The Globalization Bulletin Women January 2017 NEWS COVERAGE PERIOD FROM JANUARY 23RD TO JANUARY 29TH 2017 ‘WOMAN IS EITHER DISCUSSED FROM PERSPECTIVE OF VICTIMHOOD OR IS OVER GLAMORISED’ Dawn January 23rd, 2017 Mohammad Hussain Khan HYDERABAD: Speakers at the second edition of Lahooti Mello that concluded at Hyderabad Club on Sunday discussed gender issues and revival of Pakistani films and remarked that woman was either talked about from the perspective of victimhood or was over glamorised. “Eve’s power play” was one of the important sessions moderated by Sahar Gul with panellists Senator Sassui Palijo, university teacher Arfana Mallah, architect Marvi Mazhar. On Saturday the Mello was inaugurated by Sindh Minister for Culture Syed Sardar Ali Shah and US Consul General Grace W. Shelton. US Consulate Karachi was also partner in the event. Marvi Mazhar said: “Since I belong to a political family and party like PPP I didn’t face any hurdle but still there are barriers for women. Such support is not usually available for an average woman who will have to assert herself”. To a question from audience, she said that a woman was most likely not to lie. “It is perhaps because of a woman’s upbringing that her score on honesty’s count is better,” she remarked. Her co-panellist Arfana Mallah disagreed, saying “it is in fact society’s checks and balances over a woman that she can’t afford being dishonest”. Moderator agreed with a questioner, Wusatullah Khan, that it was a process and struggle that mattered and there were many heroes like Fatima Jinnah who stood against a dictator and Nusrat Bhutto who fought for democracy and remained unsung in history. At that point, Marvi Mazhar interjected to say that usually society talked about the celebrated heroes. On women’s security concerns, Ms Mallah pointed out that paradigm regarding woman’s honour was changing and people needed to understand that her honour was not attached to her body. It was in fact everyone’s own lens to look at women’s empowerment. “Society is now questioning such social structure that deals with women,” she said. She said that woman was not taken as an individual in society but she was either discussed from the perspective of victimhood or was over glamorised. She disagreed with a suggestion that if a rural woman attended to call of nature in the open fields it reflected her strength and said what was important was where this very woman was placed in society. She said that women faced patriarchy in every society with different trends. She added that in Sindh woman’s community and class background mattered the most. Senator Palijo said while answering a question about misconception of feminism that unless women asserted themselves they would not be able to seek empowerment. The Globalization Bulletin Women Film director Jamshed Mehmood Raza alias Jami while sharing his views at a session moderated by journalist, Rafay Mahmood, on “filmy chukar” with panellist Mehmood Mughal observed that revival of film industry was not that easy but it was gradually picking up pace. “It is a fact when there were no Indian movies cinegoers were not seen in cinemas. You know one tends to visit a restaurant which is full of customers. Same goes for a cinema house,” he said. He agreed with a questioner, Saif Samejo, that narrative of Pakistani artists should be collective and not only Punjab’s. Jami said that his best production was Moor which talked about Balochistan although he was not able to speak about Balochistan’s issues that much. He said that people of Sindh would have to speak loud and clear. He said that there was a mindset which wanted to invest Rs60m and earn Rs200m. Pakistani film industry was not stable but it would stabilise with passage of time. The audience showed great excitement in story telling session by journalist Wusatullah Khan who narrated his life’s story and how he became a journalist though he aspired to be a pilot. He never wrote until he had had a bet with a university friend for having his article published in a newspaper. “I won that bet of Rs200 after writing a piece on South Africa’s nuclear explosion story in a Urdu daily,” he said. Lahooti Mello was held in perfect weather conditions. All main sessions including musical gatherings were held in the lawn of Hyderabad Club amid sunlight and moderate cold in the afternoon on Saturday and Sunday. Saif Samejo, the driving force behind Lahooti Mello for which he partnered with US Consulate Karachi, believed that musical diversity was important and he had tried to gather singers and musicians from different areas. “There were three American performers, one Hungarian and seven Nepalis who performed on fusion music in daylight and solo performances in the evening,” he said. http://www.dawn.com/news/1310136/woman-is-either-discussed-from-perspective-of-victimhood-or-is-over- glamorised PAGARA EXHORTS DISCIPLES TO EDUCATE GIRLS, GIVE RIGHTS TO WOMEN Dawn January 23rd, 2017 SANGHAR: The