LHC CJ’s address: Decide cases without fear, LHC CJ tells female judges

LAHORE: Chief Justice of Lahore High Court Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah has called upon woman judges to play their pivotal role in providing the female litigants their fundamental rights by deciding cases without fear or pressure.

The LHC Chief Justice said there is gender discrimination in our society. Women are harassed and assaulted. They are not given their due rights in property and education. We need to make our society free of gender discrimination. Approximate 52 percent of women in our society are prey to gender discrimination. He called upon women judges to play their pivotal role in providing the woman litigants their fundamental rights by deciding their cases without fear or pressure. The judges should keep it in mind that they are judges only and words of Mr, Miss or Mrs are being removed from their nameplates.

The chief justice expressed these views after inaugurating 2nd Punjab Women Judges’ conference, Friday in a local hotel. 

The three-day conference organised by Punjab Judicial Academy under the guidance of Justice Ayesha A Malik was attended by Justice Shujaat Ali Khan, Justice Aalia Neelum, LHC Registrar Syed Khursheed Anwar Rizvi, District Judiciary DG Muhammad Akmal Khan, President International Association of Women Judges, Justice of the Supreme Court of Entre Rios, Argentina, Susana Medina, retired Justice from the Court of Appeal of Tanzania, Justice Eusebia Munuo, Judge Wisconsin Supreme Court, Justice Ann Walsh Bradley, President of the Court of Sousse, Tunisia, Human Rights Education Director, Anne Tierney Goldstein, former Supreme Court Judge of South Australia, Dr Robyn Layton, the woman judges from all over the Punjab, judges from KP and Islamabad. The conference will conclude tomorrow (Sunday).

Earlier, Justice Ayesha A Malik delivered a welcome speech and spoke about objectives of the conference. She said the conference was organised with slogan “Improving Access to Justice” and topics related to gender sensitivity, gender equality and creating a better environment for women who come to courts for justice. She said we will also highlight to consider the way in view of gender-friendly courts, sensitise judges dealing with gender-based cases and other hurdles faced by women to access the court. She welcomed the judges and the participants.

International Association of Women Judges  President Justice Susana Medina, Punjab Judicial Academy  Director General, Mahrukh Aziz, Additional District and Sessions Judge, Ayesha Rasheed and Civil Judge Shazia Munawar also spoke to the inaugural session.