The voiceless pashtoon women
By Helmand Khan
There is an interesting saying in Pashto that "women has no home in pashtoon society". It means while being young , she lives at parent's home. Once get married, she starts residing in husband's home when her husband dies she stays at her son's home. Nearly Half of the Pashtoon population comprise women. They continue to live their lives according to the dictation of a male elder as such father, husband or son. They have been given a second class status. All rules have been laid for her and she has to follow till her death.
In tribal society she is excluded form all walks of life. Her main role is confided to home. It involves bearing children and performing unpaid domestic duties .Under the name of "Ghayrat" male dominated society considers women as an object and treats them as if they are material possession. Hundreds of pashtoon women are killed every year under the name of "honor killing".
They feel harassment from parent, and society at large, if they venture to step out the role defined for them. To given an anecdotal example, I recently spoke to a highly qualified pashtoon woman of Baluchistan- the least developed province of Pakistan . She did masters in English literature, is a women's right activist. She told me that though her father tolerates her going to office and doing job, but he does not like her working or interacting with male colleagues, he being a typical conservative and traditionalist pashtoon.It is also ironic that the campaign for women emancipation has made strides in the mainstream Pakistani society. But Pashtoons continue to dream of development and progress if any, without women participation.
Though women education has improved, yet their status in the society is far from what is acceptable for human folks.
Political parties
The local leadership of political parties -both form the left and the right - have partly to blame. They perpetuate the subservient status of women in society. They do not dare to encourage women emancipation. The leftist nationalists bear greater responsibility: though they profess to be believers of minorities rights including women rights and of democracy, they do not have a single woman in higher organizational bodies of their respective parties. Their mindset is tribalistic on the question of women rights and gender equality; they think of women rights as western values.
As far the political parties of the right are concerned, they offer conservative interpreting of Islam on women rights; they over look how women are relatively encouraged in other parts of Islamic world- countries like Indonesia and Iran- to participate in all walks of life. Even worse they never condemned the treatment of women offered by Talibans during the latter's reign in Afghanistan.
Government
The federal and provincial governments have the most responsibility for the sorry state of pashtoon women. There are still discriminatory laws in the constitution of the country that allow perpetrators of honor killing to get away with. There are no regular laws in Baluchistan and the tribal areas of Pakistan . Where summary justice is done through kangaroo courts called jirgas-a medieval justice system of a tribal society . (I call tribal areas of Pakistan and Baluchistan as geo-political blackholes where ordinary laws, procedures, principals of state system do not apply). Instead, over the last decade, myopic governments did rule through corrupt bureaucracy . Notwithstanding, the present government of General Pervaz Musharaf that provided women nearly a third of the seats in assemblies and parliament, should be praised. However, its role does not end her.
Feminist movement
The feminist movement in the west has also let down the pashtoon women. Though they might be fighting on the fore fort for further improving the lot of women in the West , i.e . equality in wages, they seem to have forgotten the plight of millions of their counterparts in the mountainous regions of Pahstoons.
The West
Women rights, though, may have originated from the west, they are universal values. Western governments have obligation towards the voiceless pashtoon women too. They also need to do more and put pressure on Pakistani government to work for improving the conditions of pashtoon women by investing in education, providing job opportunities , making sure their security and creating harassment free work environment.
There is an interesting saying in Pashto that "women has no home in pashtoon society". It means while being young , she lives at parent's home. Once get married, she starts residing in husband's home when her husband dies she stays at her son's home. Nearly Half of the Pashtoon population comprise women. They continue to live their lives according to the dictation of a male elder as such father, husband or son. They have been given a second class status. All rules have been laid for her and she has to follow till her death.
In tribal society she is excluded form all walks of life. Her main role is confided to home. It involves bearing children and performing unpaid domestic duties .Under the name of "Ghayrat" male dominated society considers women as an object and treats them as if they are material possession. Hundreds of pashtoon women are killed every year under the name of "honor killing".
They feel harassment from parent, and society at large, if they venture to step out the role defined for them. To given an anecdotal example, I recently spoke to a highly qualified pashtoon woman of Baluchistan- the least developed province of Pakistan . She did masters in English literature, is a women's right activist. She told me that though her father tolerates her going to office and doing job, but he does not like her working or interacting with male colleagues, he being a typical conservative and traditionalist pashtoon.It is also ironic that the campaign for women emancipation has made strides in the mainstream Pakistani society. But Pashtoons continue to dream of development and progress if any, without women participation.
Though women education has improved, yet their status in the society is far from what is acceptable for human folks.
Political parties
The local leadership of political parties -both form the left and the right - have partly to blame. They perpetuate the subservient status of women in society. They do not dare to encourage women emancipation. The leftist nationalists bear greater responsibility: though they profess to be believers of minorities rights including women rights and of democracy, they do not have a single woman in higher organizational bodies of their respective parties. Their mindset is tribalistic on the question of women rights and gender equality; they think of women rights as western values.
As far the political parties of the right are concerned, they offer conservative interpreting of Islam on women rights; they over look how women are relatively encouraged in other parts of Islamic world- countries like Indonesia and Iran- to participate in all walks of life. Even worse they never condemned the treatment of women offered by Talibans during the latter's reign in Afghanistan.
Government
The federal and provincial governments have the most responsibility for the sorry state of pashtoon women. There are still discriminatory laws in the constitution of the country that allow perpetrators of honor killing to get away with. There are no regular laws in Baluchistan and the tribal areas of Pakistan . Where summary justice is done through kangaroo courts called jirgas-a medieval justice system of a tribal society . (I call tribal areas of Pakistan and Baluchistan as geo-political blackholes where ordinary laws, procedures, principals of state system do not apply). Instead, over the last decade, myopic governments did rule through corrupt bureaucracy . Notwithstanding, the present government of General Pervaz Musharaf that provided women nearly a third of the seats in assemblies and parliament, should be praised. However, its role does not end her.
Feminist movement
The feminist movement in the west has also let down the pashtoon women. Though they might be fighting on the fore fort for further improving the lot of women in the West , i.e . equality in wages, they seem to have forgotten the plight of millions of their counterparts in the mountainous regions of Pahstoons.
The West
Women rights, though, may have originated from the west, they are universal values. Western governments have obligation towards the voiceless pashtoon women too. They also need to do more and put pressure on Pakistani government to work for improving the conditions of pashtoon women by investing in education, providing job opportunities , making sure their security and creating harassment free work environment.
Comments