Role of Women in Pakistani Society
Rizwan Mehmood
The attitude towards the value and position of women in history has different aspects to it. In the era before Islam, female infanticide was practiced, as a part of their spiritual, social and economic beliefs on the role of women. However, once Islam was introduced, things took a turn for the better. The Holy Prophet, Hazrat Muhammad (P.B.U.H) with respect to woman said, “Women are like candles and lights in the house”. There are many verses of the Holy Quran and multiple Ahadith which shows the role and rights of women in society.
THE REALITY
According to the population census of Pakistan in 2017, the female population was 101,314,780: about half of the whole population. In rural regions, the education ratio of women is 41.75 %. In agriculture and livestock, the ratio of women is 26.3%, and in other enterprises it is around 17 %. It means women make up 43% of the total rural workforce. In our current rural society, which is based upon patriarchal norms and values, women have not been given due importance as it is a male predominant society, where women are considered as slaves and servants, whose only duties are to serve their families, rear children, take care of household chores, and help farm in the fields. The level of discrimination towards women in rural societies is such that the birth of a baby girl is thought to be a grave sin and her demise is considered a release from an unwanted burden. Infanticide and female infant trafficking were common in rural societies 60 to 70 years back, but now these cruel practices are not observed as extensively as before.
There is discrimination in health care, where a boy’s illness is taken more seriously with lot of care and parents directly rush to the doctor, while there is unwillingness to take a girl to the hospital and spend money on her. The death of a girl is not considered an issue, and in some areas of Tharparkar district, there is no concept of sympathy for a woman.
The discrimination in love and care given, starts before birth, where everybody prays for a son. Conversely the birth of a baby boy is always celebrated with food and festivities.
All these discriminations are because of negative bias that girls are considered as “Paraya Dhann” (a person or body which is not yours), and men view them as subordinates, rather than competition. Furthermore, women are not allowed a share in inheritance, along with no role in decision making. Their wills and wishes are not concerned even for their choice of spouse, which is a decision left up to the father or brother Child marriage in rural societies are mutual in the ages between 12 to 15 years. Most of the couples have never even seen each other before the day of the wedding. Early weddings have caused difficulties, like abortion, babies with low birth weight and health complications for the women after delivery. Additionally, some young girls are also married off to men thrice their age, or even older.
Most importantly, physical violence towards women in rural societies is very common and is not a matter of concern for the members of the said society. Male members even slaughter the women blaming her as “Kari” (sexually assaulted). These were the situations, in which rural women lived. If we look into the previous 30 to 40 years, the condition of women in a rural society was very wretched and miserable, as compared to the current scenario. Communication networks in rural areas enhanced remarkably, and the widespread use of electricity and electric equipment has made the lives of these women much easier.
For example, 40 years ago, a woman would have to grind millet to make flour for hours every day and fetch water from far away, but now both tasks are replaced with water pipelines, pumps, and ground flour being available in any shop. Health and education amenities for a rural woman seemed like a farfetched idea but nowadays these facilities are available, to a certain extent. Electronics and social media are playing a significant role in awareness of rural women, which promises a brighter socio-economic condition in the future. There is still a lot to do in this regard, and more efforts and research is needed. Several NGOs, donors, and government departments have launched food fortification programs and are running awareness drives to make rural women recognize the importance of a balanced diet.
STATUS IN ISLAM
When we compare the pre-Islamic and post-Islamic socio-political status of ladies, a slow ascent in their position can be plainly noticed. Islam as a religion has given ladies a wealth of status and occasions to turn into a significant piece of the overall population. Islam gives women fundamental and legitimate rights, and enshrines their right to manage their own property, household, and source of income. In Islam, a lady is legitimately autonomous and her commitments are liberated from her father, spouse or sibling.
