CSW-Sindh Regrets Reported Withdrawal Of Women Candidates Under Garb Of Seat Adjustment

The Sindh Commission on Status of Women (CSW-Sindh) has taken strong exception to unofficial withdrawal of some women candidates, who were issued party tickets for general seats, from the field by their party leaderships.

KARACHI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 24th Jul, 2018 ) :The Sindh Commission on Status of Women (CSW-Sindh) has taken strong exception to unofficial withdrawal of some women candidates, who were issued party tickets for general seats, from the field by their party leaderships.

CSW-Sindh Chairperson Nuzhat Shireen talking to APP Tuesday said some political parties had issued tickets to women in compliance to the mandatory provision of 5 percent quota, were now reportedly seeking their withdrawal on the under pretext of seat adjustments with like-minded parties.

"This is a deliberate attempt to hoodwink the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and also deprive women contenders who had been actively engaged in canvassing in their respective Constituencies for several months," she added.

Nuzhat Shireen particularly referred to unofficial withdrawal of Nusrat Seher Abbasi, former member of the Sindh Assembly and an active member of Pakistan Muslim League-Functional, who was given ticket by Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) to contest election against Pakistan Peoples Party's Syed Khurshid Shah from NA-206 Sukkur.

"Nusrat has reportedly been advised by her party leadership to discontinue her canvassing in favour of a new ally in the constituency as she already tops the GDA's nominated list for women reserved seats." she noted.

She mentioned that similar complaints had also been made by another woman candidate Almas of GDA from Karachi and also one belonging to the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf.

She said the provincial commission since its establishment early this year had been striving to ensure maximum involvement of women in the decision making bodies.

Nuzhat Shirin said political leaders were said to have been directly and also through different channels suggested to issue their party tickets for general seats as well as reserved seats to different candidates so that more and more women might reach the parliament.

"Factually what we see is that women given seats for general seats are also among the candidates for reserved seats," she said regretting that most of the parties have nominated women candidates on weak seat that are believe to have little chance of success.

"This is a trend we have been registering and continue to notice since past several years," said CWS-Sindh chairperson.

Nuzhat Shirin, however, was highly appreciable of new election law introducing special measures for enrolment of women voters.

"ECP is under legal compulsion to maintain gender-disaggregated voters' data and take special steps for women enrolment in areas where the variation in men and women voters in more than 10%," she said.

Similarly, she said that polling stations results will also contain gender-disaggregated figures and ECP may order repoll in such polling stations or the constituency where the women turnout remainsless than 10 percent.