ISLAMABAD: A unique coalition of transgender and disabled
persons and women’s rights activists has been launched to take part in
the upcoming electoral process and exercise their right to vote
independently, in secret and with dignity.
The coalition
of 30 transgender and disabled persons and women’s rights activists,
titled Coalition for Inclusive Pakistan (CIP), was launched in Islamabad
on Sunday with the support of the Trust for Democratic Education and
Accountability, which also supports Free and Fair Election Network
programmatically and financially, and has the representation of the
marginalised persons from all over the country, said a press release.
The
purpose of forming such an alliance was in line with the provisions of
the Elections Act 2017 that contain certain positive aspects to
facilitate participation of transgender and disabled persons and women
in the electoral process.
Taking part in the launching
event, the participants urged the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP)
to ensure that the new election law was implemented in letter and
spirit. They also praised the work being done by the Gender and
Disability Electoral Working Group of the ECP and said the CIP would
closely work with it for the achievement of their electoral rights.
Qamar
Naseem, the programme coordinator of Blue Veins, an organisation
working for the rights of transgenders, said the barriers that hindered
the participation of the transgender people, the disabled and women in
electoral process and restrict their ability to exercise their right to
vote were actually the barriers that hindered their participation in
mainstream life.
These barriers put curbs on their
ability to exercise their other basic rights and in the enjoyment of
fundamental freedoms. He said the ECP should make arrangements so that
transgender voters were able to cast their vote independently and with
dignity on an equal basis with others and should train the polling staff
in this regard.
Jawaid Rais, the president of the
Disabled Welfare Association, said it was a welcome development that
Section 93 facilitated voters with disabilities to cast their votes
through postal ballots. However, it should be noted that the option of
postal ballots supplements and does not supplant the right to vote of
the disabled voters in public.
Therefore, the ECP
should develop criteria for the selection of polling stations and such a
criterion should give preference to polling stations that have greater
accessibility for wheelchair users. He said the ECP should develop a
mechanism to ensure that inaccessible polling stations are not included
in the polling scheme.
Mr Rais also urged the ECP to
ensure that its public service messages on voter education in the
lead-up to the general elections were delivered in sign language as well
so that these messages were accessible to speech and hearing-impaired
voters.
Similarly, he said, the ECP should create
awareness and train polling staff about the right of the blind and
visually impaired voters to cast their vote independently, in secret and
with dignity with the help of a companion or the polling staff.
Gulalai
Ismail, the executive director of the Aware Girls, said at present
Section 12c required the ECP to conduct public awareness programmes and
media campaigns regarding the importance of maximum voter enrollment and
participation in election of women.
She demanded that
transgender persons and people with disabilities along with women be
included in such programmes and campaigns through progressive
interpretation of Section 12c.