STATUS IN PAKISTAN
Pakistan is an Islamic state, and every law, rule, and guideline in the nation is situated towards Islamic law. In the Constitution of Pakistan, it is explicitly stated that there will be no discrimination on the basis of gender. There are legal measures to guarantee that women take part in all circles of public life. Yet there exist customs and conventions which are wholly against Islamic law, and still openly practiced. The social models of a provincial society don’t permit ladies to make the most of their lawful and strict rights secured by law and ensured by Islam, and this is due to the persisting customs and social standards. The presence of a populist structure, for example, Jirga (gatherings) is by and large not interested in ladies and their grumblings. The dread factor additionally keeps ladies from reporting their advantages. This equal general set of laws unlawfully forces sanctions on the individuals who guarantee their individual rights against principles suggested by the clan or network. Pakistan has passed some excellent laws to ensure women’s privileges and guard them.
Similarly, at the state level, the eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution (2010) acquired more noticeable autonomy zones on women’s issues. This area of law-making is also affected by society: there remains the issue of strategy, execution, and rule of law. The barrier to legislation for women’s issues is precedent on multiple fronts, and ingrained in a lot of view-points, wherein the fundamental ground norm of Islam is ignored on purpose or by accident, in concern to these issues. The earliest legal framework in Pakistan set the tone of harshness towards ladies. The famous saying of such a framework, “Zan, Zar, Zameen” (women, money, and property) is a culmination of the total disregard and malice towards women in our society. These terms are utilized as an instrument to censor women for conduct deemed inappropriate by a man, thus, if a woman’s conduct is seen as a threat by a man, it justifies to them, the abuse, sexual assault, and honour killings.
Women sometimes face predominant social subtleties of contempt under strict attire as a remnant of the previously mentioned customs. The 2017 yearly report of the National Commission on the Status of Women, Amnesty International, noticed that 8,539 instances of savagery against ladies, including 1,575 homicides, 827 assaults, 610 occurrences of aggressive behavior at home, 705 honor killings and 44 corrosive assaults have been accounted for affirmed.
FORCED MARRIAGES
There is no place for marriage by force in Islam. Under Islamic law, women cannot be forced to marry anyone without permission. Ahadith also state that a woman’s consent is required for marriage and that her parents or others cannot force her to marry someone she does not want to marry. However, in rural societies it is very common that parents do not ask the girl regarding her marriage. In one instance, a father from the Tharparkar neighborhood proudly told me that if he were to marry his daughter off to a dog, she shouldn’t say a word.
BRIDES ‘FOR SALE’
In some provincial regions, young girls are sold as ‘brides’. The young girl is offered to the most elevated bidder paying little mind to her age. The consideration of women as property is reflected in the manner by which society keeps on discarding her body. This is the reason it is given as khoon-baha, as compensation for killing a member of another family. This give-and-take tendency is another marriage trade where a man can exchange his wife for a little girl, or sister. This is a matter that persists in most provincial regions of Sindh.
HAQ BAKSHISH
To wed the Quran or Haq Bakshish signifies “prohibit the option to wed”. It is another non-Islamic practice. Under Pakistani law, this custom is punishable by up to seven years in jail. In a few cases that came to light, some young girls were forced to be ‘married’ to the Quran for the remainder of their lives. Marriage with the Quran is a practice which compels women to go through their time on earth remaining abstinent and not have the option to wed a man. In this manner, the perpetrators either acquire property, or serve to secure assets for their line of descendants. In some ‘Darghas’ (holy hallowed places) and ‘friend families’ (crown families) where a son/man isn’t available, the young girls are wedded to the Quran to be called ‘Ghadi Nasheen’ or crown ruler.
The role of women in rural communities has improved somewhat, compared to the last 30 to 40 years. The government is making a lot of efforts in the education sector. In the past, girls’ schools were only in towns, but over the past two decades the government has opened girls’ schools with free books, food and scholarships in every large village and obligated parents to send their daughters to these schools, at least up until secondary education institutes. The government’s second major step towards empowering women is the Prime Minister’s Lady Health Workers Program. The program was launched in 1994 and deserves this acknowledgement. It has been transformed into a ‘channel’ for the operationalization of almost all community health initiatives. This has led to some empowerment of women as lady health workers emerge as leaders in their rural communities and collectively make the society a better place. In summary, discrimination against women has decreased over time through education and awareness. Rural women are finally waking up and understanding their rights and roles in the society.
The writer is a second-year law student at ZFL.
Published in ZU-BLAWGS, August 25th, 2021