IN parts of our own country — particularly in the tribal regions —simply being a woman is an uphill battle — more so for girls who dare to dream beyond convention. Despite constitutional guarantees, many have had to fight relentlessly for something as basic as education. Now, as girls begin to demand the right to play sports, they once again find themselves challenging deeply entrenched patriarchal norms that seek to keep them out of public life.

For almost five years now, the world has consistently been condemning the ban on girls’ education in Afghanistan. Yet, even on this side of the border, some elements reflect a disturbingly similar mindset; they remain largely unnoticed and are seldom challenged.

Take the recent case of seven-year-old Aina Wazir, the street-cricket sensation from Shiga Zalwel Khel, a village along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, in North Waziristan. A video clip of her playing cricket with children her age went viral with people praising her talent. The video caught the attention of Javed Afridi, chairman of Peshawar Zalmi, who invited the young girl to join the upcoming Zalmi Women League.

The happy story took an ominous turn when local extremists showed displeasure at the public display of a girl playing sports. They abducted the man who filmed her playing and uploaded the video and released him only after eliciting an apology for violating “Islamic values and Pakhtun traditions”. A later photograph of his bru­ised back confirmed he had been tortured.

A dedicated space is needed to empower girls through sports.

For now, Wazir remains in her village, safe and supported. But if she chooses to pursue her passion for cricket, her path may become challenging. In the past, girls who as­­pired to play sports often had to leave their homes, seeking safety elsewhere to es­­c­­ape conservative backlash and social pressure.

Squash stars Noorena Shams from Dir and Maria Toorpakai from South Waziris­tan were forced out, with Toorpakai eventually leaving Pakistan. Others — including squash player Sadia Gul, sprinter Tameen Khan and cricketer Salma Faiz — relocated from Bannu, D.I. Khan and Karak, respectively, to Peshawar, seeking not just better opportunities but relief from relentless scrutiny.

As Salma Faiz put it — the greatest hurdle is not merely the lack of infrastructure — a challenge faced by athletes of both genders in remote districts — but the relentless mental anguish that only women endure when they dare to tilt the balance in their favour and choose the untrodden path in pursuit of their passion. That quiet defiance, she noted, makes their struggle twice as hard.

What threat could the agile seven-year-old Wazir possibly pose to provoke men into trying to crush her dreams? Across Pakistan’s remote villages lies vast, untapped talent, often stifled before it can surface. When girls like Wazir are forced to abandon their passions, it is not only a personal tragedy but also a national loss — the loss of future champions and role models who could have contributed to the country’s social and economic progress.

It is deeply troubling that such incidents barely cause a ripple, not even so much as spark a debate in parliament. The state should not remain a bystander but stand with Wazir, her family and all other girls who face a similar predicament; society, too, should provide collective protection.

But that is not enough. For our girls to truly enter sports, they need institutional support — local clubs, leagues, scholarships and safe training facilities. Having lived through the barriers, Toorpakai is determined to dismantle them and bring about lasting change. Thr­ough the Maria Toor­pakai Fou­n­da­tion, she aims to establish a residential fa­­cility — the ‘To­­or­­­pakai Sp­o­­­rts Sch­­ool’ — a dedicated spa­ce where girls, like Aina Wazir, can be em­powered thro­ugh sports, where they will have acc­ess to quality education and pur­sue their dre­am without fear or restriction.

Her request is modest: allocation of a parcel of land near Islam­abad — far enough from tribal pressures to ensure safety, yet accessible to girls from across Pakistan and to the international coaches she intends to invite for mentorship and professional training. The infrastructure and operational funding, she assures, will be secured through her extensive global network of supporters.

However, the proposal has languished in bureaucratic limbo for over two years, her file circulating endlessly without resolution. This lethargy reflects a complete lack of interest in a promising initiative that is bound to have a huge social impact and even global recognition — particularly when land allocations for far less consequential projects are often approved at remarkable speed. It also means dreams squashed for the aspiring next generation of Pakistani sportswomen who could have had a state-of-the-art facility.

The writer is an independent journalist based in Karachi.

X: @zofeen28

Published in Dawn, March 2nd, 2026