- Get link
- X
- Other Apps
Evolution of Women’s
Political Rights in Pakistan
Abstract
Purpose: In this study, the evolution of women’s political rights is
analyzed from Pakistan’s perspective. Women
have political rights in Pakistan. However, they face numerous social,
economic, and political hurdles to become efficient constituents in the
legislative system.
Methodology: Our research is based on deductive logic,
where secondary source information is analyzed in the wake of an evolutionary
standpoint to determine women’s political and economic participation. Despite
of large population size, women have a dissatisfactory role in politic. This
paper underscores women’s representation and involvement in the politics of Pakistan
from past and current prospects. Several significant actions have been taken in
the last two decades to strengthen women’s political and economic empowerment. Specific
social barriers that inhibit women from becoming influential elements in the
political system are also highlighted. Participation in politics does not mean
only getting legislative assemblies’ representation; it also means certain
political activities, such as being a member of a political party or the role of
a voter. In this paper, women’s political rights are investigated in connection
with economic empowerment evolved in Pakistan through employing a systematic
approach to direct research. The data is extracted from secondary sources,
including research articles, books, magazines, and official online reports.
Results:
This study found that women faced political inequality in all ten general
elections compared to men. In both houses of parliament, the ratio of members
is increased based on commencing of the allocation system. Still the women’s
role in perception of transformation for political equality is still limited
because of specific social and cultural barriers.
Implications of the study: Different
women worldwide enforcing and encouraging women empowerment, especially in
politics, share the same roots. However, sociocultural
values and lower economic empowerment are the variables creating hindrances in the
attainment of goals regarding gender equality.
Keywords: Women empowerment, Political rights, Economic
freedom, Political equality
Introduction
For ages, women
have been proving that when it comes to managing the household and bringing up
children, they are the masters. In the last few decades, women have stormed the
so-called male bastions in the form of professionals, businesswomen, corporate
leaders, and high-income earners. Nevertheless, there is one area where they
are not taking the lead role, which is when it comes to managing their finances
and money decisions. They defer to their husband, brother, or fathers-in-law
when managing money. In western countries, women’s empowerment is linked with
numerous women’s rights movements that started in the 19th century and
continued till the early 20th century. Empowerment of women is defined as a movement
that promotes women’s self-esteem, personal independence, and the ability to
influence societal change for the betterment of themselves and others through
education, literacy, and skills (Kabeer, 2005). While economic and
political empowerment encourages women to have more control over their income,
assets, and political decision, including the “voting right”and contest in the election
(Mosedale, 2005),
Women’s financial
or economic empowerment is the ability to participate in and benefit from a
process of growth through techniques that recognize the importance of their
roles, recognize their respectability and get to settle a better allocation of
the benefits of development (OECD., 2011). There are indeed three essential
features related to the empowerment of women that might lead to an increase in
participation of women in politics: Accessibility of assets and income; women
having a source of income; management of and profit from economic resources; When
women can decide about the spending of their income, there will be a subsequent
upsurge in socioeconomic status and the amount of funds committed to their
children. This will broaden women’s capacity to make choices and
decision-making without any fear of threat, violence, or vengeance. In the
literature, it is evident that if the proportion of household income managed by
women increases, it will produce more considerable social and economic benefits
that are crucial for the development of any country. It also increases access
for women to financial services, politics, property, jobs, assets, growth of
skills and market information. Women’s political freedom is associated
significantly with economic liberty. When women have higher economic freedom,
they will surely increase their participation in the political sphere. There is
no quick fix, as women’s empowerment needs a holistic approach through devising
sound public policies and long-term dedication from all actors (individual or
state).
It is a misconception
that women are not good at finance. Indeed, the financial leadership bridge is
too far for women. Women are often hesitant to learn and apply finance, but
they must pay a higher price. Women across segments of society are at the mercy
of their parents, spouse, or children. Though in every household, whether the
mother or the wife, it is the woman of the house acting as the balancing factor
inmanagingf daily household resources. When women take up finance, a country
needs more of its GDP to pass through women’s hands because that is when the
money ultimately reaches far more productive aspects, making much difference.
