KARACHI:Lawyers for Human Rights and Legal Aid (LHRLA) in collaboration with Women Development Department Sindh and Viftech Solutions on Thursday organized the launching ceremony of ‘Mobile App and Web Portal for Incident Reporting’ at a local hotel for the protection of rights of women and girls.
The support of this latest technology will facilitate and ensure immediate reporting and subsequent solution to any instance of violence against women and girls in the country.
The ceremony was presided over by Minister for Women Development Department Sindh, Syeda Shehla Raza. Speaking on this occasion, Shehla said the Sindh government was taking practical steps to empower women in social, economic and political spheres so that they could be able to play their due role for society development.
She said the department had signed several memorandum of understandings with the NGOs including Legal Rights Forum, Women Protection Cell and Sarim Burney Welfare Trust. The minister said that complaint cell 1094 had been upgraded to resolve women issues on priority basis. She said women protection units had also been established in 16 districts of the Sindh province and more than 30 cases had been reported in those centers every month.
She said Sindh government was in strategic cooperation with LHRLA on realizing women rights. She appreciated the efforts of LHRLA to resolve the women issues.
Viftech Solutions CEO Nazim Rajani said, “I’m really looking forward to a world that doesn’t tolerate gender based violence, and I urge everyone to join a strong and growing global movement of advocacy and activism. This App is a good first step, but we will continue to push for progress and change.“
President LHRLA Zia Ahmed Awan said that women and girls could easily report incidents of violence and avail the protection and prevention services of the Women Protection Unit (WPU) through mobile App and web portal at any hour of the night or day.
Awan further said that the violence against women and girls in Pakistan remained largely underreported because women and their families feel hesitant in reporting the incidents. Where there’s a will, there isn’t a way; women find troubles in reporting the cases. He explained that CRMIS and VAWIR will allow the survivors of gender-based violence, their families and the people knowing about the incident to report the case in a swift, easy and secure manner.
He added that LHRLA had been using technology to combat VAWG since long and was a global network of 188 helplines in 175 countries. He further added this initiative will strengthen the collaboration with governmental, non- governmental institutions, civil society and law enforcement agencies as accurate data will result in more effective services of protection and prevention to women survivors of violence.
Furthermore, web portals of LHRLA and Madadgaar are also integrated with this system. Such help requests can also be initiated online by filling a simple form and a virtual counselling functionality is made available giving opportunity to survivors to have 24/7 anonymous counselling sessions, he explained.
In September 2018, LHRLA established a Women Protection Unit (WPU) integrated with its Madadgaar National Helpline 1098 (Pakistan’s first helpline for women and children) and its Legal Aid Center in Karachi in 2018.