Policy & Law - Page 8

Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

Adopted and opened for signature, ratification and accession by General Assembly resolution 44/25 of 20 November 1989 entry into force 2 September 1990, in accordance with article 49 Preamble The States Parties to the present Convention, Considering that, in accordance with the principles proclaimed in the Charter of the United Nations, recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and…

IHC Judgement on Child Marriage Case

Honourable Justice BABAR SATTAR of the The Islamabad High Court Issuing a written order on the plea of a woman seeking recovery of her 16-year-old daughter who had filed an affidavit to say she had tied the knot of her own free will. The Islamabad High Court (IHC) declared the…

Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

Entry into force: 3 May 2008, in accordance with article 45(1). Preamble…

Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women

Entry into force: 3 September 1981, in accordance with article 27(1). Introduction…

Balochistan plans reforms in education, healthcare sectors

QUETTA: The Balochistan cabinet has decided to introduce sweeping reforms in the education and healthcare sectors to enhance service delivery and also approved the integration of the federal Levies force into the Balochistan Levies administrative framework, aiming to bolster provincial control and coordination. The two-day cabinet meeting, which concluded on…

Child marriages: LHC Judgement

THE recent judgement of the Lahore High Court in ‘Azka Wahid vs Province of Punjab’ has declared the arbitrary distinction in the legally prescribed minimum age of marriage in the Punjab Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929 18 years for men and 16 years for women as unconstitutional. Decades of lobbying…

Law on the Custody of Children in Pakistan

This video discusses Muslim family law and the law on the custody of children in Pakistan in the case of parental separation. It explains that under Islamic law, children’s custody is initially granted to the mother until the age of 7 for boys while she retains the daughter’s custody till…

Bill proposed for increasing minimum age for girl marriage

LAHORE: The Child Protection Welfare Bureau (CPWB) has proposed the Child Marriage Restraint Bill 2024-25 to the Punjab government. The bill suggests increasing the minimum age for girls to marry to 18 years. CPWB Chairperson Sarah Ahmad has written to Punjab Home Secretary Noorul Amin Mengal, emphasizing the urgent need…

Legal Reforms for Preventing Girls from Child Marriage

Child marriages remain a pressing issue globally, affecting the lives of millions of young girls. According to UNICEF, one in every six young women is married during childhood. To combat this harmful practice, the National Commission on the Rights of Child (NCRC) has taken significant steps towards legal reforms in…

Policymakers urged to integrate mental health services into primary care settings

PESHAWAR: Experts have called upon policymakers to integrate mental health services into primary care settings to scale up awareness and reduce stigma associated with mental health illnesses among people. At the concluding session of fourth International Public Health Conference at Khyber Medical University (KMU) on 20 April 2024, they termed…

Trapped BY Taboos in Pakistan

April is recognised as the Sexual Assault Awareness Month globally. In Pakistan, though, sexual awareness remains a controversial topic and it is often falsely equated with promoting immorality and indecency. In reality, it is to the contrary and sexual awareness plays a pivotal role in preventing sexual violence, which is…

Cybercrime control law draft ready

LAHORE: In the wake of rapid technological advancement and rising cybercrime , the Punjab home department has prepared a first draft of the “Punjab Cyber Crime Control, Prevention and Punishment Act, 2024.” The first draft of the proposed cybercrime control law has for the first time identified all kinds of…

LHC directed Punjab Government to revise Child Marriage Restraint Act 1929

LAHORE: Declaring the definition of ‘child’ in the Child Marriage Act, 1929 unconstitutional, the Lahore High Court has directed the Punjab government to revise the provincial version of the legislation and end the age-based distinction between males and females. `The definition of child in the 1929 Act while making a…

Man sentenced to 80 lashes for denying child’s paternity

KARACHI: A sessions court has sentenced a man to 80 lashes for refusing to admit paternity of his child and falsely accusing his ex-wife of adultery. Additional District and Sessions Judge (Malir) Shehnaz Bohyo convicted Fareed Qadir under Section 7(1) of the Offence of Qazf (Enforcement Of Hadd) Ordinance, 1979…