Human Rights Minister Dr Shireen M Mazari has said that we are committed to ensure the rights of every citizen including the rights of differently abled people and to bring them in to the mainstream. She said we are working on creating awareness about the laws, especially for people who are differently abled, adding that Human Rights Ministry has prepared a law on differently abled people which is lying in the standing committee of the parliament. She expressed these views while addressing the launching ceremony of Application ‘DeafTawk’ for disables here in Islamabad on Friday. She appreciated the entrepreneurs who set up the application for disables and said that Private-public partnership is a best way to support the disables and government have the will to implement policies and will support the private entrepreneurs especially the youth. Addressing the audience, Dr Mazari said our Constitution guarantees the rights of every citizen without any prejudice. She emphasized that we should not look at this issue as a social welfare issue but as a right based issue. Dr Mazari said there are rights that are guaranteed to every citizen in the country and those rights have to be protected. She said all out efforts are being made to ensure the provision of facilities to the differently abled people and to bring them in to the mainstream. She also appreciated the work and efforts of the youth and differently abled people. She said we have to change the society’s mindset as the environment is not encouraging for differently abled people in the country, we are also working on creating awareness about the laws, she added. Dr Mazari said we should also focus on the differently abled people who suffer from non physical disabilities as well. The incumbent government was committed to protect the rights of all our citizens, she said. She added that our focus is to raise the level of marginalized and to bring them into the mainstream so that they can fully participate in the development of Pakistan. She said we have set up poverty alleviation program. She said besides implementation of existing laws we are also working on new legislation. She said we have started awareness campaigns to prevent the child abuse including the women right to inheritance. She said our ministry is also working on the gender based violence. Human Rights Ministry has also proposed a bill on domestic violence, she further added. Shireen Mazari said we have also started a first ever data collection in collaboration with UNICEF on Child Labour and our Child Labour survey is to be completed soon. Ministry of Human Rights has established helpline 1099 to report issues related to human rights abuses and we are also providing the facility of probono lawyers to human rights victims in almost all districts especially the women. She said Human rights ministry was committed to ensure the rights of every citizen not through social welfare but through rights in our Constitution which is our obligation to fulfil. Large number of differently abled people, students and representatives of the TeamUp, Telecommunication Company Jazz and others also attended the event.
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