Social activists to launch anti-drug activities

MANSEHRA: The female participants of a public forum have decided to create awareness among students about the lethal consequences of narcotics use.

“We will hold interactive sessions with students at the educational institutions about sexual harassment and dangerous consequences of narcotics use,” Sajida Tabassum, a former MPA, told the forum organised by the Aawaz here on Thursday.

The participants, majority of them woman social activists, raised issues pertaining to inheritance, sexual harassment, child labour, transgender persons and people with disabilities.

Sajida Tabassum said the Social Welfare Department would also be taken on board before launching the campaign in the schools in urban and rural parts of the district.

Dr Munir Qureshi said women were deprived of inheritance in Garhi Habibullah area in the past but now most of them were getting legal share in their ancestral land and property.

“We involve the district administration, revenue and police departments in addressing issues related to women and refusal in inheritance,” he said.

A woman social activist, Salma Arshad, pointed out that cellular phones were misused in most sexual harassment cases.

“We should create awareness among street vendors and children working in workshops about how to get themselves away from sexual abuse,” she said.

Zahoor Ahmad, the Aawaz District Forum manager, said cases that couldn’t be addressed through district Aawaz Forum were referred to the provincial Aawaz forum in Peshawar.

“Besides others, we have referred the case of people with disabilities as their appointments are not in line with the quota fixed by the government for them,” he said.