One had to face five road barricades and the same number of police interrogations on the less than half-a-kilometre stretch of road leading to the white tents spread on the spacious lawns of the Russian Embassy. The event was the first-ever performance by the historic Bolshoi Theatre of Russia. Special car passes, stickers and ‘non-transferable’ invitation cards made it possible for the guests to enter the no-go area of the Diplomatic Enclave, which has been closed to the general public for quite some time now.
The performance itself was too good to be real. Those who had only seen ballet in films were truly mesmerized by the grand performance. Floating in the air as if they had wings, the group performed popular Russian ballets such as Swan Lake, Esmeralda, Don Kihot, Tango Golden and Century to a round of hearty applause — an enthralling experience for diplomats and locals alike.
The motive behind the performance, according to Samina Peerzada, chief organizer and chairperson of the Volunteers Women’s Organization, was not only charity but to promote friendly relations with Russia through cultural interaction. After Bolshoi completes a round of the country, performing in Lahore and Islamabad, the VWO will organize a similar visit of a Pakistani cultural troupe to Russia.
The funds collected by the organization will help the women and children living in the slum areas of the Capital by giving them basic education and vocational training. Besides the organizers, Russian Ambassador Edvard S. Shevechenko and his wife Galina deserve full credit for the successful performance. Pakistanis can now look forward to more such performances.
The charged guests refused to go home long after dinner ended and danced till the wee hours of the morning, despite the working day ahead. They not only enjoyed the music and the dance, but also the exotic ‘no chicken’ menu including Russian Salad, cheese bread and caviar. The debate whether chicken is fit for consumption still continues in the Capital, specially after the Minister for Food visited a hospital to undergo some tests a few hours after he had eaten chicken tikka in a press conference!
NATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY
The Women’s Action Forum commemorated the 21st anniversary of the police baton charge on a group of women protesters in front of the Lahore High Court. The unfortunate incident occurred on February 12, 1983, when a group of women intending to submit a resolution to the LHC against the Hudood Ordinance and other discriminatory laws (enacted by Ziaul Haq’s military regime) gathered at Regal Chowk and were brutally beaten up by law-enforcement agencies. Since then, the day has been observed as the National Women’s Day in Pakistan.
The event was organized by the WAF Joint Action Committee and all the civil society organizations working for human rights, in general, and women rights, in particular. Women activists reiterated their demand for the repeal of all discriminatory laws against women and resolved that their struggle for women’s emancipation would continue.
Samina Khan, wife of Omer Asghar Khan, who faced police atrocities that day, recollected the eye-witness account of the unexpected response of government that day.
Kishwer Naheed, another eye witness, also shared her experience. Kishwer recalled how Habib Jalib, not feeling well that day, was dragged away by the collar.
Shehla Zia, a lawyer by profession and known for her work as an activist, talked about the legal aspects of what she termed black laws and their repercussions on women. Since the promulgation of gender-biased laws such as the Hudood Ordinance, Law of Evidence, Qisas and Diyat Ordinance, thousands of women have suffered and are still being victimized in the name of Islam.
Referring to some of the provisions of the Hudood Ordinance, she said that a person with some amount of common sense can easily understand that the laws are full of defects and need to be repealed. Justifying her comment, she said, “If as many as 100 women become victims of gang rape, their witness is not admissible in a court of law under the ordinance.”
Rape and adultery fall in the same category under this law and most of the women who complain of rape end up as victims because they cannot bring four male witnesses, and their pregnancy is considered as proof of Zina. Even children, specially girls, are punished under the law, as there is gender-based discrimination while defining adult age for a boy and a girl.
Nasreen Azhar, an active member of the Human Rights Commission Pakistan, concluded that it is an achievement that the movement started by a few daring women in the early 1980s has been gaining momentum with time.
The organizations welcomed President Pervez Musharraf’s recent call for an open debate on the Hudood laws, saying: “The call will give courage to the people who matter and in spite of knowing that the law are unjust, hesitate to publicly criticize and debate them in the assemblies for fear of offending the sensibilities of their colleagues who are using religion to strengthen their political power and silence the opposition.”
One had to face five road barricades and the same number of police interrogations on the less than half-a-kilometre stretch of road leading to the white tents spread on the spacious lawns of the Russian Embassy. The event was the first-ever performance by the historic Bolshoi Theatre of Russia. Special car passes, stickers and ‘non-transferable’ invitation cards made it possible for the guests to enter the no-go area of the Diplomatic Enclave, which has been closed to the general public for quite some time now.
