Issue No. 27 January-March 2009

Founded by Shahla Zia Patron-in-Chief: Nigar Ahmad

Political and legislative representationof women in Pakistan had anothermilestone in year 2008, when a cross-party Women�s Parliamentary Caucuswas formed on 21 November 2008under the leadership of Dr FehmidaMirza, Speaker of the NationalAssembly, who was also elected as thePatron of the Caucus. The Women'sParliamentary Caucus (WPC) isaspired to provide women parliamen-tarians a platform to collectively con-tribute in making the Parliament gendersensitive and increase its influence andinteraction with organizations workingon women's rights and empowermentboth nationally and internationally.

The WPC consists of two tiers, theGeneral Body, a larger forum of 93members, which include 76 womenmembers of National Assembly and17 women Senators, and the WorkingCouncil which comprises 10 membersincluding the two office-bearers, theSecretary and the Treasurer, one mem-ber each from seven major politicalparties and one member from inde-pendents. Ms Nafisa Shah, MNA

(PPP) and Ms Nuzhat Sadiq, MNA(PML-N) were elected as Secretaryand Treasure of the Caucus, respec-tively. The names of other membersare: Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho (PPPP),Ms Ishrat Ashraf (PML-N), Dr DoniyaAziz (PML-Q), Ms KhushbakhtShujaat (MQM), Ms Bushra Gohar(ANP), Ms Aasia Nasir (MMA), MsReena Kumari (PML-F) and MsSaima Akhtar Bharwana(Independent). The Caucus would befurther extended with the inclusion ofwomen members from ProvincialAssemblies.

According to its stated objectives, theWPC is committed to inspire womenparliamentarians beyond party lines sothat to build a consensus on priorityissues concerning women both withinand outside the parliament. TheCaucus will also provide capacitybuilding opportunities for women par-liamentarians.

The Caucus will enhance the role ofwomen parliamentarians in proposinggender sensitive legislation, reviewingand amending discriminatory laws and

By Rubina Saigol

Globalization is a term that refers toadvanced corporate capitalism that isglobal in nature. Capitalism is a modeof production that is based on the prin-ciple of private good and maximizationof profits, accomplished through theappropriation of surplus value.Capitalism has a built in propensitytowards periodic crises resulting fromvarious factors such as overproduction.A severe crisis of capitalism was wit-nessed in the early 1930s, known as theGreat Depression. Since 2008 theworld is undergoing a major global cap-italist crisis that has struck the heartlandof capitalism - the United States.

Capitalism advances competing andcontradictory ideologies as it struggleswith spirals of inflation, deflation,recession, unemployment and financialcollapse. In the 1930s, the ideologuesof capitalism favored state interventionin the market to stabilize the economyand provide protections to the vulnera-ble. The fear of a Russian-style revolu-tion induced capitalist countries to

ensure certain basic economic, socialand political rights to workers whichwere subsequently enshrined in UNhuman rights instruments. The WelfareState was born out of a historical com-promise between capital and labor andit was agreed that the state, as a repre-sentative of public good, would takecare of citizens and workers againstexploitation by a heartless market.

In 1973, the Arab-Israeli war led to theoil-rich countries of West Asia blockingthe flow of oil to the energy-hungrycountries of the Western world. At thatmoment, capitalism invented new anddifferent ideologies premised on theidea of a 'free market economy'. It wasargued that states should not intervenein markets as they distort markets whichhave self-regulating and self-correctingmechanisms. The new mantra of theeconomic managers of the global econ-omy was based on three salient features:privatization, de-regulation and tradeliberalization. Large multinationalcompanies, whose budgets were largerthan the combined budgets of severaldeveloping countries, found the state to

be a hindrance in the free movement ofcapital, goods and information acrossborders. As the assumed repository ofpublic good, states tended to be protec-tionist and created trade barriers againstthe import of cheap goods producedthrough large-scale manufacturing. Thenew capitalist ideology falsely separat-ed the economy from politics and themarket from the state.

