Hearing the Whispers of Pakistani Women

Pakistani women live in disparities, 

An underprivileged society with the least opportunities. 

The strict household rules hold them back, 

Limiting their potential and narrowing their track. 

Women of Pakistan are hidden gems of nation, they have the potential to rule the world with their excellent abilities but unfortunately the patriarchal society failed to give them opportunities to catch up with the modern world and here I am fully motivated to share the story of average women of Pakistan on world pulse with all the brave and encouraging members. Hey everyone! I am Maryam from Pakistan. Although I belong to privileged family but if you think that life is easy and full of freedom and opportunities for me then you are wrong. No doubt on many grounds I get the perks for being a privileged Pakistani girl but my point of sharing this, is not to draw a comparison between the underprivileged and privileged women of Pakistan. I joined this platform to raise my voice for every girl and woman of my country. According to World Bank statistics 2022, the female comprises 49.56% of total country’s population but not even half of the percent is allowed to take their own life decisions and here we got the biggest issue faced by Pakistani women and all of us despite of our social and financial status lie on the same line.  

Their voices are silenced, their dreams ignored, 

The disparities left them trapped and floored. 

They suffer the most in their daily lives, 

Their growth and development perpetually deprived. 

Most of the Families in Pakistan take pride in having boys as their first child and their birth is celebrated with bulk of sweets and smiles but on the other hand if a baby girl is born, the mother has to face the rage and pressure and sometimes even physical assault by the family. Fortunately, my father is among those few men who welcomes their daughters with warm heart and consider them ‘REHMAT’(blessing) according to Islamic teachings. Even today, many newborn girls are thrown in trash bins and women are forced to illegal abortions in many areas of Pakistan. The girls who are lucky enough to get the chance to survive are subjected to strict restrictions. The concept of childhood for girls is different than for boys. Girls are supposed to play inside, and boys are allowed to enjoy outdoor games. If you think this is because of some sort of security concerns, then it should be for both genders because the world is no safer place for all children. The purpose of giving the above example is to highlight the mindset of average Pakistani. Now let's look at the issues faced by an average teenaged girl in society, the main issue is that most young girls are unaware of their basic rights because of the lack of proper education and that’s why they usually don’t speak for themselves. 

Education remains a distant dream, 

Their hopes and aspirations shattered, it seems. 

Society dictates their path, 

Leaving them with few choices and a blurry path. 

Many teenage girls are forced into marriages with older men and if they try to escape this cage they are considered rebels and speaking for your own life in front of your parents and elders is a punishable act and it gets more severe if a girl marries a person of her choice and later get caught by her parents, she is being killed on the name of the honor of the family. The most heart-breaking truth is we women are not allowed to love, living in 21st century but Pakistani girls are not allowed to marry the person of their own choice. The real challenge starts when the girls are treated as objects when they are presented in front of people and must go through the ‘Rishta’ process. If I have to name this process, I will call it humiliation because this process starts with the visit of the boy’s parents to the girl’s house to see the girl and if the boy’s mothers find the girl perfect, then they say yes to the girl. Here in Pakistan the scale of perfection for girls includes having good height, fair complexion, university degree and high skills of household. The second phase of this process includes the demand of dowry from the boy's side and if the girl's parents failed to fulfill their demands, then the girl has to face severe consequences after the marriage. More than 80% percent women face domestic violence every day in Pakistan, but you can’t find this data on internet because reporting this crime is considered taboo in our society. Married young girls and women have to go through physical and verbal abuse everyday but another darkest truth of my society is once you are married you can’t leave the marriage even if you face domestic violence every day. Once I heard a mother saying to her daughter on her wedding day “ now you are married, don’t bother your husband, he is your everything now, you can’t leave his house without his permission and if you have to then make sure it’s your dead body”, I got numb when I first heard these words and even today while sharing this with you all I am shivering. How to forget to add another dark and bitter reality of the society, that is acid attacks on young girls who refuse marriage proposals by boys and hence they have to suffer for saying ‘No’, the victims of acid attacks are not taken back by their families because these girls are considered shame on the family. School going girls are being raped but no one is ready to punish these criminals. What kind of constitution is this which take years to punish these criminals and law that can protect the corruption of dishonest leaders but failed to protect the women of the nation.

Their resilience is commendable; 

They fight for their rights, but their efforts seem negligible. 

Their strength knows no bounds, 

But their limitations weigh them down. 

This is the loophole in our society that it is dominated by men and women are treated as slaves. Life is not easy for women here in Pakistan. To live insides a woman body, when you want to speak your hearts out, but you can't, when you want to achieve your aims, but you are not allowed, when you want to choose your life partner, but you can’t, when you want to celebrate the birth of your daughter, but you can’t, this becomes torture and we face this torture every day. I hope one day we find our way to fight with all these societal demons. I am 21 and I am determined to work for the betterment of every young girl and women of Pakistan. The poem written in this article is a tribute from my side to all the women of my nation. 

Pakistani women living in disparities, 

Their struggles and tribulations felt like disparities. 

May they find a way out of this plight, 

And emerge victorious to overcome this societal blight.