ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) on Tuesday committed to make efforts for improving the inclusivity in electoral processes and citizen registration, respectively.

The commitment was made by senior officials of the ECP and Nadra while speaking at the National Convention for Inclusive Elections organised by Coalition for Inclusive Pakistan (CIP) in collaboration with Trust for Democratic Education and Accountability (TDEA), says a press release.

In his address, Nadra Chairman Tariq Malik acknowledged the gaps in the citizen registry and apprised the participants of Nadra’s efforts to bridge them.

He said the registration authority had waived-off fee for making the first smart national identity cards (NICs) for persons with disabilities (PWDs) and transgender applicants.

Commission focusing on increasing number of women among polling staff

Mr Malik said the authority was in the process of launching a one-window operation to facilitate the registration of PWDs. He vowed to pursue zero tolerance policy for service denial to any citizen, particularly women, PWDs and transgender persons.

Responding to demands by the CIP, Mr Malik agreed that persons with visibly verifiable disabilities such as amputations should not require a special certificate for acquiring an NIC displaying the disability logo.

He said dedicated teams for public engagement, inclusive registration and strategic reforms, were continuously working to make the citizen registry inclusive.

ECP’s Additional Director General Nighat Siddique informed the participants of the convention that the ECP was focusing on increasing the number of women among the polling staff, adding that the training material for polling and security staff had also been aligned to sensitise staff on dealing with women, transgender people and voters with disabilities.

She said the ECP’s campaign for women registration had led to decrease in gender gap on the electoral rolls between male and female voters from 10.3pc to 9pc. She shared that the commission was reviewing the electoral codes of conduct and the political parties’ manifestos with a gender lens to identify areas, which require measures to make them inclusive.

She also highlighted the challenges facing women electoral contestation and emphasised upon the candidates’ training.

Federal Information Commissioner Zahid Abdullah lamented that the marginalised groups continued to face discrimination based on their gender and disability till date. He emphasised upon the affirmative actions by the government to protect the rights of marginalised groups.

Free and Fair Election Network (Fafen) Chairperson Mosarrat Qadeem congratulated the CIP members on behalf of Fafen for their inspiring efforts and successes, and underscored the importance of networking and coalition building to champion the cause of marginalised groups’ political and electoral rights.

CIP Chairperson Syeda Imtiaz Fatima presented a charter of demand comprising the coalition’s recommendations to the parliament, the ECP and Nadra. The charter highlighted the legal, policy and administrative reforms, including amendments to the Elections Act, 2017.

The CIP is a unique initiative that brings together more than 200 citizens groups and organisations mostly led by PWDs, women and transgender persons working across Pakistan for their social, economic, political and electoral emancipation.

Since its inception in 2017, this first-of-its-kind alliance has been striving to overcome the systematic marginalisation confronting PWDs, women and transgender persons, and solidify their position as a network that can work to amplify their voices and advocate for effective action, particularly to increase their political and electoral participation.

In over four years of its existence, the CIP has remained successful in achieving tangible milestones in the form of policy, legal and administrative reforms.

Published in Dawn, June 29th, 2022