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ISLAMABAD, Nov 27 (AFP) - Pakistan's chief justice said Saturday laws and procedures in the country needed urgent reform to halt discrimination against women.
Pakistan's constitution as well as its Islamic religious code commanded respect for women and minorities, Justice Saeed uz Zaman Siddiqui told a convention of female Pakistani lawyers in Lahore.
"Islam devotes a considerable part of its philosophy and teaching to the objective of female emancipation and empowerment," he said. "It is a tragedy that this positive image of Islam has not been successfully conveyed, and misconceived religious notions have distorted the true and universal message of Islam."
He said the Pakistan Law Commission, which he also chairs, was reviewing discriminatory laws.
Rights groups have criticized the treatment of women in Pakistan, particularly "honor killings," in which women are killed by relatives for supposedly shaming their families. The reasons include divorcing an abusive husband or trying to marry a man of her choice.
In a September report, Amnesty International said hundreds of women died through "honor killings" in Pakistan every year.
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