weekly Column (Side-effect- Workers' rights)

Side-effect

Workers' rights Friday, November 28, 2008 by Harris Kahlique   The first serious piece of legislation moved by the incumbent government and passed by the parliament in haste, with some members from the opposition boycotting, is the Industrial Relations Act 2008. It is now waiting to be signed off by the President of the Republic. And, what a pity, that all major federations of the trade unions in Pakistan besides the Workers Employers Bilateral Council of Pakistan (WEBCOP) have rejected the law. The opposition party, PML (N), who boycotted the proceedings that led to the passage of the bill in the national assembly, had actually passed it earlier in the senate, the upper house. Only 1.3 million out of an estimated 45 million workforce in Pakistan is unionized anyway. A lot of work has to be done in this area to not only secure worker's rights and bring sanity to some of the areas where exploitation is at its worst, but also to promote collective bargaining in accordance with the ILO conventions to which Pakistan is a signatory. Just after taking oath, the PPP-led government announced the restoration of trade unions and ensured that the rights of workers denied for too long under the previous IROs 2002 and 1969 will be realized. But according to those genuinely representing workers, what is proposed by the current law is totally contrary to these claims. According to labour leaders from Pakistan Workers Federation, Muttahida Labor Federation and National Labor Federation who together enjoy a membership of almost all who are unionized in the country, the law is in contradiction with ILO's convention 87 and conveniently bars 30 million workers, i.e. two-thirds of the total work force in the country. Obviously, it includes two million employed in agriculture and related professions. I could see that people in trade unions are shocked because this was the least they could expect from the People's Party. Besides government services, both federal and provincial, agriculture, forestry, fishing, teaching and related professions, not just the fighting arms but all corporate institutions belonging to the military generals, retired or in-service, like DHA, civilians working for them, watch and ward staff, many government corporations including PCSIR and Printing Corporation, etc. have no right to unionise and have access to collective bargaining. On top of that, the term for an elected Collective Bargaining Agency (CBA) has been reduced to two years from three. This would have a huge impact on settlement of disputes and ability for a union elected as CBA to deliver in a short span of time. Another major problem when it comes to settlements is that the definition has been amended such that now the unions can be bypassed and an employer can work directly with workmen/women to get his way. This not only opens the possibilities of coercion but also undermines the collectivization and right to association.  Moreover, WEBCOP that provides a joint forum for employers and employees had made recommendations which are ignored by the government while drafting the bill. This makes it even more interesting that while both employers and employees agree, the government doesn't. What we see generally is the government playing an arbiter between two conflicting interests. Here, it is different. For instance, definitions of terms like 'contractor', 'industry', 'trade union', 'worker and workman', etc. are agree upon between the representatives of employers and trade unions but the government has defined these terms in a lopsided fashion siding clearly with big employers and feudal agriculturists. I am all for giving protection to local entrepreneurs and industrialists through flexible duty regimes, maintaining law and order and tax rebates. But this should never happen at the cost of labor rights and denial of decent livelihood to workers. We want agriculture and industry to flourish in this country so that people can enter into a modern age with their basic necessities fulfilled and rights realized. Even the progressive industrialists and businesspersons understand that but a large part of our post-colonial bureaucracy and post-colonial politicians don't.   The writer is an Islamabad-based poet and rights campaigner. Email: harris@spopk.org

 

New Arrival

Dear All,

 

This is to inform you that we have recently added “Pakistan Journal of Statistics” Volume # 24, October 2008 in our Development Resource Center (DRC). Those who are interested in reading are more then welcome to issue the journal.

 

 

 

Regards,

 

Roohi Bano 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Senate body for promoting women skills

Source: Dawn 26 November 2008

ISLAMABAD, Nov 25: The Senate Standing Committee on Women Development has called for steps to promote skill development among women to enhance their economic empowerment and create better job opportunities for them.

A press release issued here said the senate body which visited the Government Polytechnic Institute for Women on Tuesday stressed the need for establishing linkages with organizations like Navtec to hold short-term skill development courses for unemployed females.

The committee highlighted that more industrial homes particularly in Sindh and southern Punjab should be established to cater for the needs of the female population in those areas.

The committee asked the government to launch micro-credit schemes and soft loans for rural women to help them set up their own small business ventures.

The Chairperson of the Committee, Senator Tahira Latif constituted a sub-committee under Senator Rukhsana Zuberi and its member senators Jamal Khan Leghari, Bibi Yasmin Shah, Sabina Rauf and Semeen Siddiqui to solve the problems being faced by the institute.

Ms Zuberi said that students should be imparted training in solar and bio-gas technologies to bridge the gap between supply and demand of energy.Earlier, the committee was informed that institute was providing professional education in specific fields to women to enable them in self employment and use their capabilities in the development.