In China, almost 50 per cent of the workforce is female today, and all those
women are increasingly achieving financial independence. They are striking
their way out and doing very well. In the last few years, Bangladesh has made
tremendous progress in improving women’s lives, with the world’s lowest
maternal mortality and fertility rates.
Pakistani culture
is hostile to and dismissive of women’s economic emancipation. The barriers
between religion and culture appear to be blurring. That is why the two must be
distinguished; while culture may not support women’s economic freedom, religion
certainly is. Norms persisting in cultures sometimes hinder attaining economic
and political empowerment of women and equity. Few women were aware of the
consequences of gender inequality, while others have grown up with it (Martha,
1995). Many powerful males are unwilling to challenge inequitable cultural standards
that affect women. (Pillarisetti and McGillivary, 1998). Due to the country’s
complex socio-demographic and cultural makeup, women’s empowerment has long
been a contentious issue in Pakistani culture. It is about creating an
atmosphere where women may make tactical choices in life in a specific setting.
It depends on cultural values, social status, life prospects at an individual
level, beliefs, and behaviour in connection to relevant people and outcomes in
a larger social context (Domingo et al., 2015). Women are placed below men in
the social hierarchy in many regions of the world because of differences in
cultural, economic, and social indices. With its prescriptive and factual
order, the society of Pakistan is characterized as hierarchical, whereas uneven
power relations exist between men and women. Moreover, the human development
index (HDI[1])
for females is 0.456 compared to males (0.61).
The evolution of Women’s
political empowerment in Pakistan can be understood through historical evidence
starting from the colonial era and progressive social transformation that paved
the way for rights for women. The recognition level that improved in women of the
Subcontinent before Independence was not a consequence of a chance. Instead, it
was a endless proposed development that required several criteria and phases
till accomplishment. Understanding these phases is crucial to grasp the
underlying evolution of women’s political rights. Women make up half of Pakistan's
population, however have less than satisfactory political rights. Most of the world’s
developing countries face issues in progressing towards women’s financial and
political empowerment. Pakistan being a developing country, face issues related
to gender inequality. Even before the independence, Women in the All India
Muslim League work effortlessly side by side for their rights. Throughout the
history of Pakistan, women leaders have played a positive role in the country’s
development. Since the constitution of Pakistan gives fundamental rights that
encourage women’s involvement in state political affairs, their representation
is still below satisfactory compared to males. The Pakistani government has
taken serious steps for women’s political empowerment in the last two decades,
but some areas are still neglected. According to sustainable development goals,
countries must ensure gender equality.
In Pakistan, women
have lower political representation and ingrained cultural and religious male
dominance resulting in dismal conditions for them. Political power is heavily
skewed towards men, inhibiting women’s participation in nation-building. Women
can contribute significantly as agents of change in politics and the economy.
In Pakistan, 24 per cent of the GDP is being contributed by Women through
unpaid household labour. Cultural traditions in our society restrict women in
several aspects of their life. Therefore, women should bring change through the
power of the vote in the electoral democracy by choosing parties that give more
representation to female candidates. Thus, this will expand the social base of
women from rural and poor backgrounds. Recently, Pakistan has been ranked the
fourth most dangerous place for women globally (Giwps., 2022[2]). Throughout history,
women have been deprived of political and economic decision-making. Recently,
the Pakistan election commission joined with NGOs to increase rural female
voter registration. The next initiative should be to incorporate women
politicians in effective decision-making.
The structure of
repression that marginalized women for decades will not go away swiftly. For
that purpose, it is necessary to study the progression of women’s political and
economic rights in Pakistan. Women have political rights in Pakistan. However,
they face numerous social, economic, and political hurdles to become efficient
constituents in the legislative system. Our research is based on deductive
logic, where secondary source information is analyzed in the wake of an
evolutionary standpoint to determine the sociocultural development of women.
This paper highlights women’s representation and involvement in Pakistan’s
politics, analyzing past and current perceptions. Specific social barriers that
inhibit women from becoming influential in the political system are also
highlighted. Participation in politics does not mean only getting legislative
assemblies’ representation; it also means certain political activities, such as
being a member of a political party or the role of a voter. In this paper,
women’s political rights are investigated in connection with economic
empowerment evolved in Pakistan through employing a systematic approach to
direct research. The data is extracted from secondary sources, including
research articles, books, magazines, and official online reports.
