Women empowerment should be a priority for stakeholders

Pakistan is a developing country. Social norms and cultural values are deeply rooted here. However, over the years, women have been increasingly disempowered, degraded and subjugated across all societies in the world but Pakistan tops the list. Within Pakistan men believe that they are naturally superior to women because they are rational and logical while women deserved to be controlled because they are emotionally erratic. The 2016 Global Gender Gap report ranked Pakistan as the second worst country in the world for gender equality. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan’s annual report states that violence against women is the most common rights violation.

The first women empowerment movement started in the mid 1800s and was primarily championed by middle class women. Meanwhile, we’re aware of the concept of feminism. Every scholar or intellectual has its own definition, but let me define it in simple words that this theory demands that women be treated as human beings with rights, to keep their own wages, to own property, to education, to be paid for work at a wage sufficient to support independent living, to a voice in public decisions, marriage at their choice and to their bodily integrity. However, in recent times the word feminism is being misused by the pseudo intellectuals/pundits of Pakistan just to tag themselves as feminist and seek donations from INGOs. This concept has been started and it needs to be stopped.

Sadly, women in Sindh are always considered as second class citizens, they are never given their due constitutional rights and this is a because of a rigid male dominant mind-set. These women are particularly handicapped by the entrenched feudal system in rural Sindhi society, religious fundamentalists, and the government, which is run primarily by members of the ruling feudal caste. There are several factors that impede the development of women in Sindh, including a very low legal status women hold, as well as the lack of political power and will to change the gender disparity. Moreover, woman within this province has no free access to get education, to earn for her livelihood, to participate in decision making process at domestic level, to own property, to decide her marriage and to do job. Simply speaking inequity is prevalent in Sindh.

Under the PPP, the Sindh government has traditionally been the first in framing many laws pertaining to women after devolution in 2010 when the 18th Amendment required the provinces to re-enact many of the laws that had been adopted by the National Assembly and the Senate. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had the highest legislative output of 40 laws, followed by Sindh (32), Punjab (31) and Baluchistan (17).

 Within Sindh 32 laws are operating but practically these laws do not show any improvement in women security and decrease of violence against women. I want to highlight that in past despite decision by the Sindh High Court that if killing of women in the name of Honor occurred in any part of the province, responsibility will be on the police officials of that area, still incidents are occurring and are being reported but like always no action. I want to request that respected court and government that to look into the matter of Samina Sindhu, a singer who was killed in district Larkhana and many others.

 These killing of women in Sindh seems to be open and unfortunately, the laws have glaring gaps through which such issues are slipped. The courts must not leave any space for the murderers to wiggle out and the society as a whole must condemn this heinous crime as barbaric and inhuman. The murders must be given exemplary punishment and maximum penalty.

Recently, a bill was tabled by the Women Development Department WDD Sindh as its for the first time in history of Pakistan that Sindh government is going to pass a law against Sindh Acid Control and Acid Crime Prevention Act and the Anti-Honour Killings Laws (Criminal Laws Amendment) Bill. It’s a good initiative by the government and we all should applause them for this step. Just to brief a bit that within these laws, there is no concept of Qisas or Diyat [blood money] that allow murderers to escape punishment when they are pardoned by their victim’s heirs but the question is that how the ineffective government of Sindh would be able to implement these laws.

Naghma Shiekh a renowned women rights activist in Karachi says, “Importantly police reforms in Sindh are required to develop and adopt guidelines for handling cases of violence and sexual offences in a discreet, professional manner, where the dignity of women is protected. Medical and police department officials are not trained in handling GBV cases. Moreover, while in some of the cases the police do not record the incidents in their Roznamcha (daily police diary) just because of the pressure of feudal lords. This practise needs to be closed and government should take immediate steps.”

The implementation of existing laws and provision of justice must be ensured so that any discrimination can be immediately reported and duly taken care of. Making a law is one thing, implementing it is another. Legal action committees need to be set up at the grass root level and to oversee women issues. Steps need to be taken to make sure that the state sanctioned rule of law institutions are accessible to women. I want to request the general public of Sindh that this is not our culture. We should respect every human being. We should consider women rights as human rights. We as a whole nation needs to speak regarding the rights of women and make a clear stance against all of those who are hindering women empowerment. We have to clear that women bear no lower status than that of men and that they are both equal.

The writer is a social and political activist based in Lahore. He has done his Maters and MPhil in Communication Studies. He can be reached atsalmanali088@gmail.com, tweets at Salmani_salu