Senators Tahira Latif, Bibi Yasmin Shah, Semeen Siddiqui, Jamal Khan Leghari, Fauzia Fakharuzzaman, Rukhsana Zuberi, Ayaz Khan Jogezai and Sabina Rauf attended the meeting. — OurReporter

islamabad, nov 25: the senate standing committee on women development has called for steps to promote skill development among women to enhance their economic empowerment and create better job opportunities for them. a press release issued here said the senate body which visited the government polytechnic institute for women on tuesday stressed the need for establishing linkages with organisations like navtec to hold short-term skill development courses for unemployed females. the committee highlighted that more industrial homes particular- ly in sindh and southern punjab should be established to cater for the needs of the female population in those areas. the committee asked the government to launch micro-credit schemes and soft loans for rural women to help them set up their own small business ventures. the chairperson of the committee, senator tahira latif constitu- ted a sub-committee under senator rukhsana zuberi and its mem- ber senators jamal khan leghari, bibi yasmin shah, sabina rauf and semeen siddiqui to solve the problems being faced by the insti- tute. ms zuberi said that students should be imparted training in solar and bio-gas technologies to bridge the gap between supply and de- mand of energy.earlier, the committee was informed that institute was providing professional education in specific fields to women to enable them in self employment and use their capabilities in the de- velopment. senators tahira latif, bibi yasmin shah, semeen siddiqui, jamal khan leghari, fauzia fakharuzzaman, rukhsana zuberi, ayaz khan jogezai and sabina rauf attended the meeting. — ourreporter

 

Weekly Column

Side-effect

Genetic overhaul Friday, November 21, 2008 by Harris Khalique One of my readers, who would use an anonymous email address, has sent me a message saying what we need as a people is a genetic overhaul. No less could reform us. Another dear old friend, Shershah, who is a leading gynaecologist and obstetrician of the country and a dedicated social worker vociferously, seconds this opinion. I met Dr Shershah Syed after a long time over a bowl of soup and a dish of deep fried prawns in one of his favourite Chinese haunts in Karachi. He had scores of stories to tell about how we have deteriorated both as a society and as individuals. To him, something has gone wrong with our genetic make-up and we have lost any sense of belonging to our people and association with our country. Unbridled pursuit for profit and a callous attitude towards the weak and the poor are the hallmarks of our privileged classes. The middle class, consisting of doctors, engineers, bankers, lawyers and other professionals, is selfish to the core. The marginalised communities don't count anyway. Being a doctor and a teacher himself, Shershah is disappointed most with those coming out from our medical schools. He said that every male doctor wants to get a government posting, which brings him dividends that he doesn't deserve, or a lucrative residency in a foreign land. If from central Punjab, Peshawar or interior of Sindh, he may sit the superior service examination and try getting into district management. While every freshly graduated lady doctor from Karachi, Lahore, Quetta or Peshawar fancies the idea of tying the knot with a computer engineer of Pakistani descent settled in North America. Then she may or may not practice medicine but definitely involve herself in preaching Islam to the already converted through South Asian Muslim community networks, cook biryani on Sundays and, once a mother, take children out to amusement parks carrying Halal sandwiches in her holdall. Brain drain is not the only issue. According to Shershah, those who are left behind or choose not to go bring so much incompetence and corruption to the system that the society slips backwards even more.   What is said of doctors is perhaps true in every profession. Engineers are no less and so are bankers and lawyers. They have tried to come at par with the landed aristocracy and hit-and-run businessmen. Pakistan's distant and indifferent elite, including all those I mention here, has no clue whatsoever about the state of affairs at the grassroots. Sohail Ahmed, a well respected chief engineer from PTCL who retired some time back, also relates a gory tale of corruption and mismanagement in his institution and how it was handed over to ETISALAT. He witnessed the worst kind of bad intention on the part of the policymakers and how PTCL, which was earning more than a billion-dollar revenue, was handed over to the cronies of the ruling elite who plundered its wealth in the first phase and then finally handed it over to a foreign firm. Ahmed stops short of blaming our genetics.   But here I must say that while I fully agree with the analyses of these citizens of Pakistan whose hearts bleed, I have a disagreement about the cause of our continued predicament. I understand that none of the people I have quoted above really believe that the reason for rampant corruption and inefficiency has actually to do with our genetics. It is due to the deep-felt frustration and helplessness that makes them doubt that Pakistanis are wired differently. We as humans are at a stage somewhere in the middle of the path of becoming civilised from being savages. Pakistanis are no better or no worse. People in the supposedly civilised West and the Far East live under surveillance cameras and know that they can't get away with any wrong that they do. Pakistani people are the victims of the failure of leadership, absence of good governance and the policies of their myopic elite. The change has to come from the top in every area.   The writer is an Islamabad-based poet and rights campaigner. Email: harris@spopk.org

 

New Arrival

Dear All,

 

This is to inform you that we have recently added “2007 Events & Analysis: Resist terror -Work for change” Published by Shirkat Gha Organization in our DRC. Those who are interested in reading are more then welcome to issue the book.

