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Violence Against Women in Pakistan Amina Bath Abath@Usfca.Edu The University of San Francisco USF Scholarship: a digital repository @ Gleeson Library | Geschke Center Master's Theses Theses, Dissertations, Capstones and Projects Fall 12-16-2011 Violence Against Women in Pakistan Amina Bath [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.usfca.edu/thes Part of the Asian History Commons, Asian Studies Commons, Cultural History Commons, History of Gender Commons, International Relations Commons, Islamic World and Near East History Commons, Other Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons, Political History Commons, and the Social History Commons Recommended Citation Bath, Amina, "Violence Against Women in Pakistan" (2011). Master's Theses. 1122. https://repository.usfca.edu/thes/1122 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, Capstones and Projects at USF Scholarship: a digital repository @ Gleeson Library | Geschke Center. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of USF Scholarship: a digital repository @ Gleeson Library | Geschke Center. For more information, please contact [email protected]. University of San Francisco Violence Against Women in Pakistan A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences Master’s Program in International Studies In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in International Studies by Amina Bath December 2011 1 Violence Against Women in Pakistan In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree MASTER OF ARTS in INTERNATIONAL STUDIES by Amina Bath December 2011 UNIVERSITY OF SAN FRANCISCO Under the guidance and approval of the committee, and approval by all the members, this thesis has been accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree. Approved: ________________________________ _____________ Advisor Date ________________________________ _____________ Academic Director Date ________________________________ _____________ Dean of Arts and Sciences Date 2 DEDICATION To my father. For stressing the importance of seeking and gaining knowledge. For instilling in me the belief that despite societal views, being female did not make me less than. Your faith in my abilities will always surpass my own. 3 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to begin by thanking Allah for providing me the opportunity to embark on this amazing journey toward my Master’s. The lessons I have learned and the people I have met throughout this time have all, in some way, helped me prosper into something far greater than I ever imagined. Next I offer my sincerest gratitude to my advisor, Dr. Aysha Hidayatullah. The first time I came to speak with Dr. Hidayatullah she said that if my thesis were a journey, I would be the driver and she the passenger—I would choose the direction and she would help guide me every step of the way. Dr. Hidayatullah was true to her word. It’s difficult to portray how much I have appreciated her guidance and assistance throughout this process. Nonetheless, I know—without a doubt—that my thesis wouldn’t be what it is today without her knowledge and wisdom. I feel honored to have had the opportunity to work with Dr. Hidayatullah and am proud to call her my sister in Islam. In me, Dr. Hidayatullah has found a lifelong supporter who will forever remember her kindness. My internship with the Sarsabz Foundation in Pakistan, too, gave me access to insurmountable resources. I would like to acknowledge Dr. Naveeda Shoaib, Executive Director, for giving me free reign on obtaining research material. I would also like to give a heartfelt thanks to Aisha Rafiq—a lawyer and activist advocating for gender justice in Faisalabad, Pakistan. Aisha was my companion in Pakistan—and an amazing source of information. Our trips to Faisalabad Women’s Jail, legal centers and various seminars made it possible for me to put forth this finished product. 4 My greatest appreciation, also, to my fellow students in the MAIS program— especially my dear friend Christina Genetti. Thank you for allowing me to—always— think out loud. And, most importantly, I have been blessed with the most amazing family—all of whom I am extremely grateful for. This past year has seen my grandmother in dire health, and yet, even in her lowest points, she never stopped praying for grandchildren. Her pain was inconsequential—her granddaughter’s success was everything. I will always be humbled by her strength, courage and compassion. I am likewise thankful for the support of my parents, uncles and aunts. I come from a family that sees no difference between “daughter” and “niece.” Thus, I have had an overabundance of guidance and good will sent my way through my thesis-writing process. My last acknowledgement is for my very own personal cheer squad: my cousins. The only thing we have in common is the blood running through our veins; and yet, we have always been—and will always remain—inseparable. No matter where life may take me, I know that behind me I have the unwavering support of the most amazing group of women. Simply put, they are my life. And without them this never would have been. 