Each year around the world, International Women's Day (IWD) is celebrated on March 8. Throughout the month of March both government and non- government organisations arrange events to highlight the economic, political and social state of women.
Empowering women is now a global issue and many international organisations such as UNO and civil society members actively participating for women wellbeing around the World. Unfortunately, Pakistan is one of the developing countries, where women have been facing uncountable challenges and problems. No doubt, women in Pakistan courageously facing these challenges but she has still a long way to go and need sincere support to resolve concerned issues.
Women rights and constitution of Pakistan
The constitution of Pakistan ensures equal opportunities for women "there shall be no discrimination on the basis of sex alone." The constitution guaranteed women full participation in all spheres of national life. However, in reality most of the women especially those belong to middle and lower middle classes suffer from social injustice and gender discrimination. In labour sector, she works harder, but paid less. Even a well-educated woman has less chances of promotion than male colleague have.
Girls and education disadvantage
The Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing in 1995, recognised that women's literacy is a key for the effective women's participation in decision making in society and to improving families' well-being. In addition, the United Nations has articulated the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which include goals for improved education, gender equality, and women's empowerment. However, the girls in Pakistan, especially those belong to lower middle-class suffer from educational disadvantages.
In sub-urban and rural areas, she gets little or no chance to go to school and get a hold of high education. Opportunities of education are lower for girls than boys. There are several reasons including grim economy of family, male-female differences, abusing environment, the targeting of schools by religious groups, threats from terrorists and fear of girl safety. Parents prefer girls to stay home to help her mother with housework and take care of her siblings. Often they force her to leave school if young boys mock her on her way to school.
A report states, "In Pakistan, only 10 percent of rural girls in Baluchistan complete primary school, as compared to 40 percent of Baluchistan boys--The ratio of gender discrimination is a cause which is projecting the primary school ratio of boys and girls which is 10:4 respectively."
Independent sources and educational experts, claim the overall literacy rate 26 percent and the rate for girls and women 12 percent. Future of girl child and social set-up Unfortunately, our traditional, behavioural and social norms are such that few parents counteract gender discrimination. The birth of a girl causes great disturbance for poor parents. Some women cry when they find out their baby is a girl because, to them, a daughter is just a burden on their shoulders. Recently some extreme cases of sex-selective abortion reported in newspapers.
Young girls receive less food and healthcare facilities than boys do. Some families restrict young girls from healthy foods for the reason that they should not grow fast. In poverty-stricken families, high protein foods like milk, eggs, meat, and foods with greater fat content are considered the right of young boys.
Most families pressurise their girls to remain obedient throughout their lifetime. Parents not allow their girls to say anything about their marriage and not allowed to marry outside their communities. Parents and other family members often, forced the girls to get marry on their choice. They often threats to kill her, behead her, and torture her if she refuses to the forced marriage.
Recently, a girl, aged 16, and two women, aged 18 and 20, reportedly abducted and taken in a car. They were killed apparently for wanting to marry men of their choice. A post-mortem examination revealed that two of the young women had died of head injuries inflicted with a blunt weapon. Police declared the killing as tribal custom.
Most regretful thing is that in many child abuse cases involvement of women is evident. Read this dreadful event "a 3 year old girl was thrown in a hot, boiling oven of haleem by the women living in the neighbourhood. 3-year-old girl, named Sara went out at in the evening to play in the street in front of her house. The woman living just next door quietly took her inside her place and threw her in the boiling cooking utensils, the girl died in no more than 5 minutes. As according to the parents of the dead, it was a sheer case of revenge, because just a week back Sara' s father asked the little boy of the lady (who burnt the child) to not play cricket in the street and slapped him".
Girl domestic servants and violence
There are a number of examples on the record of our history where young girl servants have been victims of domestic violence, sexual abuse and face negligence of society. However, the Pakistani media have been repeatedly reporting on the abuse and violence that child servant often suffers at the hands of their employers. Few months ago, a young girl servant burnt to death by employer's young son because she refused to establish intimate relationship with the boy and his friends.
In another incident, a six-year-old girl's body was found in a deserted place in the eastern city of Lahore, in Punjab. Her employers beat her to death for urinating on the kitchen floor.
Women dignity and domestic violence
It may be a surprise for many readers that globally Pakistan is the third most dangerous country for women. For the last decade, Pakistan is a hub of anti-women activities such as murder, rape, torture, kidnap, karo kari, Hudood, trafficking, Vani and acid attacks. Unfortunately, women living in urban and rural areas have challenges to fight against criminal violence, custodial violence domestic violence and social violence. Human rights workers say each year a large number of women are beaten, tortured or burnt by their husbands or families, and they have few places to escape to. Some have had their bones broken or their faces mutilated.
Many women remain in violent relationships because they believe they must obey their husbands and that divorce is a disgrace. Women in Pakistan are mostly illiterate and have little concept about making their own choices. Few months back a young women's husband accused her of being unfaithful, cut off her nose, ears, and gouged out her eyes.
Over 150 Pakistani women are the victims of acid attacks each year. Activists for women's rights claim that only 30 percent of acid cases are reported and that this form of violence is extremely widespread because acid is easily available and inexpensive. Last year, the government passed the Acid Control and Acid Crime Prevention Bill, which imposes on attackers' prison terms from 14 years to life and fines of up to one million rupees (about $11,000).
Here is an extract from a detailed Fourth annual report presented by "Aurat Foundation". It states "8539 women became victims of violence in 2011 and there was an overall 6.74 % increase in reported cases of VAW in the country as compared to year 2010. The figure was 8000 in 2010; in 2009, the incidents of violence against women were 8548 and; in 2008, these incidents were 7571.
This shows that largely the incidents of violence against women in the last four years were in the same range with some increase and decrease and; the society has not witnessed any radical departure in its trends in the unfortunate commission of crimes against women. This reflect a kind of a status quo, also indicating that neither State is doing anything to eliminate this violence nor society is responding to curb uncivilised behaviour. In some forms of violence there has been notable increase, for instance, sexual assault increased by 48.65%, acid throwing increased by 37.5%, 'honour' killings by 26.57%, and domestic violence increased by 25.51%."
Pakistan now again in international news, this time because a Pakistani Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy had just won first Oscar for Pakistan. The film chronicles the work of the British-Pakistani plastic surgeon Mohammad Jawad, who performs reconstructive surgery on women who were attacked with acid. Let us hope someday we win award for our positive attitude towards fundamental women rights.