KARACHI: Inspector General of Police, Sindh Ghulam Nabi Memon has ordered arrests of all the absconders involved in the cases of human rights violations including gang-rape, rage, abuses of women, children and transgenders in the province.
The IGP passed these directives in writing to all the DIGPs and SSPs of Sindh following a meeting with Surendar Valasai, Special Assistant to Chief Minister for Human Rights at Central Police Office here on Friday. During the meeting, Surendar Valasai raised the issue of non-arrests of culprits involved in cases of gang-rapes, rapes and abuses of women, children and transgenders in some districts, which is causing frustrations and fear among the victims and their families as well as the civil society.
He stressed that those who are nominated in such FIRs and are absconding should be arrested and proceeded against as per law without any delays adding that police officers who are found ignoring the complaints about human rights abuses may also be replaced and punished. He emphasized that service to human rights may be added as a new criteria in the ACRs of the police officers to encourage them to give more importance to the issue.
The Special Assistant to Chief Minister for Human Rights further said that promotions and postings of police officers may be considered on the basis of their proven record of respecting and protecting human rights during their previous service cycles. He said that Chairman PPP and Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has always given human rights top priority and exhorted everyone under his leadership to work for promotion and protection of human rights without any discrimination on the basis of caste, creed, ethnicity, religion, gender etc.
He also appreciated Sindh Police for taking prompt actions in many cases of human rights where the culprits were caught without loss of time and produced before courts of law. Surendar Valasai also invited the IGP to attend a seminar “Bridging Barriers and Ensuring Access to Justice: A dialogue for Provincial Human Rights Vigilance Committee” being organized by Human Rights Department of October 11.
Earlier, the IGP Sindh Ghulam Nabi Memon said that Sindh Police is fully committed to policy of Sindh government for zero tolerance to human rights violations. He said that respecting human rights is the responsibility of every progressive society and assured that police command system has been instilled with the conviction that rights of every individual as enshrined in the Constitution and the laws will be protected.