KARACHI: Members of civil society, human rights organisations, women’s rights activists and women workers addressed a press conference at the Karachi Press Club (KPC) here on Thursday to condemn the “hatred-based propaganda” against women and announce a big rally of women workers on International Women’s Day.

Zehra Khan, general secretary Home-based Women Workers Federation (HBWWF), Nuzhat Shirin of Sindh Commission for the Status of Women, Nasira Perveen of All Sindh Lady Health Worker Employees Association, Saeeda Khatoon of Association of Baldia Factory Fire Affectees, Saadia Baloch of Women Rights Defenders, Saira Feroze of United Home-based Garment Workers Union, writer Hani Baloch, student leader Elsa Kazi, Karamat Ali of Piler, Asad Iqbal Butt of Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, and Comrade Zubair of Awami Action Committee were of the view that reactionary and undemocratic forces, who are afraid of the concept of women empowerment, have started a hatred-based propaganda campaign against women.

“These negative elements are against progress and empowerment of women in society. Recently, these elements have started threatening to stop the Aurat March by force. Moreover, some district administrations are refusing to give permission to women marches on the pretext of coronavirus,” said Zehra Khan.

“In every democratic society it is the right of the citizens to express their view and highlight their problems in a peaceful manner. We appreciate that the Lahore High Court (LHC) in a recent judgment has accepted this right of the citizens by upholding the Constitution,” she added.

The media was informed how leaders of HBWWF are getting direct and indirect threats and being asked not to organise and hold programmes and marches on Women’s Day. They said they have already communicated to the authorities concerned about these threats. But they said that despite the threats and dangers, thousands of women would hold their programmes as per schedule on March 8, and they will also participate in a huge women workers’ rally in which there will also be peasant women, women from glass bangle factories, home-based women workers, lady health workers, teachers, students and women belonging to other walks of life participating along with male workers.

They said the basic objective of staging the women workers’ rally is to struggle for making a society which is free from economic and gender exploitation and male supremacy. It would also be to highlight the demand that women’s liberty and economic independence should be accepted and gender-based wage difference and harassment of women workers in industries, factories and workplaces should be stopped.

They said that Pakistani women are celebrating Women’s Day in an atmosphere where discriminatory laws are ripe. In feudal and tribal societies women are traditionally considered as second-class citizens. Women working in farms and fields, factories and workplaces not only face economic exploitation but also sexual harassment. Sexual violence against peasant women, especially Hindu women, and incidents of their forced conversion are on the rise. In factories and workplaces women workers are not given equal wages and they are not being registered with social security institutions.

They expressed complete solidarity with the Aurat March and rallies in the entire country and appealed to all progressive, democratic people, students, youth and women to attend the rally of women workers that would march from the Arts Council of Pakistan to the KPC at 2.30pm.

Published in Dawn, March 6th, 2020