(MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO)
The Child Rights Network (CRN) and the Philippine Legislators’ Committee on Population and Development (PLCPD) identified the proposed legislations as those on “Anti-Child Rape Bill,” “Prohibition of Child Marriage” and the “Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention.”
The two non-governmental organizations said that last Dec. 1, the House of Representatives approved on third and final reading House Bill 7836 which provides for stronger protection against rape, sexual exploitation, and abuse and increasing the age for determining the commission of statutory rape from below 12 to below 16 years.
They said HB 7836 “contains potent provisions which include increasing the age to determine statutory rape from below 12 to below 16, equalizing the protection for victims of rape, whether a boy or a girl, and the removal of marriage as forgiveness exemption where the perpetrator is freed of legal responsibility if the perpetrator marries the person he rape
CM Mahmood Khan orders reforms in Social Welfare Dept
Peshawar
December 25, 2020
PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Mahmood Khan has ordered introduction of reforms in the Social Welfare Department to streamline and improve its performance.
He was chairing a meeting on Thursday to review the overall progress of the department and its subordinate bodies, said an official handout.
Member Provincial Assembly Dr Sumera Shams, Secretary Social Welfare Manzoor Ahmad, Secretary Finance Atif Rehman and other relevant senior officials attended the meeting. It was decided to constitute a high-level committee consisting of lawmakers, administrative secretaries of relevant departments and other senior officials.
The committee was directed to come up with proposals to this effect within a month. The chief minister termed the establishment of Shelter Homes (Panah Gahs) a pro-poor initiative of Prime Minister Imran Khan for the protection of the marginalised and vulnerable segments of society.
Menace of child marriage continue unabated in Pakistan middleeaststar.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from middleeaststar.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Menace of child marriage continues unabated in Pakistan, says columnist Sulman Ali ANI | Updated: Dec 25, 2020 00:52 IST
Islamabad [Pakistan], December 25 (ANI): The menace of forced child marriage continues unabated in Pakistan and the repeated incidents have shown that the issue is deep-rooted in the country, said columnist Sulman Ali.
Recently, a 13-year-old Christan girl Arzoo was abducted allegedly by Ali Azhar, a 44-year-old man in Karachi. She was forcibly converted to Islam and was married off to the man.
The recent case of Arzoo has reignited the debate in the country, said Ali.
In a column in The Nation, Ali writes: The menace of child marriage doesn t seem to end in Pakistan, as another case of alleged forced marriage and conversion of minority Christian girl surfaced in Karachi. The repeated incidents have shown that the issue is deep-rooted in the country.