By Zubeida Mustafa
Source: Dawn
THIS was in the days when computers and the Internet did not rule the world of communication and only a few people in the West had the facility of what was then popularly called electronic mail.
A gentleman from the International Labour Organisation commented that he did not know how to handle a computer and that made him feel like an illiterate person who lacked access to the knowledge available on the World Wide Web.
Continue reading The power of language
By Zubeida Mustafa
Source: Dawn
ON March 23, a day for soul-searching, two professional bodies working for women`s health highlighted an issue that is fundamental to our survival and progress, namely, population planning.
They got Sheema Kermani to stage Har aurat anmol, a play that focused on all that is wrong with the reproductive health sector in Pakistan today.
Continue reading Cost of life of a woman
By Zubeida Mustafa
Source: News line magazine
At the recent ASR conference in Lahore on the women’s movement in Pakistan, I met a female journalist from a local Urdu language newspaper who was there to cover the opening event. She had not received her salary for two months. She tellingly asked me, “Now that women have such a substantial presence in parliament, do you think the goals of the women’s movement have been met?”
Continue reading One Step Forward
By Zubeida Mustafa
Source: Dawn
At a time when Pakistan needs to mobilise for concerted action for positive change in our brutalised society, the discussions held recently on literature and activism and on Eqbal Ahmad`s `cross-border` writings were timely and relevant.
They were also provocative and provided food for thought, especially for those who have begun to despair at the direction the country is taking.
Continue reading Literature and activism
By Zubeida Mustafa
Source: Dawn
THE theme of International Women`s Day observed on Monday was `equal rights, equal opportunities and progress for all`. One may well ask if this ideal can ever be achieved as long as the unequal power relationship between the sexes, which causes women to become victims of domestic violence, continues to exist.
Continue reading Violence in the Home