Certain NGOs just wasting money of the West: law minister

ISLAMABAD: Minister for Law Muhammad Farogh Naseem on Tuesday said the government of Pakistan will support all the genuine non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that were working in Pakistan, but there were certain NGOs that were just wasting money of the West and not helping in any cause and, therefore they were not supported.

He said this during the meeting with seven-member delegation of European Parliament Committee for Relations with South Asia under the leadership of Jean Lambert, while the issue of extending support to International NGOs was raised by the delegation members.

Lambert thanked the law minister for his time and expressed her gratitude for hospitality extended by the Pakistani side. She informed the minister that the delegation comprised of representatives of three different political groups and she was in charge of relations with six countries. She further informed that their job was to engage with governments as well as with the civil societies of these countries.

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Farogh Naseem told the European Parliament delegation that steps were being taken to ensure witness protection and judicial protection for effective dispensation of justice.

On the issue of death penalty, he said that the death penalty was never abolished in Pakistan; however there was a moratorium on executions of death penalty. He said incidents like the Army Public School (APS) massacre, Zainab case and similar cases of child abuse by dangerous paedophiles resulted in huge public uproar. He said death penalty was awarded in “rare of the rarest cases”.

The law minister stated that in drug offences pertaining to women, who were only carriers, aspects of leniency were being debated.

He appraised the delegation about steps the new government was taking to overhaul the legal system, to help the people of Pakistan. He said human rights were on agenda of the government and priority and support from the European Union for a prosperous Pakistan was essential to ensure those rights.

Farogh Naseem impressed upon the European Union delegation that the EU should support Pakistan to eradicate corruption and its programmes like GSP Plus may be fully supportive of Pakistan in keeping with its culture, religion and settings, because if the Pakistani society’s indicators of education and economic prosperity improved, so will its human rights record.

He said that human rights compliance was dependent on tolerant regulation at the international level.

“If the EU is lenient, this will result in Pakistan improving its economy which will alleviate or reduce poverty, and this in turn will improve education, knowledge-base and will result in a better human rights compliance,” he said.

Parliamentary Secretary for Law and Justice Maleeka Bukhari and Consultant of Law Ministry Raja Naeem were also present during the meeting.