The historical
significance of women empowerment
Since the late
1970s, academics and relief workers worldwide have used the term “empowerment,”
particularly in social services, public health, and community development. This
term gained significance after being included in gender and development
programmes in the 1990s. At the end of the decade, it emerged as the poverty
reduction idea of international development agencies. This concept is at the centre
of the debate about the involvement of the poor in development, along with
other trending ideas like community, agency, and civil society. The origin of
the word “empowerment” can be traced to feminism, Gandhism, religion, and the
psychology of Freud. It refers to policies that direct marginalized communities
to act to ensure their own well-being and right to take part in decisions that influence
them (Simon, 1994).
Earlier
empowerment theories devised in the United States were based on helping
oppressed communities by allowing them to express themselves, gain power, and
surpass the persecution to which they are subjected (Wise, 2005). the term “controlled
consciousness,” refers to how a small group of people in each culture exert
dominance over the masses (Freire , 1974). It aims to create that “critical
consciousness” by educating them through tools and providing information to
help them understand the reality surrounding them. This philosophy of critical
consciousness helps people understand the causes of their oppression. Aid
workers, social activists, and non-covenantal organizations have begun to use
this concept to achieve development. The term “empowerment” has gained currency
in the field of international development since the emergence of feminist
movements in the global south. There was a turning point in history that
highlights the succeeding function of women in economic progress after the 1987
work of scholars (Sen and Grown, 2013). It led to the formulation of a global
network of feminist scholars, political leaders, and social activists known as
DAWN (Development Alternatives with a Woman for a New Era). It examines the
perceptions and techniques women require to change gender disparity and other
oppressive structures hindering economic development. The researchers connected
with the DAWN movement rejected the idea that only economic autonomy and basic
needs realization are good ways of empowering women. Instead, it will be
achieved through revolutionary transformations of the economic, social, and
political landscape that preserve gender and class dominions.
Afterwards,
publications on empowerment, development, and gender exploded throughout the
1990s, especially in Latin America and Southeast Asia. The supporters of the
empowerment approach criticize previous top-down approaches that favour women
by regarding women’s organizations at the grass-root level as the facilitators
of women’s vision and perceptions. Similarly, Baltiwala (1993) explains
empowerment as a mechanism in which power relationships between individuals and
groups are transformed. This can be accomplished by arguing ideologies that
create inequality (social systems based on gender and caste), changing how
economic, natural, and intellectual resources are controlled, and changing the
institutions that reinforce the dominant power systems. Then this term of
empowerment was gradually assimilated into international organizations as “women's
empowerment". At first, the empowerment approach got no support from the
general public or academia. However, by the mid-1990s, it had appeared to have
entrenched discourse on women's development. The first UN conference to
popularise this concept was the International Conference on Population and
Development (ICPD, 1994). The United Nations then launched the Agenda for
Women's Empowerment in 1995, emphasizing that women must be empowered and have
equal access to all aspects of life, including social, cultural, and economic
opportunities and decision-making. Afterwards, this term was popularised by the
Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA, 1999), highlighting women's
empowerment as a fundamental belief of its policy to attain gender parity. Thus
"women empowerment" became a
notion by the end of 1990.
Evolution of
political rights for women
Women's political
empowerment before the Independence of Pakistan arose in the 19th
century when Hindu and Muslim reformists began emphasizing on rights of women
to address several issues prevailing in society, including child marriages, Sati,
restriction on women's education and the veil. Those reformists assert that
social change in society is impossible without addressing women's grievances
and providing them equal opportunities (Forbes and Forbes, 1999; Sen, 2000). Through
the efforts of these reformists, "the widow remarriage act" was
introduced, and "sati" was barred. The period between 1860-90 was considerable
for framework of rights of women. At
that time, British government initiated laws based on customs of Indian
tradition and culture that included acts related to divorce, marriage, property
and guardians (Mumtaz
and shaheed, 1987). A school named"Anjuman-e-Himayat Islam" was established
in 1885 to promote women's education.
