Karachi, March 08, 2022 (PPI-OT):Despite all oppression, woman is rising as a symbol of resistance. She is not only fighting for her own freedom but also for economic and political freedom of the oppressed classes of society. Now it is the aim of the women’s movement to uproot every anti-women law and tradition. This is why the freedom of society is linked to the freedom of woman. These views were expressed by women worker leaders addressing a huge rally arranged here by Home-based Women Workers Federation (HBWWF) on the occasion of the international women’s day here Tuesday.
A large number of worker women, female students and social activists attended the rally led by Comrade Zehra Khan. Carrying red flags, poster and banners, they chanted the slogan of “Peace, Bread and Equality”. The rally started from the Fuwara Chowk and ended at the Arts Council. Later, women workers presented their cultural show in the Arts Council.
Addressing the rally, HBWWF general secretary Zehra Khan said that violence against women has raised to an alarming level. Women are not safe in homes, streets, neighbourhoods, factories, offices and educational institutions.
She said as per an estimate more than 70 percent of women face domestic violence. Regarding violent actions against women, especially murders, Pakistan is the third most dangerous country of the world. Every fifth woman murdered under so-called honour killing belongs to Pakistan.
She further said that in educational institutions of Pakistan, the incidents of harassment and violence against female students and women employees have grew sharply. However, the cases of murders and suspicious suicides are being also reported, continuously. Besides women, children and transgender are also facing sexual violence.
The labour leaders said that hundreds of thousands of women working in farms are forced to toil in slavery like conditions in this twenty first century. They are compelled to forced work without any wages. Their families are sold like slaves. Non-Muslim girls belonging to working class are living in fear. They are subject to forced conversions and forced marriages. As per an estimate every year about 1000 Hindu and Christian girls are subjected to forced conversions and forced marriages in the country. Pakistan is the sixth most dangerous country of the world regarding workplace harassment, honour killings, forced marriages and anti-women laws.
Nuzhat Shireen, Sindh Commission on Status of Women said that in this region the women are the most affected section of society due to wars and terrorism in the name of religion. Millions of women and children are forced to migrate and live-in miserable conditions. Similarly, disappearance of political and social workers is also affecting the women mentally and economically and they are strongly protesting against these cruelties.
Saeeda Khatoon, Ali Enterprise Factory Fire Affecttees Association said that sadly Pakistan has become a country where women are facing social, political and economic exploitation. Regarding the gender-based discrimination Pakistan ranks the second in whole world.
About one Crore and 22 Lakh girls are out of school. Forty percent population of the country is illiterate, mostly the women. As compared to men, women work ten times more on household chores and taking care of children and elderly people. They said that health and safety are a big no-no to women. As per a report in South Asia more than 1 million new-borns die every year, while regarding the death of pregnant women this region ranks the second in whole region.
Saira Feroz, United Home Based Garment Workers Union said the women face the worst economic exploitation. Rising inflation and poverty hit women hard. In Pakistan 39.2 percent of population is forced to live beneath the poverty line and more than fifty percent of them are women. A large number of women work in informal sector, whose wages are very low. They get 34 percent less wages as compared to male workers, which is double than the average wage difference in the world. If this disparity continued it would take next 136 years to end this difference.
Kami Sid, Transgender Activist said prices of edibles have risen by more than 20 percent. The rates of medicines have risen by 200 percent. The number of homeless person is more than 20 million, while the numbers of the poor people have increased by 20 million in last three years.
In these circumstances, it could be said that the law enforcement agencies have failed to defend the rights of women. The political parties have no solid strategy on their agendas to resolve the problems being faced by the people. In these conditions, the movement of women workers in collaboration with the other oppressed classes of the country could bring a social, political and economic change in the country. The women could get a real freedom and social justice by bringing a revolutionary change in the country and uprooting feudal and capitalistic system.
The worker women rally and their cultural program demanded:
1. Equal wages for equal work.
2. Rise in wages as proportionate to inflation.
3. Ending gender-based disparity in wages.
4. All workers including the home-based workers should be registered with social security and pension institutions.
5. Pre and post maternity leaves should be increased. Women workers during childbirth may be given fully paid leaves as per law.
6. Women workers should be protected against workplace harassment and as per law vigilance committees against harassment should be formed in all institutions.
7. At workplaces where women workers are in majority, child care centers must be established.
8. There should be maximum eight hours a day work. Forcing labours to work on weekly holidays should be stopped.
9. All discriminatory laws against women should be abolished.
10. Tribal and feudal laws that have kept the women in slavery for centuries should be ended.
11. Sexual violence, kidnapping and forced conversion of Hindu Hari women should be stopped.
12. Women should be given representation in all elected assemblies as per their share in population.
13. Demolition of old settlements and labour colonies in the name of development should be stopped. Practice to make people homeless should be done away with.
14. Violence against women, children and transgender should be declared a crime.
At the end of the program, top three winners of the painting competition were given prizes.
Those spoke included:
Shakeela Khan and Jameela Latif (Home based bangle workers union), Sajida Kausar and Kausar Nisa (HBWWF, Sanghar), Nasir Mansoor (NTUF), Nasra Parveen (all Sindh lady health workers employees union), Elsa Qazi (student activist), Sabhagi Bheel (Sindh agriculture general workers union), Momal Nasir (Doctor), Asghar Dashti (teacher), Karamat Ali (National Labour Council), Aqib Hussain and Zainab Nasir (Alternate youth group), Qazi Khizer (HRCP), Saeed Baloch (Pakistan fisher forum), Hani Baloch (Writer), Sajjad Zaheer (Anjuman Tarrakki Pasand mussannafeen), Usman Baloch (Trade Union), and others.
For more information, contact:
Home Based Women Workers Federation (HBWWF)
726, Mashrique Centre, Block 14, Gulshan-e-Iqbal,
Karachi, Pakistan
Tel: +92-21-37075324
Website: https://hbwwf.org/