 

 

 

Regards,

 

Roohi Bano 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PBM to employ 15,000 women in production units

Source: Dawn- November 17, 2008

 

ISLAMABAD, Nov 16: Pakistan Baitul Mal (PBM), through its ‘Production Units Programme’, would employ 15,000 women being trained at 150 vocational centres across the country.

Managing Director, PBM, Zamurad Khan, while talking to this agency, here on Sunday, said: “PBM will use the buildings of these vocational training centres as production houses in all the four provinces and those who have completed their training would work in these production units to earn livelihood.” He said this effort would not only provide relief to the domestic women, but also ensure opportunities to them to display their creative skills and enhance professionalism.

The vocational centres in various districts are providing free training to widows, orphans and poor girls in different skills.

He said PBM would also establish display centres in major cities to showcase the diversity of crafts from various regions prepared by these domestic women.

Pakistan Baitul Mal had planned to open vocational training centres in jails for women prisoners initially one in each province. In this connection, one vocational training centre is running in Haripur (NWFP). However other regions have informed that the establishment of vocational training centre was not feasible in any of their jail. Pakistan Baitul Mal was making a significant contribution towards poverty reduction through its various poorest-of-the-poor-focused services by providing assistance to destitute, widows, orphans, invalids, and other needy persons irrespective of their gender, caste, creed and religion through its ongoing projects of Food Support Programme (FSP), Child Support Programme (CSP), Individual Financial Assistance (IFA), Institutional Rehabilitation, National Centres for Rehabilitation of Child Labor (NCRCL) and vocational training centres (VTC).

Talking about the working of Food Support Programme (FSP) of Pakistan Baitul Mal, Zamurad Khan said there was a shortage of funds while Benazir Income Support Programme initiated by the federal government was more useful than the FSP to support deserving families.—APP

islamabad, nov 16: pakistan baitul mal (pbm), through its ‘production units programme’, would employ 15,000 women being trained at 150 vocational centres across the country. managing director, pbm, zamurad khan, while talking to this agency, here on sunday, said: “pbm will use the buildings of these vocational training centres as production houses in all the four provinces and those who have completed their training would work in these production units to earn livelihood.” he said this effort would not only provide relief to the domes- tic women, but also ensure oppor- tunities to them to display their creative skills and enhance pro- fessionalism. the vocational centres in vari- ous districts are providing free training to widows, orphans and poor girls in different skills. he said pbm would also estab- lish display centres in major cit- ies to showcase the diversity of crafts from various regions pre- pared by these domestic women. pakistan baitul mal had plan- ned to open vocational training centres in jails for women prison- ers initially one in each province. in this connection, one vocation- al training centre is running in haripur (nwfp). however other regions have informed that the establishment of vocational training centre was not feasible in any of their jail.pakistan baitul mal was making a signifi- cant contribution towards pover- ty reduction through its various poorest-of-the-poor-focused serv- ices by providing assistance to destitute, widows, orphans, inva- lids, and other needy persons ir- respective of their gender, caste, creed and religion through its on- going projects of food support programme (fsp), child support programme (csp), individual financial assistance (ifa), institutional rehabilitation, national centres for rehabilitation of child labour (ncrcl) and vocational training centres (vtc). talking about the working of food support programme (fsp) of pakistan baitul mal, zamurad khan said there was a shortage of funds while benazir income support programme initiated by the federal government was more useful than the fsp to sup- port deserving families.—app

 

Side-Effect (Change we Need)