Pir Pagara, spiritual head of the Hurs, exhorted his disciples to educate their children, particularly girls, and give due respect to their women family members and their neighbours. Wearing traditional robe and ‘kalangi’, he was addressing tens of thousands of his devotees in Awadh, some 20kms from Sanghar, on Sunday. The Pir Pagaro was on a five-day spiritual tour of the district of Sanghar where a huge majority of his followers live. His address in Awadh mainly dwelt on women’s rights, especially their right to inheritance and education. He said that in order to face contemporary challenges, education was a necessity. He encouraged them to arrange inter-caste marriages and advised them to discourage underage and forced marriages. He said that an educated woman was a blessing for a family and urged his followers to give due right of inheritance to their female family members. The Globalization Bulletin Women Admiring the services and sacrifices of the Pakistan Army for the defence of the country, he exhorted the mammoth congregation to stay loyal to the country. He asked them to carry out tree plantation for their own benefit and environment. Later on, at the residence of MNA Pir Bux Junejo, the Pir Pagaro, who is also head of the Pakistan Muslim League- Functional (PML-F), told reporters that the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) had shrunk to Sindh only. In the 2018 general election, it would lose that position also, he added. Taking exception to the behaviour of the PPP legislators in the Sindh Assembly, he said the PPP leadership should rethink that how such people who did not know to respect women reached the assemblies. He said that it was not the first time that the PPP had shown disrespect to women. The Pir Pagaro reached Sanghar city to attend a spiritual congregation of his disciples on Monday. A huge number of his devotees, including women and children, had already reached the venue and had set up their makeshift arrangements for an overnight stay. On the call of the PML-F local chapter, a demonstration was held at Shaheed Chowk Khipro on Sunday in protest against the behaviour of the PPP legislators against MPA Nusrat Sehr Abbasi in the Sindh Provincial Assembly. Holding placards in their hands and raising slogans against MPAs Imdad Pitafi and Temoor Talpur, they strongly condemned the offensive language used by the PPP members for Nusrat Sehr Abbasi. They demanded an apology in public and resignation from Imdad Pitafi both as a minister and member of the assembly. http://www.dawn.com/news/1310133 ECP WRITES TO PARTY CHIEFS TO ENSURE FULL PARTICIPATION OF FEMALE VOTERS Dawn January 25th, 2017 Iftikhar A. Khan ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has sought the help of political parties to bridge the gender gap by ensuring that the maximum number of women participate in the 2018 polls. The commission, in a letter it wrote to 16 political parties, pointed out that there was a huge gap of 12 million between men and women registered as voters. An updated electoral roll showed 42.4 million females against 54.5m males out of approximately 97m registered as voters. “As head of a political party you are requested to help ECP in bridging this gap by asking your workers and supporters to encourage women, religious minorities, disabled persons and other marginalised segments of society to get registered as voters and use their right to franchise in the ensuing elections,” reads the letter, a copy of which Dawn has. It noted that a failure to this effect would make doubtful the transparency of general elections while recalling that it was the ECP’s constitutional obligation to ensure equal and just participation of all in an electoral exercise and to conduct free and impartial elections. Article 25 grants each and every citizen equal right and equal participation in the election process. The 2nd Five-Year Plan suggested formation of a gender wing in the ECP as part of enshrined goals, the letter says. The Globalization Bulletin Women Recipient of letters are Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz president and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan Peoples Party chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chairman Imran Khan, Muttahida Qaumi Movement deputy convener Dr Farooq Sattar, PML-Quaid president Chaudhry Shujaat Husasain, Awami National Party president Asfandyar Wali Khan, Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Jamaat-i-Islami emir Senator Sirajul Haq, National Party president Dr Abdul Malik Baloch, National Peoples Party president Ghulam Murtaza Jatoi, PML-Functional president Pir Sibghatullah Shah Pir Pagara, Awami Muslim League president Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad, Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party chairman Mehmood Khan Achakzai, Qaumi Watan Party president Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao and PML-Zia president Ijazul Haq.