, 2024) The speakers at a media briefing urged the authorities to ensure the protection of the rights of women with disabilities in addition to taking measures to eliminate gender-based discrimination.

The government must ensure that no person with disabilities is left behind in policy-making and development plans rather than creating a friendly environment for disabled and eradicate all barriers that prevent persons with disabilities from entering the mainstream of development.

These demands were raised by disability rights activists during a media briefing titled "Pakistan Response to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)” held at a local hotel here on Thursday.

The event was organized by an NGO Association of Women for Awareness and Motivation (AWAM) in collaboration with the Disability Rights Action Group (DRAG), the Community-Based Inclusive Development (CBID) Network, and the Chanan Network on completing 13 years of ratification to UNCRPD by Pakistan.

AWAM Executive Director / former member of the Punjab Commission on the Status of Women (PCSW) Shazia Jorge, Deputy Director AWAM Sonia Patras, Al-Haaj Chaudhry Latif Gill (Convener DRAG) and Mian Iftikhar Ahmad, General Secretary DRAG were among the key speakers.

They said that women with disabilities are the most marginalized group within the disability community and required special attention from authorities and political decision-makers.

They commended that the Punjab government had approved a law for persons with disabilities in 2022 and incorporated the recommendations of the UNCRPD committee. However, appropriate resources have not been allocated, nor have further measures been taken to implement it.

They further said that people with disabilities should not be limited to charity work, but they should be included in development work adding that initiatives like the launch of easy loan schemes for persons with disabilities can ensure a dignified life by empowering them.