Advisor to the Prime Minister on Women Development Nilofar Bakhtiar has said that 5,000 volunteers have so far been enrolled in the national committee on the Karo Kari law to create awareness among the masses about the law. The volunteers include MNAs and MPAs and different NGOs will also conduct seminars in every nook and corner of the country to create awareness among the common people about their rights protected under the Karo Kari law, she said while talking to a private TV channel.

Nilofar Bakhtiar said the law has been translated into different regional languages to make the law easy for understanding of a common man.

Copies of the translated versions are being provided to the concerned departments and police stations so that they can comply with the law in letter and in spirit.

She said action would be taken against those law enforcement departments, which would not proceed against any accused of honour killing in their respective areas.

To a question she said before the passage of the bill all women MNAs and MPAs were invited to a meeting to discuss the law. All the participants were of the view that the bill must be tabled before the National Assembly at the earliest, she added.

The Advisor said later the bill was referred to the concerned committee of the National Assembly, which discussed it for two and half months.

Nilofar said she herself visited all the four provinces to take their point of view and achieve consensus and this process took one-and-a-half year.

The Karo Kari bill was tabled before the NA after achieving complete national consensus, she added.

Copyright Associated Press of Pakistan, 2005