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Human Right Initiative
Human Rights Activities:
The Human Rights situation is poor in the area of District
Toba Tek Singh. The rape cases, murder cases, cases of religious discrimination are common. Class differences often cause
the Human Rights Violations in the rural areas. According to HDC experience, four sections of society are most vulnerable.
These sections of society are women, children, workers and religious minorities. They suffer in most of the Human Rights violation
cases. These marginalized groups do not get justice from the courts or police stations. The situation is going from bad to
the worse. The literacy rate in the villages is very low. People feel honor in keeping up the traditions of revenge and kill
women in the name of honor.
The religious minorities experience problems more than
any body else. Unfortunately the identity of the human person in Pakistani society is determined with the religion. The religious
minorities generally belong to low-income group and they suffer not only for their low economic status but also because they
belong to religious minority group. In the rural areas of Toba Tek Singh, the Christians are landless and they work as tenants
or as workers on the lands of the landlords. They experience Human Rights Violations in their day-to-day life not only because
they are landless but also because they are Christians.
Our society is male dominated society; most of the women
are still oppressed and not able to raise their voice against injustice and discrimination. Especially women are not aware
of their own rights and they suffer from domestic violence and cant get rid of this violation. There is a need to give them
information and awareness about their rights.
Human Development Centre is working on the Human Rights
Violations for the last many years in the Distt TTS. HDC has done many activities
for the rights of the people at the grass roots level.
Details of the cases
|
Name |
Place |
Nature of case |
Party involved |
Case won/lost |
HDC Role |
|
Sadiq Masih |
Chak No. 336 G.B. TTS |
Land Grabbing |
Muslim land Lord M. Jamil |
Lost |
Paralegal aid and hired Lawyers |
|
Saleem Masih |
Chak No. 333 GB TTS |
Charge of Stealing cow |
Muslim Land |
Won |
Hold meetings with landlords |
|
Bushiran Bibi |
Chak No394
JB TTS |
Rape case |
Two Muslim men, M. Nadeem and Unknown |
On going |
Hired Lawyer, Provide food |
|
Chani Masih |
Chak No. 351 |
Land Grabbing |
Muslim man M. Khaliq |
On going |
Hold meeting |
|
Shameem Bibi (Christian girl) |
Chak No. 335 GB |
Kind napped |
Muslim Man
M. Sajid Shah |
On going |
Para-legal assistance,
Hold meeting, Registered case in court |
|
Zari Pervie (Christian girl) |
Christian Colony Toba Tek Singh |
Charged of Stealing jewelry of the house owner |
Muslim Man M. Muzamil |
Won |
Hold meetings with community and house owners |
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HDC has carried out the following activities regarding
the Human Rights during the last year:
·
HDC held 3 seminars on Human Rights Education.
·
2 Seminars for First Investigation Report (FIR) were conducted for the people who are working upon the
human rights issues. They were invited to get knowledge for the future
·
One program on the promotion of Democracy.
·
2 seminars were held with both male and female union. Tehsil and District Councilors
·
Document and follow up human rights violations in the area and provide this information to other groups
and networks.
·
HDC documented the cases of Human Rights violations and then
10 cases were followed up into courts.
·
A network of community organization is formed at district level to work on Human Rights
Brick Kiln workers strike to raise the rates:
The Brick kiln workers perhaps, are, one of the most vulnerable
section so far as the wages concerned in the rural areas where the workers work from morning till evening and they are bound
to work according to the wishes of the owners of the kilns. In the district Toba Tek Singh, there are total 128 brick kilns
and more than ten thousand people are attached with this industry. The bleak side of the profession is that the whole family
is involved in the work but the wages are paid for the number of bricks made by the whole family is at vest one persons wage
or a little more. The people are entangled in the clutches of the kiln owners as the poor people take an advance and then
they cannot pay it because the owners charge high interest rate on it, so they are entangled in their hands.
The Government of Pakistan, issued an ordinance in April
2001, revising the wages of the workers, announcing a package of incentives like marriage, health and education for the workers.
Since the package was announced the government also made it compulsory for the kilns to get registered with the governments
Labor Department and enable the workers receive the benefits of the ordinance.
Human Development Centre (HDC), as it is involved in the
rights based approach in the rural areas, started the struggle to get the kilns registered with the government so that the
workers get benefits. The owners were always reluctant to get registered because they wont be able to steal taxes if they
are registered. The government announced the rate of Rs 184 (US $ 3.22) for one thousand bricks but the kiln owners are paying
only Rs 120 (US $ 2.1) for one thousand bricks.
The Human Development Centre held meetings with the Labor
Department and kiln owners for the implementation of the Government Ordinance 2001 but it was not successful. The workers
have been suffering for the ages but no body cares for them. In the meetings with the kiln owners, HDC tried to convince the
owners to pay government announced rates to the workers.
HDC formed an organization named, Bhatta Mazdoor Ittehad (Union
of the Brick Kiln Workers). The workers from almost all the kilns joined the organization. The total membership of the organization
at present is 2,600. The move was there to put pressure on the owners to revise the wages. The brick kiln workers, being poor,
could not take any daring step because this is their only mean to survive. After a long process of motivation and awareness,
the workers of six brick kilns decided to go on strike to demand the new rates from the owners. On July 10, 2003 the workers of the following kilns stopped working and announced that they are on strike
unless their demands are not met. The names of kilns are:
Name of Company
Owner
Village
Mashallah Bricks Company Mohammad Qasim
Chak # 291 GB
Karam Din Bhatta Khasht Ch Karam Din
Chak # 291 GB
Sher Mohammad Bhatta Khasht Hakeem Sher Mohammad
Chak # 291 GB
Saadaat Bhatta Khasht Mazhar
Shah
Chak # 284 GB
Kashif Bricks Company Nazeer
Ahmed
Chak # 360 GB
The district
council in it session discussed the strike of the brick kiln workers and also invited HDC and owners of the brick kilns. With
the mutual discussion the owners agreed to raise the rate and the district council passed the resolution in favor of the brick
kiln workers asking the district government to give Rs 150 (US $ 2.63) per thousand bricks. Despite the owners agreed and
the district council passed the resolution, the district government did not issue the notification.
The struggle
for the rights of the brick kiln workers is continued and they are organized under the Bhatta Mazdoor Ittehad Tanzeem (Brick
Kiln Workers Union).
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