Pakistan’s President Pervez Musharraf has promised that he will initiate more bills in the National Assembly to protect the rights of women in the country.
He said that government has no plans to retrace it’s steps on the recently induced Women Protection Bill (WPB). The new bill has changed the rape and adultery component of Hudood Ordinance, which was brought in by Zia ul Haq in 1989.
Musharraf said further that the government would work and prepare legislations to balance the century-old unjust social practices against women in Pakistan.
The government is concentrating on the reform of the inheritance law.
It would give property rights to women, would ban dowries, and would make law to restrict forced marriages, practice of ‘wani’ and the three times ‘talaq’ issue.
Necessary steps in these areas are needed to remove social injustices against women.
At the same time, Musharraf has urged women to go and vote out the extremist elements from power in coming general elections.
Earlier, Musharraf had signed on new amendments to the rape law in last week. After that four male witnesses would be required in order to prosecute a rape in Pakistan.
According to it, judges may opt that a rape case should be tried in a criminal court or not the need of four witnesses rule or will it go under the old Islamic law, Hudood Ordinance, or not.