Throughout the colonial
and transformative period between 1880-1920, women belonging to the higher
social hierarchy (elite class) were actively getting modern education and
enchanting politics to raise their voices for women's social and economic
rights. However, they face tremendous opposition from conservative elements of
society. Sir Syed Ahmed khan emphasized to Muslims that their road to
prosperity lay in attaining modern education, which will generate employment
and, most importantly, access to political power. Several transformative
moments of that century gave rise to the view that: subcontinent economic, social
and political development can only be attained through women's education.
Therefore, the first resolution for the education of Muslim women was given by
Sheikh Abdullah at the Muhammadan Educational congress in 1886 (Tariq, 2006). Thus
with the help of education, a gradual social change occurred in the
subcontinent.
At the start of
the 20th century, there was a new vision for Muslim women: getting rid of
language barriers, sharing ideas, enhancing sociopolitical status, and establishing
several organizations and English medium schools. Moreover, several women began
writing for magazines and newspapers to propagate their ideas and success in
movements for the right of women. Some prominent magazines about women were "Khatoon
(women), Tehzeeb-e-Niswan (Culture of women), Akhbar-e-Niswan (Newspaper of
women), Asmat (Honor) and many more magazines like that. Muslim women's organization
(Anjuman-e-Khawateen-e-Islam) gave awareness to women about their
socio-political rights and raised their voices against social ills like dowry. Firstly,
it started with a small gathering in houses and eventually turned into larger
organizations with an aim and vision of gender equality at the top. In 1913,
the first "women's conference", was regarded as a political
platform for women held in Aligarh under the Begum of Bhopal leadership
(Mirza, 1969). According to the statistics, only 2 out of 1000 women were
educated in 191. After ten years, that ratio tremendously increased, as in 1924,
there were 137700 literate Muslim women; among them, 4000 were pursuing higher education.
The Colonial government initiated Mont-Ford reforms (Initiated self governing
institutions British India). . After those restructurings in 1919, a campaign
concerning "right to vote" was
launched to nurture women role in politics that paved the way towards gender
equality, self-perception and worth in society (Mumtaz and shaheed, 1987).
Women and men in political parties need to identify the
barriers they face in political participation and find solutions to overcome
them. The importance of ensuring that specific measures are taken to integrate
women senior leadership levels of political party. Through this, women can be
implicated not only in a commission or a committee where they would exist
separately but also integrated into senior management of the party.
Decision-makers and indeed candidates, I think it is vital that we hear from
all segments of our society as we
organize as a political party to present a vision and a plan for a political action to bring about change or
new policies and a new government and so incorporating as many voices as
we can is an essential part of the role
of a political party
Different kinds of
organizations were made at the start to ensure the political empowerment of
women, including WIA[3], AIWC[4], and NCWI[5] . Right to vote was first approved
to women during round table conference in 1925. At that conference, women
demanded economic and political rights. Moreover, at that time, nine seats were
retained for women in the national assembly, among 250. While for “council of
state”, amongst 150 seats, six were for women. [6]Additionally, Muslim
personal law passed in 1937 gave rights of due share in inheritance to Muslim
Women (Stanley, 1992). The freedom movement in India brought influential
prospects, due to which women played a significant role side by side with men
for achieving independence. Muhammad Ali Jinnah supported women's pollical
empowerment and asserts, "The nation cannot rise to a height of glory
without women, side by side with men. We are victims of evil customs. It is a
crime against humanity that our women are shut up within the four walls of the
houses as prisoners. There is no sanction for the deplorable condition our
women have to live in." (10th March 1944; Muslim University
Union, Aligarh)
Women political
rights after independence
Political and
economic representation of women was marginal after the Independence of
Pakistan. Out of 79 members in the first constituent assembly, only two were
women. Following the dissolution of this assembly in 1956, there was no female
representation in the second indirectly selected assembly. After that, during
Ayyub Khan's reign in 1962, only six women selection was allowed in the assembly
(Rizvi, 2000). Founder of Pakistan, Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah's sister, Fatima
Jinnah, contested for the presidency against Ayub Khan in 1965. Several
religious parties supported Fatima Jinnah as she was conservative and motivated
by religious beliefs time;1964]. After the imposition of martial law, the first
election was held for national and provincial assemblies in 1970, in which all
9 contesting independent women candidates lost. In 1973, the new constitution
of Pakistan was written under the orders of Prime minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto,
and three women members of parliament were also part of it. Subsequently, Mrs
Nasim Wali won from two electorates of NWFP (province of Pakistan, now Known as
KPK) as a general candidate in 1977. During the period of President General
Zia-ul-Haqq political empowerment of women became highly marginalized. There
were few representatives from1980 till 2001 due to the non-accessibility of
reserved seats (Abiad, 2008).
