Details:
The first female-dominated police station opened up in AJK’s Poonch district capital, Rawalkot. Dr Sohail Habib Tajik, the IG Police, told a publication that the police station was opened up on the 25th of October to build women’s confidence in seeking redressal of any legal advice or injustice. The female officials at the station would investigate complaints about harassment of women in educational institutions, workplaces, cyberstalking, domestic issues, child abuse, and domestic issues related to violence. Also, the department will take up civil issues, including property disputes and cases in which females were the accused.
Also: Dr. Sohail Habib aims to develop more female-led stations in the other two districts of Rawalkot, including Mirpur and Muzaffarabad, as “These police stations will encourage women to speak and identify the patterns of crimes which they are usually hesitant to share with male officials, and these stations would become nerve centres for research on crimes against women.” Dr. Sohail claimed that there is a recent increase in crimes against women, and it needs to be addressed.
Why it matters: The first female SHO in a male police station of the region of AJK was appointed in 2016, Shaista Hussain, who is currently serving as the chief lar instructor in PTS (Police Training School), Muzaffarabad. According to the “Global Gender Gap Report,” published by WEF, Pakistan ranked 153rd out of 156 countries on the gender gap index, and Pakistan’s gender gap has even widened by .7% in 2021, compared to 2020.