The tragedy of being a woman in Pakistan
When I go out, I hear cheap comments made by strange men, cars follow me and old uncles shamelessly offer me lifts.
Gazing out of my office window in Islamabad, I see trees dancing in the wind and heavy clouds hovering over the ground, ready to shower rain. I feel like going out for a walk to cherish the weather but I cannot. It is not because of my work, my boss or my family but rather due to the fear of strangers on the road.
I know this might sound funny coming from a journalist, but it is the reality!
When I go out, I hear cheap comments made by strange men, cars follow me and old uncles shamelessly stop their vehicles and offer to give me a lift.
And it is most embarrassing when I have to stand at the roadside to catch a cab. The act of men staring makes me feel like I am a showpiece and that it is okay for them to gawk at me. What a pity on this country and its people!
I feel jealous when I see women from neighbouring countries riding their scooters or bicycles to get to work or school. In my country, I cannot even think of doing this.
If, one day, I dare to be confident enough to do this, I will be made to feel so uncomfortable that I would not dare to do it again. My family will receive calls from people asking them to keep an eye on my activities because I am trying to break social taboos or because I am crossing cultural limits. And instead of supporting me, my family will ask me to stay at home rather than encourage me to face the world.
I once had an interview with an executive at Polyclinic hospital, who also happened to be a woman and she said to me,
It is very important for women to walk for at least an hour in fresh air. This is good for health and is medically proven to increase life expectancy. But women are reluctant because they feel insecure on the roads, thereby confining themselves to staying indoors and not exercising.
We call Pakistan an independent state but, sorry to say, I do not experience any freedom.
Read more by Sehrish here.
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COMMENTS (143)
I am an Indian girl. I have lived in Delhi and later for another ten years in the UK. What you face while walking on the road is called "eve-teasing" in India. It is quite common place in most of the Indian cities; It is more frequent in the North of India. If you goto South India and Gujrat or even Bombay, eve-teasing is not that high. Females feel safer. It is UP, Punjab and Bihar states where girls are harrassed more. Indian girls normally wear whatever they want and ignore the rude comments. If one starts paying attention to every dog barking on the street then you would never reach your destination.Eve teasing happens in the UK as well but mostly done by males who are either drunk or belong to less educated classes.Truth remains that we can not forget that India and Pakistan are just political entities. As people and cultural attitudes we are the same. Indian women have a bit more freedom because of wide-spreading education (not of females but more males being educated and learning how to respect a female, how to see beyond her gender). Why should males look and stare even if a female is dressed a bit less covered? This is a lazy attitude shared by males all over the world. It is nothing but passing the buck. It is equal to not taking responsibility for one's own depraved mind-set.I think that when a man makes an insulting remark for a women they are insulting themselves.South Asian men need to be educated more for being gender neutral. The responsibility lies on mothers and sisters to teach and show their sons and brothers right from the start. On both sides of the border we have males who are degree holders but not educated in a real sense. It will be good if males can learn to see themselves as a PERSON and a female as a fellow human-being rather than focusing on the anatomy only. And finally since when finding faults with a neighbour has improved matters at home? Indians and Pakistani societies suffer from some common social ills and the Pot calling the Kettle black does not change the colour of the pot :).Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
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