Day: July 9, 2012

Every day I pick up the newspaper, daring to hope that perhaps today is the day when I will not see a news item that has become as much of a permanent fixture in the newspaper as the date on top. The headline usually says “man kills wife” but is by no means limited to this relation; any and all women kin are fair game in this practice of murdering in the name of honour.

Our society is complex, to say the least. It is this complexity, perhaps, that somehow makes us believe that women are the sole vessel of a man’s honour whether as a wife, a sister or a daughter. It is irrelevant how women are treated in each of these roles; the only time their existence is of any importance is when they have transgressed the lines drawn for them by individuals in particular and society at large. Considering that many of our cultural practices are directly or indirectly, correctly or incorrectly derived from our religious beliefs, it belies all logic that such ignorance is accepted and practiced with the frequency that it is. Islam gave women unprecedented rights not just in terms of material provisions or inheritance but also in terms of social standing and interaction. Thus we saw women being given the highest of honours as mothers, equal rights as wives, just provisions as daughters and so on. Yet it is appalling how these decrees from God are boldly overruled these days for land, money or simply lust.

Where does one get the right to take another human being’s life simply because a perceived sense of ‘honour’ is slighted? In many cases even that excuse is not considered necessary. Domestic arguments are one of the most frequent reasons behind cold blooded murder, going so far as to include the relatives of the wife, who happened to be at the scene when the angered husband forced his way into the house of his in laws. I can understand divorce, abhor physical violence but outright murder is something which can neither be explained nor excused. Once this line is crossed, there should be only one course of action; the gallows or life imprisonment.

Just as horrific, is the practice of marrying a young girl to the Quran. It is to me equivalent to murder. This is such a vile tradition followed usually in remote rural areas that it makes one sick to the stomach. First it is an offence done by one’s own relatives, usually men wearing the mantle of guardianship. Secondly it is in direct violation to God’s law. For the sake of a few acres of land, an innocent girl is sentenced to life imprisonment, for it is nothing less, denied all joys in life, forced to live her life as a hermit devoid of love or basic human interaction. Nothing could be worse. It is like confining a living person to a grave and to make is socially acceptable the whole loathsome affair is wrapped up in religious blasphemy, where a cleric is invited to oversee the nikah of the girl to the Quran. The only thing unbelievable in the whole affair is that man can stoop to such depths.

Hypocrisy knows no bounds. What is acceptable behaviour in a son is readily denounced in a daughter to the extent of being labelled a crime worthy of execution. This is usually when the girl marries according to her own wishes and the match is unacceptable to the parents. I don’t by any means encourage clandestine behaviour and whole heartedly denounce a course of action by which parents are socially humiliated, yet if things come to such a pass it must be understood no matter what your beliefs are on the subject, one cannot pursue a homicidal recourse. Killing your own daughter will not undo anything, it is not allowed in Islam and it makes one a criminal. How is honour protected through this course of action if neither God nor society approves of it?

The question then is how to eliminate this plague of ‘honour killings’ in our society. The most effective and immediate remedy is the upholding of the law. If one is guilty of murder one should be punished for the same. Justice has an uncanny ability to reform even the most base of individuals.

In addition to this we really need to educate the masses, give them a chance of reforming, of becoming better human beings. Whatever your station in life, you can benefit some one less fortunate than yourself by equipping them with the ability to overcome the ignorance that governs their thinking, their actions, their lives. Only swift retribution and enlightenment can create a society where no one can associate an act of murder with a sense of honour.

The Nation

SUKKUR: Transgenders will have to learn different skills to be able to earn a respectable livelihood, said Sanam Fakir while speaking at the inauguration of a computer training centre at her house on Thursday.

“We will have to break the begging bowl,” she said. “My mission is to educate transgender people so that they become bread earners for themselves and their dependents. This computer training centre has been set up on a self-help basis.”

Fakir runs the Sanam Fakir Welfare Association and is the go-to person for transgender people in Sindh. The institute aims to provide free computer training in a bid to wean them off begging. Although the Sindh government has appointed her as the focal person for this minority group she is still working without an office and salary.

There have, nonetheless been great developments for transgendered people who were previously denied the right to have a computerised national identity card (CNIC). But the Supreme Court stepped in and changed that, making it possible for them to now be eligible for benefits that other Pakistani citizens could apply for.

Fakir is also counting on the commissioner of Sukkur to keep his promise of granting her some funds for welfare work. The commissioner, Inamullah Dharejo, said that he gave a cheque of Rs200,000 to Fakir for the welfare of the transgenders. Unfortunately, the system changed and the funds were withdrawn. “We will give them funds just as we receive them,” he promised. Fakir is now focusing on the centre where they have three computers and at least 10 students. “We have hired an instructor but he does not come regularly; therefore, I also teach them,” she said. Fakir has matriculated and knows how to operate a computer. At least 10 more students will be trained after this batch is done. Some of them are intermediate students.

