Abdul Rahman
On Wednesday, March 6, the organizers of Aurat March (March for Women) Islamabad held a press conference at the National Press Club on the eve of International Women’s Day demanding that the government protect the rights of women, working classes, religious and ethnic minorities and political dissenters in Pakistan.
On the occasion, it issued a 60-point charter of demands which includes:
Asking the Pakistani government to declare gender-based violence a national emergency and to adopt a zero-tolerance policy towards all forms of patriarchal violence, AMI reiterated the need for the implementation of all laws made to protect women from such violence in a more efficient and proactive manner.
AMI emphasized the need to eradicate child marriages in the country as well as forced marriages of women from religious minorities. According to UNICEF, every year nearly 19 million girls in Pakistan are married before 18, the legally recognized age of marriage.
AMI also demanded the strict enforcement of acts to prevent violence against transgender people in the country who continue to face discrimination, violence and economic depravity due to social taboos and the lack of economic opportunities.
They also noted how organizers of Aurat March have faced increasing restrictions on their activities since 2020. Apart from the fact that authorities have created difficulties in granting basic permissions for the marches on women’s day, the activists have also faced blasphemy cases, stone pelting by the regressive segments of the society, blockade, detention and baton charges by the security forces in previous years.
They demanded the protection of their rights to peaceful assembly and freedom of speech and expression so that they can carry out their scheduled program on March 8.
AMI also demanded that March 8 should be declared a national holiday so that more and more women from the working classes can participate in the celebration of the day which commemorates the movement for justice and equality.
Protection of the Rights of Vulnerable Communities
A major part of the demands raised by AMI is related to the protection of the rights of religious minorities and other vulnerable sections of the society. It demanded an end to the rising incidents of persecution of political dissenters, activists, and journalists in the country.
AMI sought amendments in the blasphemy law to prevent its misuse. In the last few years, incidents of misuse of the country’s blasphemy law have increased as a tool to target religious minorities and progressive activists. Several people have been killed in mob violence related to blasphemy in recent months in the country.
The prevention of extra judicial killings and forced disappearances of Balochs, Pashtuns, and opposition political activists in the name of fighting terrorism has become a major concern for the left and progressive sections in the country. Large scale movements led by the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) and the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) are raising the issue repeatedly. AIM reiterated the stand of the progressive sections in the country that all forms of extrajudicial killings and forced disappearances, as well as the persecution of human rights activists, political opponents, and journalists must end.
AMI also raised the issues related to the illegal deportation of Afghan refugees from the country by the Pakistan government, demanding the immediate end of the practice and enactment of laws to protect the rights of the refugees.
Thousands of Afghan refugees have been forced to leave the country by successive governments in Pakistan in the last couple of years. The governments have accused the refugees of participating in “extremist and illegal activities.” Activists have maintained that such allegations are baseless. They have termed the forceful expulsion of the refugees a violation of basic human rights of the Afghans who have been living in Pakistan for generations.
Workers’ Right to Unionize
AMI is also defending the working class’ right to organize themselves and carry out collective actions. These rights have been attacked by successive governments in the country.
The women’s movement in the country has extended their support to Mohammad Asif, a Nestle employee for 16 years who self-immolated inside a court premise in Lahore due to lack of remedies to his complaints of anti-workers policies of his employees.
Apart from asking for adequate compensation, a joint statement issued by left and women’s movements on Wednesday demanded that all companies in the country adhere to workers’ rights for dignified working conditions and decent wages apart from their right to unionize.
AMI also extended its support to the farmers and people of Punjab and Sindh provinces who are opposing the construction of six new canals on the Indus River under the so-called Green Pakistan Initiative (GPI). AMI called on the Pakistan government to scrap the GPI in the larger interest of environmental protection as well as to save the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of farmers in those two provinces.
The press conference was addressed by AMI activists such as Dr. Farzana Bari, Huda Bhurgri, Nishant Maryam, Zainab Jamil, Jiya Jaggi among others.
