PAKISTANI WOMEN: LAWS AND POLICIES

USING ICT TO COMBAT VAW

P@SHA, b4all, apc-whspKarachi, 19-20 February 2010

“We are victims of evil customs. ... No nation can rise to the heights of glory with half its population shackled. It is a crime against humanity that our women are confined within the four walls of their homes like prisoners ... they should be side by side with men as their companions in all spheres of life.“ [Q: Who said this? When?]

Constitutional Guarantees 1973 Constitution, Art. 25, 27, 35, 37:

provisions ensuring gender equality & affirmative action for women - to redress existing inequalities:

“All citizens are equal before law and are entitled to equal protection of law. There shall be no discrimination on the basis of sex alone.”

“Steps shall be taken to ensure full participation of women in all spheres of national life.”

Another View of Women

Women are NOT a “segment” of society; a “sector” of national development; “objects” of attention; or “recipients” of charity;

Women are almost HALF the population (48%); equal participants and partners;

Women are human beings, deserving of equal rights, equal respect, equal decision-making authority, equal mobility, equal access to law and justice, equality at law; equal access to ICT and opportunities.

The Laws – in Conflict• 1973: progressive Constitution•1977-88: Gen. Zia-ul-Haq distorted it: garb of “Islamization”;• Several discriminatory laws promulgated - in conflict with Const. Of these, the most anti-women include:

• HUDOOD ORDINANCES• QANUN-E-SHAHADAT• QISAS & DIYAT LAWS

>>> example:• Hudood Ordinances/Zina: age of majority: puberty (f: 9, m: 12)• Law: marriage age: f: 16, m: 18• Law: CNIC, driving licence & voting age: f: 18, m: 18 (for both)• Child labour: 15 for both• UN: age of majority: 19 for both

>>>•1991: Shariah Act (under PML-N);• 2002: NWFP/Pukhtunkhwa MMA: Hasbah & Shariah Bills – Vice & Morality laws, policing, enforcement; SC ruled them ultra vires & unIslamic!• 2008: ANP promised Taliban they would enact Shariah law in PATA;• 2009: Feb: ANP+TNSM/SufiM signed Shariah Nifaz-e-Adl Regulation; April: Pres. Zardari signed it; April: TTP rejected Constitution, democracy, law;

How does this impact VAW?• laws are meant to be for ALL, but these laws widely understood to be against women’s rights, freedoms, development and empowerment [cf. MMA & TTP’s actions: ads, dress code, g/schools,w/teachers, markets, tailors];• immediate increased VAW noted, esp public manifestations: flogging;• also domestic, traditional socio-cultural, jirga/punchayat-ordained rape/ gang-rape, compensation, karokari,etc.

International Commitments Pakistan, as Member-State, subscribes to UN Charter (1947); Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) - binding;

ratified Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW,1996) - binding;

ratified Convention on Rights of the Child (CRC, 1990) – binding [ref. Girl Child];

endorsed gender equality in UN docs: Human Rights (Vienna/1993), ICPD (Cairo/1994), FWCW (Beijing/1995), MDGs (2000) – non-binding.

Steps Towards Legislation Supporting Women’s Rights 2000: National Commission on the Status of Women; [issues: autonomy, mandate]

2005: “honour” killings; [compoundability, Qisas & Diyyat, wali, State not taking resp]

2006: Women’s Protection Act; [issues: puberty, rajam, only male Muslim testimony excluding women & non-Muslim Pakistanis]

2009: NA passed inadequate, distorted Domestic Violence Bill; [lapsed w/o Senate tabling; no signs of return]

Steps >>> 2010: 1 of 2 laws on sexual harassment at workplace enacted;

2010: draft Bill to establish NCHR tabled in NA [women omitted, selection criteria, mandate, autonomy, powers]

2010: draft Bill on Reproductive Health & Rights tabled NA [issue:MoH vs MoPW]

BIGGEST ISSUE: positive new legislation cannot be effective w/o repealing existing anti-women legislation [HO, QeS, Q&D, SA]...

DataNeed to collect,compile, analyze all data sets disaggregated by gender, especially sex ratios in population census [Pakistan case: 108:100 m:f = 52 : 48%, i.e. 8 MILLION MISSING GIRLS and WOMEN… WHY??? This is another form of VAW]

Poverty data esp. needs disaggregation by gender, urban/rural location, assets, income, food security, employment/ unemployment, education, ICT, access to primary+reproductive health, housing, etc.