Fakir said that she purchased three second hand P-III computers for Rs40,000. “Initially we are teaching our students basics of the computer. We want them to learn how to type in English and Urdu,” she added.

One of the students, Savera, told The Express Tribune that she did intermediate as a private candidate. “It was very difficult to continue studying with boys after I completed eight grade because the boys used to tease me,”

Zahida also wants to learn computer to get a respectable job. “We are also human beings and have right to get education,” she said, “I am grateful to Sanam, who is doing a lot for the welfare of our community,” she added.

Farzana is keen to learn computer and a fast learner at the centre. She is very intelligent and also intends to continue her studies as a private candidate. “We earn enough by performing at functions but people treat us like a commodity,” she said.

Fakir has already requested the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) general manager to help them get jobs after the students complete their training. She said that she could send her students to other training centres in the city but so far they can’t afford the fees.

Deputy Director Administration Nadra Sukkur Major Tanveer told The Express Tribune that Fakir had visited his office regarding the registration of transgenders and jobs for them. “I have appointed two or three transgenders as data entry operators,” he said. The transgender who has done an intermediate and a diploma in computer is eligible for the post of data entry operator, he added.

Express Tribune

KARACHI: In a giant step to curb sexual harassment, the Sindh government has appointed a provincial ombudsperson to redress women’s complaints against harassment as well as discrimination at the workplace – becoming the country’s first province to do so.
With the public disillusioned in the current political scenario, especially because of the regressive clash between the judiciary and the parliament, the positive move is expected to ease the plight of working women immensely.

Pir Ali Shah, a retired judge of the Sindh High Court, has been appointed the provincial ombudsperson under the anti-sexual harassment law. The official will act as a legal, impartial intermediary between the employees and their management. His duties will include investigation of filed complaints and resolving them, usually through recommendations or mediation.

Mehergarh, a human rights organisation, helped organise a meeting of Sindh Implementation Watch Committee recently, which was revived to take on the challenge.

Shah’s appointment is a massive step towards effective implementation of anti-sexual harassment legislation.

Now the complainants not satisfied with the decision of their inquiry committees, can take their case to the ombudsperson. If someone does not want to take their case to the committee within their organisation for whatever reason, they can also directly approach the law officer.
Sindh is the first province in the country to appoint an ombudsperson under this anti-sexual harassment law.

The Punjab government announced its ombudsperson’s office on March 8, but is yet to find a suitable candidate for the position.

Balochistan has given this position to their existing ombudsperson as additional charge. One of the investigation officers, Abdul Mannan Achakzai, has been designated to deal with sexual harassment cases in the province.

This arrangement needs to continue until a separate ombudsperson is appointed specifically for the anti-sexual abuse law. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has not moved yet on the issue. Several meetings have been held with province’s social welfare and women development minister, Sitara Ayaz, among others without any concrete results, only verbal commitments.

The civil society has appreciated the efforts of Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah, Women Development Minister Tauqeer Fatima Bhutto and the Law Ministry of Sindh among all those who pushed the agenda behind the scenes

Express Tribune

SHIRKAT GAH, KARACHI: Women play a significant role in the management of natural resources in Pakistan and have profound traditional and contemporary knowledge of nature. They are not only the victims of climate change but are also effective agents of change.

Women in Pakistan, for instance, are already on the frontline of adapting to climate change because they have to deal with managing their families and households in the face of increasingly frequent floods and related natural disasters. As pivotal managers of natural and environmental resources and key frontline implementers of development, women have the experience and knowledge to build up the resilience of their communities to the intensifying natural hazards to come.

However, it is regrettable that in Pakistan, women are still marginalised from community discussions about development planning, especially since participation in such talks will benefit them directly.

It is high time to consider that women’s rights must be integrated with environmental concerns, policies and programmes.

Until recently, development efforts in the country did not take into account the condition of women and this also contributed to their overall neglect. There is an urgent need for incorporation of gender perspectives in development planning, especially with regards to the environment, agriculture, forests, land management, water resources, climate change, disaster risk management, energy and sanitation

Express Tribune

PESHAWAR: The Women Business Development Centre (WBDC) will organise a three-day exhibition ‘Summer Trade Fair-II’ from Tuesday (tomorrow), showcasing products of skilled women entrepreneurs from different parts of the country.

Briefing media persons here on Sunday, the centre’s project manager, Ms Nabeela Farman, said that the event had been designed to promote handicrafts prepared by skilled women entrepreneurs of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and those from other parts of the country.

She said that the exhibition being arranged in collaboration with Tourism Corporation Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (TCKP) was aimed at promoting the soft-image of the province. She said that provincial minister for industries would inaugurate the trade fair in a local hotel here on July 10.

She said that over 50 stalls would be set up in the exhibition showcasing products of women entrepreneurs from Chitral, Haripur, Mardan, Bannu, D.I. Khan, Peshawar, Multan, Bahawalpur and Islamabad.

Flanked by other WBDC staff members, she said that the event would also provide an opportunity to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s women entrepreneurs to develop linkages with their counterparts from other parts of the country.

Dawn