In Pakistan, a
large number of women are not registered to vote. At the same time, the FATA
situation is extremely worst, with a 75:25 male-female ratio. Women in the National
assembly remain the same from 1947-2000. However, during President General Pervez
Musharraf's rule, women's political rights were significantly improved.
Therefore government put up a commission through a presidential decree to foster
participation of womens’s in economic and political sphere. Its central
assertion was to evaluate rules and regulations shaping the rights of women. Moreover,
the first national policy that encouraged women's empowerment in several
aspects of life was formulated in 2002 (Weiss, 2012). Further, a devolution
plan was introduced, due to which an increased number of women became
associates of local bodies[7] [8]. Nevertheless, the number
of women seats in local bodies dropped significantly after the elections of 2005.
[9]
Women have been
playing an active role in parliamentary politics since independence of
Pakistan. Though, their representation was lesser in first two constitutional
assemblies. The government undertook several steps to guarantee representation
of women in political affairs by allocating ten seats (5 from east and five
from west Pakistan) for women in the unicameral parliament in the 1956
constitution (Ryan and Woods, 2019). In the 1962 constitution, there were six retained
seats for women, and in 1973, ten seats were assigned, which increased to twenty
in 1985. During the Pervez Musharraf era, in 2002, women reserved seats
increased to sixty (Bano, 2009). The 1973 constitution of Pakistan aimed to
minimize gender disparity by encouraging women's participation in all walks of
life. To improve women's participation in politics, according to Article 51
(4) of the constitution, “there are
sixty reserved seats in NA for Women while 17 seats for Senate under section 59
of the constitution” (Aziz, 2017). Each political parties need to guarantee
that 5 per cent of candidates contesting for general elections must be women
(Election Commission Act, 2017).
There is massive
gender inequality in terms of voters in Pakistan[10]. The total number of
registered voters reached 112.2 million, with a gap of 12.2 million between
males and females. In the list of 186 countries, Pakistan ranks 113th
centred on categorising worldwide in national parliments[11]. There is only 20 per cent
representation of women for National assembly (NA), that inc;udes 70 reserved
seats (60 for females, 10 for minorities) out of 342 NA members. While in the upper
house (Senate), women have only 19 seats out of 100. Women's political
representation in legislative assemblies is 32.7 per cent in Sri Lanka, 20.6
per cent in Bangladesh, Pakistan 20.2 per cent and India 12.6 per cent. (Wise,
2020). Moreover, out of 27 federal ministries in the previous government, three
women held the position of federal minister and divisions.
Foremost political
office holders in history were Fatima Jinnah (leader of the opposition;
1960-67); Benazir Bhutto (first woman prime minister;1988, leader of the opposition;
1993-1997). While in 2018, Sherry Rehman became the leader of the opposition in
the Senate. Dr Fehmida Mirza in 2008 nominated as the first woman speaker of
the National assembly. More than 100 members were elected in two houses of
parliament in 2013. Contrary to that, many women still were barred from voting
in general elections held in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) (Repila, 2013). Regarding
gender parity, Pakistan has been ranked second worst, i.e., 145 out of 146
states in the Gender Gap report (WEF, 2022). While on other economic and social
fronts, women are treated as other marginalized groups. Moreover, 53.6 per cent
of women are deprived of education, training, and employment compared to only 7
per cent of men (WEF, 2022). Despite higher gender gap parity, the political
gender gap narrowed over the past two years. Governments have taken some
serious steps for the improvisation of women's status by providing legalization
that is supportive of women, ratified by various political parties. In
reclaiming public spaces, women have made extraordinary improvements by being
the female UN representative, foreign and prime minister, and national assembly
speaker. Compared to previous elections, in 2018, more women came out to vote
and contest in elections (Gul and Sherazi, 2022). Despite that progress, only 5
per cent of senior leadership roles are held by women in Pakistan.
