CHITRAL, Dec 1: The trend of committing suicide among married women has assumed alarming proportions during the last couple of years in the district and needs immediate attention of the society.

The issue was highlighted at a group discussion on ‘women’s rights in Chitral’ held here on Monday.

Organised by Regional Women Empowerment Project (RWEP) the discussion was participated by the RWEP project manager Imtiaz Ahmed, local intellectuals, human rights activists and media men.

Expressing apprehensions about the bleak future of the womenfolk, the speakers said the basic cause of resorting to the extreme measure of committing suicide by the married women was domestic violence.

The participants said majority of the girls found no place to get consolation when faced with excesses by their husbands or in-laws. They regretted that most of the cases were not reported to police by the relatives which emboldened the perpetrators.

They added in majority cases the relatives of the deceased entered into compromise with the perpetrators and withdrew the cases from the courts. They said the marriages of girls without their consent often led to suicide.

The speakers said sometimes the girls were murdered by their husbands and relatives and the incidents were portrayed as suicides.

The speakers regretted that there was no psychiatric clinic in the district and demanded setting up of the same so that number of suicides can be arrested.

CHITRAL UPLIFT PLEDGED: District nazim Maghfirat Shah and local MNA Shahzada Mohiuddin pledged on Monday to sink their political differences in the larger interest of the area.

Speaking at a conference on ‘development of Chitral’ organised by a local newspaper, ‘Chitral News’, they agreed political bickering would not benefit the poor people but will multiply their miseries.

They said although they came from two rival political parties, but they must act in unison to achieve the objective of integrated and sustainable development of the district.

The district nazim and MNA appreciated the efforts of wing commander (retired) Fardad Ali Shah for effectively highlighting the issues of Chitral through his on-line paper for the last ten years.

DCO Mutasim Billah Shah also spoke on the occasion and said Chitral was rich in mineral resources and had tremendous potential of tourism. He added a comprehensive strategy must be evolved to exploit the resources to fight poverty and backwardness in the area.

Opinion

Editorial

PTI in disarray
Updated 30 Nov, 2024

PTI in disarray

PTI’s protest plans came abruptly undone because key decisions were swayed by personal ambitions rather than political wisdom and restraint.
Tired tactics
30 Nov, 2024

Tired tactics

Matiullah's arrest appears to be a case of the state’s overzealous and misplaced application of the law.
Smog struggle
30 Nov, 2024

Smog struggle

AS smog continues to shroud parts of Pakistan, an Ipsos survey highlights the scope of this environmental hazard....
Solidarity with Palestine
Updated 29 Nov, 2024

Solidarity with Palestine

The wretched of the earth see in the Palestinian struggle against Israel a mirror of themselves.
Little relief for public
29 Nov, 2024

Little relief for public

INFLATION, the rate of increase in the prices of goods and services over a given period of time, has receded...
Right to education
29 Nov, 2024

Right to education

IT is troubling to learn that over 16,500 students of the University of Karachi (KU) have defaulted on fee payments...