In the post-world war II period, the rul-ing elites of developing countries accu-mulated enormous and unsustainabledebts, and the money received wasspent unproductively and misused bycorrupt bureaucracies and unscrupulousrulers. Through the major engines ofworld capitalism, the World Bank andIMF created after WWII, the majorcreditor countries could arm-twistweak, corrupt, inefficient and insolventruling elites to collude with global cap-italist elites in the process of liberaliza-tion, de-regulation and privatization.Hence, the infamous StructuralAdjustment Programs which wereimplemented in 70 countries across theworld with disastrous results.

Structural Adjustment Programmes

Structural Adjustment Programs mainlyinvolved borrowing expensive loansfrom the IMF and World Bank, tiedwith harsh conditionalities, to pay offprevious debts. The conditionalitiesincluded the following: higher taxes andhigher utility charges; lower wages forworkers; cutting back expenditure onsocial services such as health and edu-cation; opening markets to the luxurygoods from rich countries; reduction ofsubsidies on food and agriculture; pri-vatization of public enterprises afterdownsizing (read, unemployment);emphasis on export-orientation withless food for local consumption; provi-sion of incentives to private investmentand concessions to the global privatesector; devaluation of the local currencyso that foreigners would get more goodsfor less money; de-regulation of thelabor-market by creating ExportProcessing Zones where labor had norights; lifting of price controls andallowing full repatriation of profits torich countries. With Structural

Globalization and women in the informal economy

Continued on next page

Women�s Parliamentary Caucus formedMs. Anis Haroon,one of the lead-ing figures of thewomen's move-ment in Pakistanand a renownedhuman rights andpeace, has beenappointed aschairperson ofthe National

Commission on the Status of Women(NCSW) for a three years term. Thiswas announced by the Prime MinisterSyed Yousaf Raza Gillani at a conven-tion in Islamabad to mark theInternational Women's Day on 8thMarch. Ms. Anis Haroon has remainedassociated with Aurat Foundation foralmost over two decades.

The total strength of the NCSW is 18which includes it Chairperson Ms AnisHaroon and four ex-officio members.The other regular members of theNCSW include Ms Ali Begum, Ms

Anis HaroonNCSW chairperson

Continued on next page Continued on next page

Dr Fehmida Mirza,Patron of WPC

Ms Nafisa Shah,Secretary of WPC

Ms Nuzhat Sadiq,Treasurer of WPC

2

Adjustment Programs, capitalism wasbasically able to socialize costs whileprivatizing profits.

When the devastation caused byStructural Adjustment policies surfaced,the major global powers attempted tobring back a reformulated and redefinedstate. The restructuring of heavilyindebted states was accomplished in thename of 'good governance' to re-orientthe states to serve private rather thanpublic interest. Democratic terms like'rule of law', 'accountability', 'trans-parency', 'law and order' and 'anti-cor-ruption laws' were no longer designedto protect public money or transactionsbut private investment and profits. TheAccess to Justice Program wasdesigned to ensure that Foreign DirectInvestment was protected against fraudrather than to provide justice to people.

Structural Adjustment Programs greatlyintensified poverty in the indebtedcountries leading to unrest and socialbreakdowns. Two of the serious conse-quences of Structural Adjustment arerelevant for this discussion: one, theinformalization and casualization oflabor; and two, the feminization ofpoverty. With the de-regulation of thelabor market, large numbers of workersbecame part of the informal or unorgan-ized sector of the economy. Theybecame temporary, part-time and casuallabor that could be laid off without anyqualms. Informal labor had no rights orbenefits including medical, life insur-ance, accident insurance or other rightsthat protect workers in formal sectors.Over 90 per cent of Pakistan's workersnow fall in the informal sector, the mostexploited of all sectors in the economy.

