NGO concerned about security of released women prisoners
PESHAWAR, July 17 2006: The Aurat Foundation, a women’s advocacy group, demanded on Thursday that the government take measures to insure security of the women who were released from prisons across the country under the July 7 ordinance. A meeting was held under the auspices of the foundation earlier this week amongst members of the Legislative Watch Programme — a congregation of people from various strata of society – in which they discussed the pros and cons of the ordinance and termed it an 11 acknowledgment of the fact that the issue of women prisoners did exist in the country”, according to a press release.
Women convicts had been facing security issues in the prisons and there was no guarantee of security even after their release from state prisons, stated the press release. “Most of the women prisoners will not be able to benefit from the ordinance if there was no concession in furnishing the surety bonds,” said the participants. The participants of the programme were also concerned over the issue of release of only those women who were accompanied by male family members, saying, “This condition should be done away with and woman prisoners should be released even if there is no Wali (man family member) to accompany them”. The members also demanded appointment of female probation officers. “Releasing the woman prisoners to probation officers will entail more problems,” they said, adding that few women prisoners would be released on bails under the probation officers.
Source: Daily Times
Date:7/17/2006
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