National Conference on active citizenship commences
By Uzma Babar

Islamabad—Renowned human rights activist, 1. A. Rehman has said that the civil society's ability to constructively participate in the affairs of the country is increasingly squeezing. "Citizen's are alienated and are losing their trust in their ability to bring about meaningful change" he added.
Delivering keynote address on Civic Courage in Pakistan at National Conference on Active Citizenship arranged by the Centre for Civic Education Pakistan, I. A. Rehman said, "finally the 160 million citizens of Pakistan will he successful in the endeavours to realize dream of people-centered Pakistan." However, lie added, till then many generations would have been destroyed.
A. Rehman, cited corruption in political parties, which are the legitimate platform for participation, as a cause of political apathy amongst the masses. He argued that rampant corruption at the institutional level has seeped down to the electoral processes, clue to which the masses did not trust the strength of their vote. "Politics and institutions have been systematically destroyed in Pakistan," he added.
Women rights activist, Samar Minallah presented her efforts against the custom of Swara. Apart from shocking statistics regarding women right's violations. numerous cases of Swara, a custom that is prevalent nationally under different names, were shared. The main focus of the presentation was the fact that Swara has no Islamic or/and cultural hasis. The presentation concluded with a touching documentary "Cultural Practices and the Status of Women: Swara- A Case Study." The presentation was an inspiring example of one individual taking up an issue, collaborating with the relevant actors and bringing about a change. Jami Chandi moderated the session.
In the second half of the conference, the latest CCF- Pakistan publication entitled "Freedom of Information: 5 years on. Window yet to be Opened" was launched, Gafarullah Khan executive director, of the CCF-Pakistan shared the findings of the report. The participants were given a detailed overview of the F10-2002 implementation.