Nilofar vows to end violence against women
By Asghar Ali Mubarak

ISLAMABAD—Advisor to the Prime Minister for Women Development Mrs. Nilofar Bakhtiar has said that present government is committed to end all kind of violence against women. She said this while addressing a Press Conference here today. The Press Conference was to arranged to brief the media about the forth coming “ Regional Conference on Violence against Women”. It will be held in Islamabad on 7-8 September 2005 at Islamabad.
The inauguration session will be President Pervaiz Musharraf. 60 delegates from 25 countries are participating in the conference. The include Ministers, government official, media persons and survivors of violence. Members of the Overseas Pakistani Network are also taking part in the conference.
The Advisor elaborated that different instances of violence against women are part of a continuum of violence which underpins all spheres of private and public life. Theses range from the most extreme forms of overt brutality to the more subtle and invisible forms which cripple the mind and destroy human potential. For any attempt to deal with the issues of violence, it is critical to understand and recognize the structures and categories of violence that pervade our society. Discrimination on the basis of sexual difference, and the patterns of violence initially founded in the family structure, is repeated within the masculine ambits of the community, the work place, the street, and in the institutions of the state, in both explicit and implicit forms.
Invitations have been extended to the Minister Incharge of Women Development’ in many countries of the world namely India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Afghanistan, Bhutan Malaysia, Sweden, USA, Canada, Australia etc. with request to participate in this conference and lead a delegation comprising two members each from the Civil Society Organizations, Media, the Survivors and the Chairperson of the National Commission on the Status of Women.25 countries with 65 delegates are participating.
Answering a question she inform that activist and experts from many regions have
sent papers for the conference and will contribute as panellists.