This report was first published in Peoples Dispatch.
On the occasion, it issued a 60-point charter of demands which includes:
- The end of gender based violence
- The end of all forms of political persecution
- The right to form unions
- The protection of the rights of Afghan refugees
- And many others
Asking the Pakistani government to declare gender-based violence a national emergency and to adopt a zero-tolerance policy towards all forms of patriarchal violence, AMI reiterated the need for the implementation of all laws made to protect women from such violence in a more efficient and proactive manner.
AMI emphasized the need to eradicate child marriages in the country as well as forced marriages of women from religious minorities. According to UNICEF, every year nearly 19 million girls in Pakistan are married before 18, the legally recognized age of marriage.
AMI also demanded the strict enforcement of acts to prevent violence against transgender people in the country who continue to face discrimination, violence and economic depravity due to social taboos and the lack of economic opportunities.
They also noted how organizers of Aurat March have faced increasing restrictions on their activities since 2020. Apart from the fact that authorities have created difficulties in granting basic permissions for the marches on women’s day, the activists have also faced blasphemy cases, stone pelting by the regressive segments of the society, blockade, detention and baton charges by the security forces in previous years.
They demanded the protection of their rights to peaceful assembly and freedom of speech and expression so that they can carry out their scheduled program on March 8.
AMI also demanded that March 8 should be declared a national holiday so that more and more women from the working classes can participate in the celebration of the day which commemorates the movement for justice and equality.
Protection of the Rights of Vulnerable Communities
A major part of the demands raised by AMI is related to the protection of the rights of religious minorities and other vulnerable sections of the society. It demanded an end to the rising incidents of persecution of political dissenters, activists, and journalists in the country.
AMI sought amendments in the blasphemy law to prevent its misuse. In the last few years, incidents of misuse of the country’s blasphemy law have increased as a tool to target religious minorities and progressive activists. Several people have been killed in mob violence related to blasphemy in recent months in the country.
The prevention of extra judicial killings and forced disappearances of Balochs, Pashtuns, and opposition political activists in the name of fighting terrorism has become a major concern for the left and progressive sections in the country. Large scale movements led by the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) and the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) are raising the issue repeatedly. AIM reiterated the stand of the progressive sections in the country that all forms of extrajudicial killings and forced disappearances, as well as the persecution of human rights activists, political opponents, and journalists must end.
AMI also raised the issues related to the illegal deportation of Afghan refugees from the country by the Pakistan government, demanding the immediate end of the practice and enactment of laws to protect the rights of the refugees.
Thousands of Afghan refugees have been forced to leave the country by successive governments in Pakistan in the last couple of years. The governments have accused the refugees of participating in “extremist and illegal activities.” Activists have maintained that such allegations are baseless. They have termed the forceful expulsion of the refugees a violation of basic human rights of the Afghans who have been living in Pakistan for generations.
Workers’ Right to Unionize
AMI is also defending the working class’ right to organize themselves and carry out collective actions. These rights have been attacked by successive governments in the country.
The women’s movement in the country has extended their support to Mohammad Asif, a Nestle employee for 16 years who self-immolated inside a court premise in Lahore due to lack of remedies to his complaints of anti-workers policies of his employees.
Apart from asking for adequate compensation, a joint statement issued by left and women’s movements on Wednesday demanded that all companies in the country adhere to workers’ rights for dignified working conditions and decent wages apart from their right to unionize.
AMI also extended its support to the farmers and people of Punjab and Sindh provinces who are opposing the construction of six new canals on the Indus River under the so-called Green Pakistan Initiative (GPI). AMI called on the Pakistan government to scrap the GPI in the larger interest of environmental protection as well as to save the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of farmers in those two provinces.
The press conference was addressed by AMI activists such as Dr. Farzana Bari, Huda Bhurgri, Nishant Maryam, Zainab Jamil, Jiya Jaggi among others.
This report was first published in Peoples Dispatch.
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