State Parties To Take Legislative Measures To Protect Women’s Rights

News Desk

Rawalpindi: States parties agree to take all appropriate measures, including legislation and temporary special measures, so that women can enjoy all their human rights and fundamental freedoms, stated Commissioner Rawalpindi Laiqat Ali Chatta.

Laiqat Ali Chatta informed the participants of the National Women Workers Convention on Gender-Based Violence (GBV) that the government is well aware of the problems faced by businesswomen in the current economic conditions and that efforts are being made to provide relief to them in every possible manner.

The event was held at the Punjab Arts Council on Tuesday, and was a joint collaboration between the Punjab Arts Council and the Rawalpindi Women’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The Commissioner further said that the 1979 United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) lays the groundwork for achieving gender parity by guaranteeing that women have equal access to and opportunities in political and public life, including the right to vote and to run for office, as well as the right to education, health and employment.

In June 2019, the government, employer and worker members of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) adopted a groundbreaking treaty known as the Violence and Harassment Convention (C190), mentioned Chatta.

The treaty is the first to set international legal standards for preventing and responding to violence and harassment in workplaces, he added.

The Convention defines violence and harassment as a “range of unacceptable behaviours and practises, or threats thereof, whether a single occurrence or repeated, that result in, or are likely to result in physical, psychological, sexual, or economic harm, and includes gender-based violence and harassment”.

Victims of violence and harassment can be anyone in the world of work, including employees, persons working irrespective of their contractual status, and persons in training and individuals exercising the authority, duties, or responsibilities of an employer.