The Government of Punjab has launched Pakistan’s first virtual women police station under the Punjab Safe Cities Authority in Lahore, marking a significant step in making the justice system more accessible for women across the province. Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif inaugurated the station, named “Meri Awaz,” saying that women will not have to go to a physical police station unnecessarily, and that the virtual women police station will guide women through all stages of a case, from registration of a first information report to its investigation and trial. Women can contact police through the helpline 15 call service, the Women Safety App live chat feature, the video call feature, the Punjab Police App, and the Safe City web portal.
The Chief Minister highlighted that all problems faced by women including harassment will be solved on priority basis through the virtual station, and that a woman can share her problem with complete privacy and confidence without revealing her name and address, with a live video call feature also introduced to enable real-time interaction with authorities. The ability to report incidents anonymously addresses one of the most significant barriers that has historically prevented women from seeking help, as fear of social exposure and stigma has kept the majority of victims silent. According to the United Nations Population Fund, 28 percent of women in Pakistan aged 15 to 49 have experienced physical violence, yet 55 percent of these victims never seek help, with this lack of reporting driven by social-cultural barriers, economic dependency, and limited access to information, healthcare, and psychosocial support.
Early evidence from the station’s operation suggests the model is already delivering measurable results. Since the Punjab Safe Cities Authority opened the virtual women police station, there has been an increase of approximately 23 additional domestic violence reports per month for each field office through the helpline, with only a slight decline in the number of physical walk-in reports, indicating that the digital interface is successfully reaching women who may not have sought help without it. The virtual station is now averaging 2,200 calls daily, as the platform provides a safe, anonymous, and convenient way for women to reach out from the privacy of their own homes. A University of Notre Dame analysis of the programme further found a measurable increase in the number of gender-based violence cases progressing to formal first information reports, a critical indicator that digital reporting is translating into actual legal action rather than remaining at the level of unrecorded complaints.
The virtual model emerged after Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz directed that women police stations be established in every district of Punjab, with a virtual platform proposed to enable women across the province, regardless of location, to access justice services without the constraints of physical infrastructure. Punjab is Pakistan’s most populous province, with a population of 128 million people, and traditional police stations have often struggled to deliver results for women at that scale. The initiative places Punjab at the forefront of technology-enabled access to justice in Pakistan, and its documented impact on reporting rates offers a compelling evidence base for replication in other provinces.
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