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1: Introduction…………………………………………………………………...7 Chapter 2: Literature Review……...…………………………………………………….12 Chapter 3: History and Background…………………………………………………….26 Chapter 4: Case Examples and the Shifting Relationship between Religion and State in Pakistan….……………………………………………………………………………….39 Chapter 5: Conclusion…………………………………………………………………...57 Appendix…………………………………………………………………………………60 Bibliography……………………………………………………………………………..62 6 CHAPTER I Introduction 7 “Gender-based violence is the most pervasive and least recognized human rights violation in Pakistan,” reads a manual distributed by the Sarsabz Foundation. 1 According to Sarsabz, gender-based violence “has many forms and shades and is present across all strata. Women are potential victims of violence at every stage of their lives.”2 According to data gathered by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) in 2010, violence against women is a key issue in the country. Approximately 1,790 women were murdered in 2010 and 1,076 of these women were killed by their husbands, fathers, brothers, sons, in-laws and other relatives. 3 Not only are these significant numbers, but they also forgo the myriad of cases that are never reported or revealed publicly. The HRCP’s report also makes it clear that violence can take many forms. Nonetheless, the most common type of violence against women in Pakistan is domestic violence, or violence executed by intimate partners. The findings of the Aurat Foundation, a frontrunner organization in Pakistan targeting issues affecting women, builds on the HRCP’s data. Table 1 (see Appendix) displays the number of cases of violence against women from January through June of 2011.4 The table also shows the form of violence and/or its result, as well as the location of the majority of the cases. 5 1 Sarsabz Foundation, “Strengthening Local Justice System through Integrated Legal Aid Services,” www.sarsabz.org. 2 Ibid. 3 “State of Human Rights in 2010.” Annual Reports 2010, The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. http://www.hrcp-web.org/Publications/AR2010.pdf. 4 The Aurat Foundation. “Press Briefing: Incidents of Violence Against Women in Pakistan Reported during January to June 2011.” www.af.org.pk. 5 However, it is important to note that while the table depicts that the majority of the cases take place in the Punjab province, this does not imply that Punjab is somehow more violent than other provinces. This is due only to the fact that that the Punjab province is the largest province in Pakistan with a total of 35 districts. 8 As this data indicates, violence against women is a widespread problem in Pakistan. The aim of this thesis, then, is to understand violence against Pakistani women in light of Pakistan’s history as a nation, Pakistani women’s rights, and the relationship between Islam and the state. I will argue that the phenomenon of violence against women in Pakistan has its foundations in the 1947 Partition and eventually came to be affixed to religion and condoned by the state through laws implemented under the banner of Islam. As such, Chapter Two will provide a general literature review of scholarly work on the topics of human rights, women’s rights, Islam, and violence against women in Pakistan. Chapter Three provides historical background on women’s rights and movements in Pakistan in connection to its founding principles of democracy and gender equality. In Chapter Four, an in-depth case study of recent incidents of violence against women in Pakistan will be employed as the research method. Chapter Five provides a concluding assessment of the larger meanings gleaned from the findings of this thesis. Method An explanation of method is in order to clarify the overall approach of this thesis to the research and data employed. This thesis, in Chapters Three and Four, utilizes secondary sources to provide historical and political analysis of violence against women in Pakistan. The sources in use discuss the 1947 Partition of India, Pakistan’s subsequent political agenda and the role of women—as well as Islam—in each of the aforementioned. In choosing to utilize the works of Ritu Menon, Kamla Bhasin, Filomena Critelli, Moon Charania, and Mumtaz and Shaheed—to name a few—the author aimed to make connections between the birth of Pakistan as an independent 9 nation, Islam, and the violence against women that is so prevalent today. Much of the sources were compiled within the past ten years, and thus, are products of recent scholarship on topics such as: women in Pakistani politics, women and rights in Islam, gender-based violence in Pakistan and, of course, women in the 1947 Partition of India. , This in-depth historical and political analysis of women’s rights and issues in Pakistan will illustrate how violence against women has been deeply affected by the policies pursued by those in office in Pakistan since 1947.
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