Women in Pakistan fight for their place in politics

GHRTV

Aug 3, 2023 - 23:04

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Women in Pakistan fight for their place in politics

Photo Source: medium.com

02-08-023

V. Sivasankar

Team Pakistan Researcher,

Global Human Rights Defence.

In a country where women’s rights have not always been synonymous with human rights, Pakistan’s women face tiringly predictable challenges of sexism and exclusion from political life amongst other challenges. The democratic State, on paper, continues to perpetrate structural barriers such as lack of education and opportunities, prejudices and corruption that have led to almost half of the population to be represented by a mere 4.5% in politics (Anees, 2023).

Having a social and political system that has been deeply rooted in religious and cultural beliefs, women have begun challenging the norms in recent years through protests such as the Aurat March, journalism and education. However, due to the religious undercurrents that run deeply ingrained in the country’s politics, women find it difficult to break into the labour force, let alone politics, with only 2 out of every 10 women actively in it (ibid.). Recently, Pakistan's Defence Minister Khawaja Asif came under fire in the media as sexist comments against former federal minister Sheerin Mazari resurfaced. Social scientists across the country observed significantly celebratory attitudes towards his comments from men while social media became a tool for women to voice their dissent. Unfortunately, such comments are not isolated incidents in Pakistani politics. In April 2023, Nabil Gobol of the Pakistan People's Party faced intense backlash for infamously saying that "There is a saying in English, that when rape is inevitable you may as well enjoy it" (Baloch, 2023). The impunity enjoyed by such high-level political figures in Pakistan has not deterred from female leaders speaking out against it. Notably, Sharmila Faruqi, a member of the provincial assembly, poignantly stated that "Men have a licence to get away with sexism" (ibid.).

Such impunity has extended into the professional workplace outside of politics as well. Ironically, in the legal profession, the culture of victim-blaming and denial of sexism has hindered women from receiving justice for misogyny and violence. For instance, a 32 year old Lawyer, Hafsa Ahmad, was grabbed from behind by a male client in a courtroom. She knew instantly that there would be no action taken against him and thus never spoke up about it (Zehra, 2023). The country’s 2010 Protection Against Harassment of Women at Workplace Act ensures that inquiry committees are mandatory at the workplace to address such issues of harassment. Yet, this has not been put into practice in courts and law firms. The well ingrained culture of victim-blaming has thus led claimants to be cross-examined, questioned and have their characters maligned instead of receiving justice. Such socio-political practice has discouraged women from participating in professional spheres with only 12% of registered lawyers and advocates being women (ibid.). Unsurprisingly, Pakistan has been ranked 145 out of 146 countries surveyed in the World Economic Forum’s 2022 Global Gender Gap Index Report (WEF, 2022).

Opposition to such sexism and aggression against women in public and political life has been a long standing part of Pakistani culture. Since independence, women have played a crucial role in ensuring that the socio-political fabric of the country is held together. However, due to an erratic period of dictatorships and political instability, women’s involvement in politics slowed down significantly. With the elections coming up in October 2023, women are actively attempting to revive their role in politics through demanding more equal opportunities, punishment for discrimination and ending all violence against women such as honour killings, domestic abuse and structural barriers. In a complex country with a myriad demographic of social, political and religious populations, it is commonly acknowledged that for Pakistani women, “considering politics as a career is still unusual” says Tahira Khurshid, a former local district councillor (Anees, 2023). As politics in Pakistan remains an overwhelmingly male dominated field, the upcoming elections can be an opportunity for voters to reduce this gap in representation.

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