Category Archives: Women

Arundhati Roy with WAF

Social Issues, Women

By Zubeida Mustafa
Source: Dawn

“WOMEN to reclaim public spaces a programme of defiance and resistance”. That is how the Women`s Action Forum defined the meeting it held last Friday to mobilise public opinion against extremism.

Although WAF`s concern to protect the space women have created in the public mainstream has been on its agenda for some time, this goal has acquired urgency in the wake of the events in Swat. The Nizam-i-Adl Regulation in Malakand Division has brought people face to face with the ugly reality of the Talibanisation phenomenon in the rural backwaters as well as in modern urban centres.
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Where were you dear sisters?

Politics, Women

By Zubeida Mustafa
Source: Dawn

MUCH has been said about the shameful performance of our parliament on April 13 when it approved the controversial Nizam-i-Adl Regulation without much of a murmur.

The two members who protested, MQM`s Farooq Sattar and the PML-N MNA from Chakwal, Ayaz Amir, have received much-deserved accolades — albeit given grudgingly to the MQM. But why did the others lose their voice? What happened to the women?
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A catalyst for change

Terrorism and Violence, War and Peace, Women

By Zubeida Mustafa
Source: Dawn

WHY did civil society in Pakistan vociferously protest the flogging of a 17-year old girl in a public square in Swat and not when many other atrocities were committed against women in recent times?

The demonstrations and protests began when this barbaric incident that was filmed on a cellphone came to light last week. It seemed to have touched a raw nerve and received wide publicity in the electronic and print media and on the Internet making an impact that went beyond expectations.

Now there are counter allegations that the video was fake and meant to undermine the February peace deal. The police produced before the Supreme Court a statement from Chand Bibi, the girl who was said to have been flogged in Kabbal district of Swat, denying that the incident ever took place. What has become more significant today is the fact that the incident triggered off protests and they still continue.
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For the women of Swat

Terrorism and Violence, War and Peace, Women

By Zubeida Mustafa
Source: Dawn

The theme of International Women`s Day on March 8 is `women and men united to end violence against women and girls`.

It is quite ironic that at a time when the UN is focusing on eliminating violence against women, the Pakistan government and the army have sought to buy peace in Swat by surrendering in this once idyllic valley many of the rights and freedoms women have won over the years in the country.
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Women decide to fight back

Women

By Zubeida Mustafa
Source: Dawn

FOR the Women`s Action Forum, 2008 was a landmark year. Three new chapters were launched in Hyderabad, Sukkur and Khairpur. To celebrate this expansion, 50 women from the new chapters and WAF Karachi met in Hyderabad for their first Sindh convention on Feb 14.

This amounted to making a strong political statement on women`s rights — WAF refused to be intimidated at a time when the Taliban were having a field day in Swat.
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