Pakistan's
political culture is predominantly male-dominant. Over the past years, changing
trends in women's political participation have been evident. Recently, the
election act 2017 was introduced to increase women's seats in legislative
assemblies. Further, political parties allocate 5 per cent of their party
tickets to female candidates (Azhar and Basit, 2020). Under this act, election
results for districts will be invalid where female voting turnout is less than
10 per cent[12].
In the 2018 elections, 182 female candidates contested. However, there were
only 15 successful candidates.
Performance
evaluation of women parliamentarians
Women have been
exploited and abused in politics through media character assassination. In
media, including social media platforms, women are elaborated based on their
physical appearance and personality rather than political vision or capability.
Female contestant opponents often employ such tactics to reduce the trust and
votes of the public for prospective candidates. Women politicians' role is
limited to issues such as abortions and childcare, which was primarily correlated
with the conventional role of women defined by surrounding cultures. Due to
restricted responsibility, women's political leaders appears less competitive
in the eyes of the general masses (Rehman and Ahmed, 2015). Women of parliament comprised 20%
of each house's membership and participated in 33% of the legislative work in
2018–19. In both chambers of parliament, they moved 561 out of 1772 questions,
27 out of 100 resolutions, 39 out of 74 private member bills, and 51 out of 108
calling attention notifications. However, because women are not allowed to run
for office, they must overcome significant barriers, such as persistent
sociocultural taboos in society and high campaign expenditures. When elected
indirectly, women lawmakers do less well in politics than their male
counterparts in terms of credibility and effectiveness. They are also barred
from influential political arenas like standing committees and decision-making
organizations.
Challenges to the role of Women in Politics
Certain religious,
social, cultural, and economic factors hinder women's political empowerment in
Pakistan. Despite specific improvements, women are struggling for their rights
in Pakistan. While compared to urban and certain rural areas, women are still
barred from using their political rights (votes) (Nawaz et al., 2022). Mostly
male members dominate the political affairs decision, including the vote. In
contrast, household members have a minor role in the decision-making process.
Violence against women is rising due to flaws in the legal procedure's
implementation, inadequate assistance from law prosecution agencies and
socioeconomic hurdles. The setup of religion and dominant male society cannot
be overlooked while analyzing women's empowerment in various aspects of life,
most notably politics. Furthermore, women's economic dependency on their male
counterparts also influences women's role in the political domain. Another
factor is lower literacy rate and structural concerns, including issues related
to mobility and patriarchy, affect women's participation in the political
process. In most previous elections, it is apparent that women were given
tickets on unwinnable seats by their respective parties without any financial
support.
Conclusion
Women's political
empowerment can be understood through historical evidence starting from the colonial
era and the progressive social transformation. The perception that augmented in
women of India was not an outcome of an accident. Instead, it is a continuous
process that goes through several phases. Therefore, it is vital to understand
these phases of development to grasp the underlying evolution concerning
women's economic and political empowerment. This study analyses women's
political rights evolution from Pakistan's perspective. It is evident that
women have political rights in Pakistan. However, they face numerous social,
economic, and political hurdles to becoming an efficient constituent in the legislative
system. Our research is based on deductive logic, where secondary source
information is analyzed in the wake of an evolutionary standpoint to determine the
sociocultural development of women's participation in the political process. Women
rarely enjoyed political equality with men over the past ten general elections.
The ratio of members in both houses of parliament is increased based on introducing
a quota system. Still, their role in the perception of transformation for
political equality is limited because of specific social and cultural barriers.
Different women worldwide enforcing and encouraging women empowerment,
especially in politics, share the same roots. However, sociocultural values and
lower economic empowerment are the variables creating hindrances in the
attainment of goals regarding gender equality.
The Musharraf era
was golden for the enrichment of the political rights of women. When women have
the right to decide in formulating or changing the constitution, it acts as a
multiplier effect where more women will be inspired and follow them. Fatima
Jinnah participated in politics and acted as an inspiration for all other women
to do so. Article 34 and 32 of the constitution guarantees comprehensive women's
participation in realms of national life. Numerous challenges persist,
especially regarding women's participation as voters and candidates. Political
parties in Pakistan have formulated women's wing to promote women's access to
politics. The main issue that Pakistan's government faces is the implementation
of internal obligations and constitutional provisions to protect women's rights.
