The Pro-Women Bill &Implementation Issues In Pakistan.
Interactive Article by Dr Meher Zaidi.
Pakistan has a population of almost 51% women and its youth bulge in women is also very large. The practices of early marriages including Child Marraige is very common. http://www.unmultimedia.org/radio/english/detail/117281.html
http://asiapacific.amnesty.org/apro/aproweb.nsf/pages/svaw_childMarriages
http://youtu.be/m43_WyiRZyI
http://crlc.info/ CHILD'S RIGHTS DESK PAKISTAN.
Practices such as Vani http://www.islamawareness.net/Marriage/Child/childmarriages.html hinder the education and development of girls in Pakistan to actually become fully productive, contributing citizens of this over populous country.In Pakistan a custom known as Swara hangs like a cursed sword over millions of females who are unable to access any rights or justice.http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=34896
A country beleaguered by issues of poverty and corruption, the future blackout of millions of women seems almost a Biblical Sin. The Islamist parties like the Jamaat e Islami do not understand either the socio-political or the future economic impact of opposing gender friendly laws in Muslim societies like Pakistan. They are way back in understanding the modern ethno-religious impact of gender discrimination in the future existence of the societies and its effect on the environment and politics of the planet. They are doing a dis-service to Islam by not addressing these repulsive and destructive customs and a hindrance to progress of more than half of Pakistan's population. The issues of education and employment for women are almost like a small outside issue in Pakistani politics.
The Pakistan Tehrike Insaaf of Imran Khan fame is also not addressing these issues in a clear and cogent way either. This seems to reflect the long set feudal and primitive patriarchal mindset in Pakistan.This must change . It is a major challenge that the Tehrike Insaaf needs to address. It needs to bring these issues in mainstream politics.It seems that presently it will be difficult for this party to do this as it needs to increase its vote bank for which it is tapping into the same feudal, patriarchal mindset people but if he creates a women friendly cell in his think tank with a very proactive woman heading it or person like IA Rehman, he may be doing the YOUTH in Pakistan a great favour.According to Harvard business review way back in 1997 it was realised that women factor in US businesses will be very important. With the Pakistani workforce of more than 50% women, why is this a small issue? Also female child worker in Pakistan contributes to a large part of our formal and informal economy.
The only ray of light is shown by the present parliament which passed the bill named Anti-Women Parctices (Criminal Law Amendment) unanimously which safeguards the rights of women against practices such as marraige to the Quran etc.http://blog.naseeb.com/2009/09/married-to-the-quran/ http://www.islamawareness.net/Marriage/Quran/
http://www.dawn.com/2011/11/17/anti-women-customs.html
The issues of female education and economic progress and contribution to the national economy are directly linked to this bill implementation. If passed by the Senate (and not allowed to be lapsed as in the case of Domestic Violence bill) this will do a great service to the nation and also the Muslim society in Pakistan.
There is a dire need for the young politicians and aspirants to assemblies to understand and address these issues as mainstream political issues.A great deal of education of media, masses, young politicians needs to be undertaken. Gone are the times if female gender activist bashing and dehumanising and criticism of the gender friendly NGOs . Gone is the time for treating these issues as a "Western" or "Foreign interference" in our innocent population. This is now an issue of progress, future prosperity, and EXISTENCE as a respectable country on this planet.Patriarchial and suppressive practices must end and let Pakistan enter its BRIGHT, YOUNG FUTURE.
Interactive Article by Dr Meher Zaidi.
Pakistan has a population of almost 51% women and its youth bulge in women is also very large. The practices of early marriages including Child Marraige is very common. http://www.unmultimedia.org/radio/english/detail/117281.html
http://asiapacific.amnesty.org/apro/aproweb.nsf/pages/svaw_childMarriages
http://youtu.be/m43_WyiRZyI
http://crlc.info/ CHILD'S RIGHTS DESK PAKISTAN.
Practices such as Vani http://www.islamawareness.net/Marriage/Child/childmarriages.html hinder the education and development of girls in Pakistan to actually become fully productive, contributing citizens of this over populous country.In Pakistan a custom known as Swara hangs like a cursed sword over millions of females who are unable to access any rights or justice.http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=34896
A country beleaguered by issues of poverty and corruption, the future blackout of millions of women seems almost a Biblical Sin. The Islamist parties like the Jamaat e Islami do not understand either the socio-political or the future economic impact of opposing gender friendly laws in Muslim societies like Pakistan. They are way back in understanding the modern ethno-religious impact of gender discrimination in the future existence of the societies and its effect on the environment and politics of the planet. They are doing a dis-service to Islam by not addressing these repulsive and destructive customs and a hindrance to progress of more than half of Pakistan's population. The issues of education and employment for women are almost like a small outside issue in Pakistani politics.
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| Imran Khan should bring these issues into mainstream politics. |
The only ray of light is shown by the present parliament which passed the bill named Anti-Women Parctices (Criminal Law Amendment) unanimously which safeguards the rights of women against practices such as marraige to the Quran etc.http://blog.naseeb.com/2009/09/married-to-the-quran/ http://www.islamawareness.net/Marriage/Quran/
http://www.dawn.com/2011/11/17/anti-women-customs.html
The issues of female education and economic progress and contribution to the national economy are directly linked to this bill implementation. If passed by the Senate (and not allowed to be lapsed as in the case of Domestic Violence bill) this will do a great service to the nation and also the Muslim society in Pakistan.
There is a dire need for the young politicians and aspirants to assemblies to understand and address these issues as mainstream political issues.A great deal of education of media, masses, young politicians needs to be undertaken. Gone are the times if female gender activist bashing and dehumanising and criticism of the gender friendly NGOs . Gone is the time for treating these issues as a "Western" or "Foreign interference" in our innocent population. This is now an issue of progress, future prosperity, and EXISTENCE as a respectable country on this planet.Patriarchial and suppressive practices must end and let Pakistan enter its BRIGHT, YOUNG FUTURE.
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| Dr Meher Zaidi with her Masjid patients. |
Dr. Zaidi
ReplyDeleteI urge you to watch Imran Khan's speech of the 30th October in Lahore - he talked about womens issue. He fully supports quite a number of issues and continues to do so.
The womens wing is quite active and vocal - even the head of the wing Fauzia Kasuri spoke at the Lahore Jalsa TV gave it full coverage.
Imran khans vote bank is quite a number of women, and he knows and realizes that and hence the womens wing ensures that he will lobby aggressively for Women issues