Catholics form women's group

LAHORE, Pakistan -- As a new bill that would grant women and girls more rights and protection makes its way through Parliament, hard-line groups have been fighting to keep a status quo they claim has divine sanction. The same day the new bill went before the National Assembly, Feb. 13, the first national Catholic women's organization was launched in Lahore.

The Catholic Women's Organization "will focus mainly on awareness of gender balance and domestic violence and prescribe prevention and remedies to human-rights abuses," said Sunita Fredrick, the organization's national coordinator.

The Prevention of Anti-Women Practices Bill 2006 seeks to outlaw forced marriage and allow women to inherit property. It would prohibit child marriages and stop the exchange of brides between clans to settle clan disputes. It would also give women greater protection in divorce actions.

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