The recent political party of Pakistan, "Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf",
reflects the increase in women participating in the political sphere. This is a
positive sign that women from various social backgrounds and age groups are
participating in protests announced by their party. It is the emergence of a new
era where women are joining hands with men in a movement for social and
political change.
There is a need for a strong commitment and serious steps to ensure female
political empowerment. In Pakistan, it is difficult for ordinary women compared
to those in a higher social hierarchy to enter the political domain. The present
scenario of Pakistan for sure is not too ideal. However, it is pretty
interesting that our conditions are comparably better than the rest of the Muslim
world. If more women succeed in future general elections, it will help build
confidence among key stakeholders. The theoretical evidence deduced that
education is crucial for women's political, social, and economic empowerment.
The government needs effective policies to increase the female literacy rate in
Pakistan. Financial empowerment is vital in facilitating women in each aspect
of life and granting them freedom. Women in rural areas need attention from the
government. Women's rights in Pakistan, while on the rise, are still lacking in
countless aspects due to a lack of fundamental rights and their perception in
society. Through providing property, inheritance, and land rights following
religious principles, women's political and economic empowerment can also be
increased in Pakistan. It will increase their chances of accumulating assets,
wealth, and negotiating power, which are necessary for addressing gender
disparities. In undeveloped and deprived countries, women are sometimes
lawfully barred from owning native land just because of their gender. Women
acquire economic independence and access to formal financial institutions by
having a claim to their land, which they would not otherwise have. Moreover,
race, gender, and class play a significant role in women's empowerment.
Education via critical thinking and creating jobs for women should be top
priorities for a growing country like ours. Women and men in political parties
need to identify the barriers they face in political participation and find
solutions to overcome them. The significance of safeguarding that specific
measures is to incorporate women in senior leadership levels of a political
party. Through this, women can be involved not only in a commission or a
committee where they would exist separately but also integrated into senior
management of the party. Decision-makers and indeed candidates, it is vital
that we hear from all segments of our society in organizing as a political
party to present a vision and a plan. For a political action to bring about
change or new policies incorporating as many and diverse voices is an essential
part of the role of a political party.
References
Aziz,
S. (2017). the constitution of Pakistan.
Azhar,
S. A. D. M. M., & Basit, A. (2020). Legislative Initiatives of 14th
National Assembly of Pakistan: A Critical Analysis.
Abiad,
Nisrine (2008). Sharia, Muslim states and international human rights treaty
obligations : a comparative study. London: British Institute of International
and Comparative Law.
Batliwala,
S. (1993). Empowerment of women in South Asia. Asian-South Pacific Bureau of
Adult Education and FAO's Freddom from Hunger campaign/Action for Development.
Bano,
S. (2009). Women in parliament in Pakistan: Problems and potential solutions.
Women's Studies Journal, 23(1), 19.
Domingo,
P., Holmes, R., O'neil, T., Jones, N., Bird, K., Larson, A., ... & Valters,
C. (2015). Women's voice and leadership in decision-making. London
Elections,
A. C. T. (2017). Inquiry into the 2016 ACT election and electoral act. https://www.ecp.gov.pk/
World
Economic forum: Global Gender Report, 2022, https://www.weforum.org/reports/global-gender-gap-report-2022/
Freire,
P. (1974). 'Conscientisation'. CrossCurrents, 24(1), 23-31.
Forbes,
G., & Forbes, G. H. (1999). Women in modern India (Vol. 2). Cambridge
university press.
Javid,
H., & Mufti, M. (2022). Electoral manipulation or astute electoral
strategy? Explaining the results of Pakistan's 2018 Election. Asian Affairs: An
American Review, 49(2), 65-87.
Gul,
S., & Sherazi, T. Z. (2022). Assessment of woman political participation in
2018 Elections and its comparison with elections of 2002, 2008 and 2013.
Journal of Humanities, Social and Management Sciences (JHSMS), 3(1), 71-83.