Women and the Informal Economy

By far the greatest number of workersin the informal economy are women. Ithas been estimated that over 80 per centof the workforce in Special EconomicZones and Export Processing Zonesconsists of women. They work longhours for paltry sums and are laid of atthe first sign of economic contraction.Every developing country, eager toattract Foreign Direct Investment,offers workers at cheaper rates and withfewer rights than others. Workers in theinformal economy have none of thelegal rights recognized in internationalrights instruments, ILO regulations ornational labor policies since they are notrecognized officially as workers.

A large number of women in the infor-mal sector are home-based workerswho produce goods at home and marketthem through the middle man whoexploits their lack of access to markets.Capitalism, by creating worldwideinformally-run sweatshops, has saveditself the trouble of procuring buildings,buying electricity or providing anyfacility by shifting the work to thehome. A large segment of the garment,packaging and electronics industry runsalong the lines of home-based work,which reinforces the patriarchal notion

that a woman's place is in the home.Saba Gul Khattak concludes in herstudy of women in the informal sector:"Our findings indicate that these poli-cies have affected women workers neg-atively in different contexts, i.e. in cer-tain contexts such as large scale manu-facturing the negative effects are com-paratively less than in the context ofhome-based work."

Capitalism exploits women directlythrough the mechanism of home-basedproduction, and indirectly through thepatriarchal ideology of women ashomemakers. Women's free labor in thehome, extracted through the ideology of'labor of love', is the mainstay of capi-talism. If wages were to be charged forhousework and childcare, capitalismwould have to pay the family wage sothat the worker may buy such services.This would cut hugely into its profits. Ifthe state were to provide basic services

of homemaking and childcare, it wouldhave to tax the productive sector heavi-ly, once again cutting into profits.Women's unpaid labor carries the edi-fice of the capitalist economy and stateon its shoulders. By reproducing labor,literally through childbirth and figura-tively by refreshing male labor for thenext day's work, women are the hiddenand silent prop on which capitalismrests. Household labor is thereforeoften extracted from them throughdirect violence or indirect coercion builtinto patriarchal marital and sexual

norms. As Eileen Sudworth observes inFree Trade Zones and Women Workers,"Thus women, in both developed anddeveloping countries, are at the mercyof a system over which, at present, theyhave little or no control or influence,victims of a logic based not primarilyon the well-being of the many but onthe increased profitability for the few.And it is women who are paying forthese profits - with their labour, withtheir health, with their unemployment."

Nevertheless, capitalism is heartlesstowards women. They are the first to beretrenched in times of economic con-traction. Women are paid two-thirds ofthe amount men are paid for the samework. Women do 60 per cent of theworld's work and earn I0 per cent of theincome. They own 1 per cent of theworld's property and cultivate lands thatmen own and bring up children whocarry men's name down generations.

Women are believed to have nimble fin-gers, so the most delicate work is givento them. They are considered docileand subservient, and more amenable tocontrol, as they do not have timebetween home and work to join tradeunions. They are considered the mostsupple, flexible and dependable reservearmy of labor.

As the state lifts subsidies from health,women not only suffer more as the end-users of health services, they are alsoexpected to nurse family membersbased on their traditional knowledge ofherbal remedies. As commoditiesbecome more expensive, women stillhave to feed their families and walklong distances to fetch cheaper food. Asthe state lifts subsidies from food items,women get lesser nutrition as they arethe last to eat the leftover morsels afterfeeding the family. As education andhealth are pushed into the private sector,women are denied schooling andhealthcare within families that can onlyafford to educate one or two children(who are invariably male) and betterhealth facilities are provided only tomale children. As the cost of livingrises, girls are pulled out of school tohelp the mother at home or take care ofyounger siblings while the mother is atwork. Women step in and fill the gapwhere the state recedes.