PovertyIn Pakistan, women and girls comprise almost 75% of population below poverty line. Need to address this ^ feminization of poverty on URGENT basis through, i.a.:

Gendered social protection [not BISP];

Food security focus on women;

Women’s assets ownership: land, property, livestock (inheritance, joint title deeds, gifts);

Secure livelihoods; waged/remunerated employment [not like HBWWs exploitation];

Violence Against Women age-old patriarchal concept of “honour” (“izzat” or “ghairat”) – being sole prerogative of men and solely vested in women’s bodies;

not just based on gender, but also on socio-economic class and rural-feudal-tribal structures,esp.jirga/punchayat,haari/mazare;

VAW: also “justified” by “religious sanction” veneer, citing primary texts;

Thus, the questions: what “honour”? whose “honour”? do women have an identity of their own – w/ or w/o honour?

What to Do?

Need to repeal anti-women laws (HO, QS, Q&D,etc.); strengthen laws contra- VAW, e.g. “honour” killings, rape/gang-rape, acid/dowry deaths, physical and mental abuse, abduction, trafficking, forced prostitution, bonded labour, etc.

Need to train judiciary and law-enforcers (police) on imperative of implementation; ensure action, supervision and accountability.

>>>• Need to remove conflicts between parallel legal systems - civil codes, perceived religious injunctions thru FSC, customary laws (VAW horrors sanctioned thru illegal jirgas and punchayats), e.g. rape, “honour” k, compensation, bride price, orphans’ and women’s inheritance, marriage, divorce, child custody, polygamy, etc.• Need to ensure access to justice.

POLICIES MoWD’s NPDEW (2002): “a statement of intent”: “gender perspective reflected in all national policies and plans”. Comment: 8 yrs on, STILL not implemented thru line depts, e.g. Youth, Education, Health, Employment.

NPDEW sends mixed signals re Constitutional guarantees/provisions for women’s equality vs. acceptance of prevailing socio-religio-cultural traditions and norms (laws vs. jirgas/punchayats).

NPDEW confused on use of terminology re women’s “equality” vs. “equity”; used interchangeably, sending wrong signals.

SOME POLICY GAPS IN NPA, NPDEW, PRSP, MTDF

Vertical, utilitarian, paternalistic vs holistic, integrated, mainstreaming, rights-based approach.

Huge gap between Constitutional protections/guarantees, vs. existing legislation, policies and programmes re women’s fundamental human right to BMNs (see GDI, GEM, POPI). GoP acknowledges 75% female face of poverty, but where’s the action???

MAJOR CHALLENGES Poverty – Patriarchy – Feudalism-Tribalism Jirgas & Panchayats: illegal; sanctioning +

“legitimizing” VAW and “honour” killing Legislated inequality of women Lack of opportunities; lack of access to

decision-making/ mobility Lack of awareness, education, knowledge

and services; lack of information and communication

Lack of access to ICT: poverty, permission, mobility, rural lack of access/connectivity

Lack of access to justice

THE WAY FORWARD

filling disaggregated data gaps in ICT & VAW; engendering data collection exercises;

resolving conflicts b/w intl. commitments & domestic laws, e.g. CEDAW ratification vs Hudood vs 1973 Constitution Art. 25;

initiation of gender responsive budgeting by MoFin and MoP&D;

ensuring girls+women access to Education + ICT with security, privacy, confidentiality;

>>>

achievement of Constitutional guarantees of women’s equality through affirmative action; proactive legislation; access to justice and governance; political participation.

enunciating policies re. gender inequalities w/ corresponding financial allocations at all levels.

>>>Accurate gender + r/u-disaggregated

database for planning & programming: census enumeration, b/d registration, agri. census and labour force surveys.

Greater participation of women in all fora: political, economic, legislative - decision-making and policy planning;

State-owned lands distribution – joint m/f ownership and registration;

>>>For women, wider, cheaper and

easier availability of and access to ICT (hardware, software, technical know-how), and

microcredit, small-to-medium loans, technical vocational skills, mobility and entrepreneurship options.

Challenges Some of MANY Challenges as Opportunities

for ICT usage to combat VAW :– perception of “gender” as “women only”;– lack of gender mainstreaming;– lack of gender budgeting, policy and

programming in vital areas;– inadequate social protection, social safety

nets and mechanisms to address feminization of poverty;

– Increasing incidents of violence against women; inadequate laws & enforcement.

>>provision of enabling environment for

women to participate in national life, as = participants, = contributors & = sharers of benefits;

Inadequate enabling legislative framework

>>> Vital need for attitudinal change which requires concerted use of all ICT and media forms + IPC and lobbying. Women need security, safety, dignity, respect and honour. Women need to be seen NOT as “vulnerable” & passive “beneficiaries” but as ACTIVE PARTNERS and DECISION MAKERS.

NEED TO SEE CHANGED MINDSETS

ANDATTITUDES…