Islamabad: Pakistan’s National Assembly (NA) unanimously passed the Acid and Burn Crime Bill 2017 here on Tuesday.
The bill was presented in the Lower House by Marvi Memon, who has the status of a minister of state, the Nation daily reported.
According to the bill, free medical treatment and rehabilitation will be provided to the acid burn victims. It also outlined a plan to conduct trials of accused in the shortest period of time.
Speaking on the occasion, Memon thanked the government and the opposition benches for their support in passing the bill.
“The purpose of the bill is to support the victims and bring to justice the culprits at the earliest,” she said.
According to the latest statistics of Acid Survivors Foundation Pakistan, a non-government organisation dedicated to raising awareness and preventing acid attacks and providing survivors with medical and legal aid, there were 71 reported acid attack cases in 2016 and 69 in 2015.
In 2014, 153 acid attack cases were reported and 109 in 2013. According to the statistics, the majority of the victims of acid violence were females.
—IANS