Side-effect

Change we need Friday, November 14, 2008 by Harris Khalique The result of the US elections instils a new hope in me and reaffirms my belief in democracy. This feeling is shared with the vast majority of Americans and non-Americans living across different continents. Some of us who live in Islamabad had the opportunity to watch the results coming and the announcements being made live from the US in the backyard of the US embassy over breakfast, courtesy Ambassador Anne Patterson and her able staff from the political section. Tears rolled down the cheeks of many when it was declared that Obama had won and people felt as if they were a part of the crowd that had gathered in Chicago to greet the new president and listen to his speech. President-elect Obama said that what makes America great is not its wealth or fire power but its democratic values. In Pakistan, we look forward to see him translate his words into the new American policy and apply it evenly to all nations. Some months ago when Ambassador Patterson was heard contemplating about why there is so much Anti-Americanism in sections of Pakistani population, I am not sure if someone told her that it was due to the US supporting dictatorships and corrupt leaders across the third world including Pakistan in order to pursue its military and economic interests. It is about time that American leadership negotiates a new vision and shares this planet on equal terms with other people. This is the only way through which their pre-eminence in the comity of nations will remain unchallenged. And like the rest of the third world, Pakistan also will not become peaceful without bringing an end to injustice, poverty, bigotry and ignorance. To this end, a new initiative has been formally launched last weekend in Rawalpindi, the founding conference of a new country-wide political party, named the Awami Party Pakistan. It was attended by a wide cross section of people from all over Pakistan including peasants, workers, activists, lawyers, teachers, journalists, businessmen and progressive political workers. The participants discussed the objectives and framework for the party manifesto and took decisions regarding the future course of action. The first declaration of the party clearly spelt out that the party will pursue policies based on equality and social justice. It will develop a strong economy based on egalitarian principles. The party will adopt an independent foreign policy and conditions will be created to ensure that direct and indirect military interventions are eliminated. Simultaneously, an end to militancy, sectarianism and religious extremism will be ensured. Agricultural reforms including land redistribution and growth in agricultural produce will be undertaken. Industrial development especially from national entrepreneurs but also from international investors on terms favourable to Pakistan will be encouraged, but without ever compromising labour rights. Quality education without discrimination and a uniform standard of education for all children will be ensured irrespective of their economic status. Health, housing and fundamental municipal services will be provided. All discriminatory laws against women and religious minorities will be repealed. FCR will be abolished. Overseas Pakistanis will be given the right to vote.   More than 300 women and men who attended the conference decided to hold a national party convention within one year. In the meanwhile, intensive mobilization will be undertaken and a collective leadership fostered. Dr Hasan Nasir was elected to remain the interim convener while proper elections for the leadership would take place at the convention later next year. What our pundits seek now is 'change' as in 'spare change' in their begging bowls. What we need is change, real change from what we have been subjected to as a people since 1947 The writer is an Islamabad-based poet and rights campaigner. Email: harris@spopk.org

 

 

 

 

 

(IHI Press Release) Rights Activists Flay Inclusion of Zehri, Bijarani in Cabinet.

Dawn November 07, 2008

ISLAMABAD, Nov 6: The civil society, human rights and women rights organizations have criticized the government for inducting two parliamentarians in the federal cabinet who ‘justified honour killings’ and inhuman tribal customs.

In a statement issued here Thursday, the representatives of over a dozen CSOs and NGOs said: “We, members of Insani Haqooq Ittehad express our strong condemnation and disappointment at the inclusion of Mir Israrullah Zehri and Mir Hazar Khan Bijarani in the new cabinet”.

In September when Senator Bibi Yasmin Shah raised the issue of burying alive of five women in Balochistan in the Senate, Mir Israrullah Zehri stunned members of the parliament that such “tribal traditions helped stop obscenity”.

He asked other legislators not to make a big issue out of it saying, “These are centuries-old traditions and I will continue to defend them. Only those who indulge in immoral acts should be afraid.” Three teenage girls and two elder women, abducted from the Umrani tribe, were shot first and buried alive.

Their crime was that they dared to think that they could choose the men they would contract a marriage. The two elder women were killed possibly because they were sympathetic to the girls’.

Their bodies were found halfeaten by wild animals. The barbaric crime horrified the whole nation.

Mir Hazar Khan Bijarani has also supported crimes against women. In 2005 he presided over a jirga in Kashmore, Sindh, forcing five minor girls to be given as compensation for a murder according to the reprehensible custom of Sang Chatti or Vanni.

He has been appointed Minister for Education! “While on the one hand President Zardari has ordered an enquiry into the tragic murder of 16 years old Tasleem Solangi, and has declared himself to be a supporter of the rights of women, on the other he has inducted two men who uphold and practice barbaric traditions that are used to kill and murder countless innocent girls and women”, the statement said.

They demanded disqualification from sitting in the parliament of those who, according to them, do not uphold the Constitution of the country and human rights, let alone be members of the Cabinet.

“It is high time to dispense with the politics of compromise and appeasement.” Those who have signed the statement are: Samar Minallah (Ethnomedia), Bilal Naqeeb (SPO), Samina Nazir (PODA), Naeem Mirza (Aurat Foundation), Aimal Khattak (SDPI), Fauzia Minallah (Funkor), Nageen Hayat (WAF), Shabana Arif (Rozan), Amjad Nazir (ActionAid), Arifa Mazhar (Sungi) Saleem Malik (Bedari), Sarwar Bari (Pattan), Shahnaz Bokhari (Progressive Women’s Association), Nasreen Azhar (HRCP), Farzana Bari and Marvi Sirmed.