Misogyny pandemic
LAST week, local and international media reported that the passing of a parliamentary bill to ban underage child marriages in Islamabad was a rare public relations victory for Pakistan. Yes, progressive legislation…
How did we get here?
In the land of the pure, the women are dispensable. To be hated upon. To be dehumanised. To be treated as second-class citizens. Their births – especially if they are…
A future for every girl
She should be in a classroom, not a marriage contract. She should be carrying schoolbooks, not wedding bangles. And yet, in Pakistan, girls are pulled from their childhoods and thrust…
Silencing the war drums, amplifying her voice
On May 7, India launched Operation Sindoor, a retaliatory strike on Pakistan to ‘avenge’ the terror attack in Pahalgam that killed more than 30 civilians. Touted by the Indian government…
A question of safety
There has recently been a significant debate on unsafe abortions and their consequences throughout the world since a document of the draft judgment by the Supreme Court of the United…
The CPD forum
PAKISTAN is a member of the 58th UN Commission on Population and Development (CPD) session to be held next month. The session will focus on the implementation of the Programme…
Down, but not out
THE women’s movement in Pakistan cannot be accused of melodrama, even when the Aurat March in Islamabad resorted to staging a symbolic funeral for women’s rights. International Women’s Day celebrations…
The seeds of intolerance
THE wave of intolerance sweeping across Pakistan is posing a more serious threat to the country’s most vital interests and the people’s mental equilibrium than any other problem, including the…
Washed away
A TROUBLING trend is emerging in Pakistan: young girls in flood-prone areas are increasingly being married off before the seasonal rains arrive. These ‘monsoon brides’ are not just victims of…
Force and faith
IMAGINE a place so desolate that cries for help go unheard by millions around it. Imagine a place where inhabitants must bear their burdens of want with little hope of…