Hasan,
Tariq (2006). The Aligarh Movement and the Making of the Indian Muslim Mind,
1857-2002. Rupa & Company.
Sen,
I. (2000). Gendering (Anglo) India: Rudyard Kipling and the Construction of
Women. Social Scientist, 12-32.
Kabeer,
N. (2005). Gender equality and women's empowerment: A critical analysis of the
third millennium development goal 1. Gender & Development, 13(1), 13-24.
Lamont,
M. (2018). Addressing recognition gaps: Destigmatization and the reduction of
inequality. American Sociological Review, 83(3), 419-444.
Mosedale,
S. (2005). Assessing women's empowerment: towards a conceptual framework.
Journal of international development, 17(2), 243-257.
Mumtaz,
K., & Shaheed, F. (1987). Women of Pakistan: Two steps forward, one step
back?.
Nawaz,
A., Rubab, M., & Mustafa, G. (2022). Theory of Modernisation and Political
Emancipation of Women in Pakistan: An Analysis. Annals of Social Sciences and
Perspective, 3(1), 117-127.
Mirza,
S. H. (1969). Muslim Women's Role in Pakistan Movement, (No. 14), Lahore:
Research Society of Pakistan, University of Punjab.
Martha,
C. (1995). Human capabilities, female human beings.
Pillarisetti,
J., & McGillivray, M. (1998). Human development and gender empowerment:
methodological and measurement issues. Development policy review, 16(2),
197-203.
Power,
M. (2004). Social provisioning as a starting point for feminist economics.
Feminist economics, 10(3), 3-19.
Qureshi,
A., & Ahmad, S. (2022, September). Reserved seats for women in Pakistan:
Reinforcement of patriarchy and powerlessness (2002–2018). In Women's Studies
International Forum (Vol. 94, p. 102629). Pergamon.
Rizvi,
H. A. (2000). Civilian Interlude. In Military, State and Society in Pakistan
(pp. 142-164). Palgrave Macmillan, London.
Rahman,
B. H., Eijaz, A., & Ahmad, R. E. (2015). Framing of women in politics: A
case of Pakistani elections 2013. Journal of Political Studies, 22(1), 335-350.
Ryan,
R., & Woods, R. (2019). Women's Political Empowerment: Lessons for
Subnational Levels of Government–Nepal, Pakistan, Rwanda, and Indonesia. In
Civic Engagement and Politics: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications
(pp. 1237-1257). IGI. Global.
Repila,
J. (2013). The politics of our lives: the raising her voice in Pakistan
experience. Oxfam GB.
Sen,
G., & Grown, C. (2013). Development crises and alternative visions: Third
world women's perspectives. Routledge.
Women,
U. N. (2015). Monitoring gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls
in the 2030 agenda for sustainable development: Opportunities and challenges. UN
Women.
Apffel-Marglin,
F., & Simon, S. (1994). Feminist orientalism and development. Feminist
Perspectives on Sustainable Development, 26-45.
Wise,
J. B. (2005). Empowerment practice with families in distress. Columbia
University Press.
"Pakistan:
Trouble with Mother", 25 December 1964. Time. ISSN 0040-781X.
Weiss,
A. M. (2012). Moving forward with the legal empowerment of women in Pakistan. US
Institute of Peace.
[1] United Nations Human development
report, 2021 https://hdr.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/PAK
[2] Georgetown Institute for Women,
Peace and Security https://giwps.georgetown.edu/the-index/
[3] Women’s Indian Association
[4] All India Women Conference
[5] National council of women in India
[6] Government of India Act 1935
(Qureshi and Ahmed, 2022).
[7] Tehsil, union,
district
[8]
Women were given 33 percent representation in all levels of union, district
councils.
[9]
Women union councilors dropped from 36000 in 2002 to 24000 in 2005 election.
[10] Election
commission of Pakistan https://www.ecp.gov.pk/
[11] Interparliamentary
Union, 2022 https://data.ipu.org/women-ranking?month=9&year=2022
[12] In the by Elections 2018, election
in Dir (KPK) was cancelled because of zero female voter turnout. Then after reelection 1000 votes were cast by
women.
Comments
Post a Comment