Civil society takes out protest rally against budget in Faisalabad

Faisalabad, Pakistan: June 12, 2010, (PCTV Newsdesk)

On 10^th June 2010, The Faisalabad based civil society organizations staged a protest rally and raised slogans to show gesture of unacceptability among public of new federal budget for 2010-2011. The participant organizations included AWAM (Association of Women for Awareness and Motivation), WPP (Workers Party Pakistan) and other civil society organizations.  

The rally was joined by people from different schools of thought including representatives of trade unions, student unions, political parties and human rights organizations, who marched from District Council to Circular Road, and chanted slogans against federal government for introducing public unfriendly budget. The demonstrators carrying banners and placards inscribed with slogans in favour of poor people of Pakistan and public friendly budget.  

At this juncture, Shazia George (Coordinator-AWAM), Arif Ayaz and Safdar Sajjad addressed the rally. Shazia George demanded removal of VAT (value added tax), subsidy on food commodities and relief for poor people of Pakistan. Arif Ayaz demanded increase in the budget for education and health, decrease in the budget for defense and complete boycott of the loans from IMF and World Bank. Safdar Sajjad demanded increase in the wages for labourers, decrease in the salaries and allowances of ministers.  

The protesters demanded from the government that: Concrete steps must be taken to control price hike and inflation; Subsidies on flour, rice, sugar, pulses and cooking oil must be provided to give relief to the poor, Minimum wages Rs. 15,000 must be fixed for the labourers; Proper steps should be taken to ensure facilities for labourers such as: social security, pension, old age benefits, free medical, in all industrial units especially power looms factories and brick kiln; Government should ratify ILO C-177 and should ensure proper implementation of already ratified ILO C-100 for the protection of rights of working women engaged in informal sectors.