In a study of Structural AdjustmentProgrammes, carried out by PILER, itwas found that, "The intensification ofpoverty, a result of the liberalization andprivatization policies undertaken by thegovernment of Pakistan under the aegisof Structural Adjustment Programs isgoing to lead to increasing miseryamong the marginalized. Given theserealities, it is imperative for womenworkers to devise strategies to organizethemselves in order to protect theirrights and acquire better bargainingposition vis a vis their employers." WithPakistan having once again signed a sta-bilization program with the IMF involv-ing harsh conditionalities, workers ingeneral, and women workers in particu-lar, will have to mount resistanceagainst the government's capitulation toa global agenda that is detrimental tothe interests of all workers. As marketsfor exports contract due to the econom-ic downslide, women workers may bethe first to lose jobs and income in thefierce global competition for Europeanand US markets. �The Author is anindependent researchers on socialdevelopement.

Globalization and women in the informal economyForm Page 1

Redirecting Political and Economic Decisions towards People

The major economic and political decision-making today rests with powerfulcountries which control and manipulate the Unholy Trinity comprising the WorldBank, the IMF and the World Trade Organization. The UN, as the symbol andguardian of peoples' rights across the world has been marginalized, while the troi-ka consisting of WB, IMF and WTO has gained enormous clout. The World Bankhas more control over education than UNESCO, more control over food than theFood and Agricultural Organization, more control over health than the WorldHealth Organization, and more control over the environment than the UnitedNations Environmental Program. Decisions that are made in powerful backroomsof these organizations lack transparency, accountability and participation of peo-ple. With enhanced corporate control over decision-making democratic space isshrinking.

The state needs to re-orient itself towards public good by enacting legislation forthe protection of workers in the informal economy and for ensuring that they getthe rights defined by the International Labor Organization and the InternationalCovenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Civil society organizations,particularly those concerned with women's rights, labor rights, legal rights andhuman rights, need to exert pressure on the government to guarantee that workersin the informal economy are protected against the prevailing economic downturn,not only through safety nets but through serious structural transformations thatredistribute wealth, land, resources and power in the country.

policies; ensure effectiveparliamentary oversight ofimplementation of interna-tional and regional commit-ments, policies and pro-grammes; facilitateexchange of views andinformation sharing on criti-

cal areas of concern at dif-ferent levels both nationallyand internationally; andliaise and build workingrelationship with key stateand civil society institutions.

The women members in thePunjab Assembly also

formed a cross-party womencaucus on Monday, 23February 2009, at Lahore.The Caucus members vowedto work for legislation andpolicies important to womenand to their empowerment.

The establishment of Women

Parliamentary Caucus hasbeen a long standing demandof women�s rights groups.The demand picked momen-tum soon after the entry of asmany women parliamentari-ans as 74 in the 12th NationalAssembly (2002-07) onreserved and general seats.

Women�s Parliamentary Caucus Bushra Ali Zulqarnain, Ms CharmaineHidayatullah, Dr Fouzia Saeed, MrJamy Chandio, Ms Khawar Mumtaz,Ms Misbah Momin, Ms NasreenAslam Azhar, Ms Noor-ul-Ain, MsRaashda Anwar, Ms RukhsanaAhmed, Ms Romana Tanvir and MsRatna Bhagwandas Chawla.

Form Page 1NCSW chairperson

Form Page 1

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By Ume-Laila Azhar

The informal sector has acquired greatsignificance over the years as a sourceof employment and livelihoods for anincreasing number of people, especial-ly women, in both rural and urbanareas of the developing world. It hasparticularly become a key mechanismfor distributing goods and services tothe urban poor.

According to the ILO, the informalsector is made up of very small-scaleunits producing and distributing goodsand services and owned and operatedby largely independent, self employedproducers employing family labour ora few hired workers and apprentices.Informal sector enterprises areextremely diverse and are to be foundin great numbers in all the main eco-nomic sectors, most of all in trade andservices but also in manufacturing,construction, transport and urban agri-culture. They operate with very littlecapital or none at all, and utilise a lowlevel of technology and skills.Employment in these enterprises ishighly unstable and incomes are gener-ally very low and irregular.

It is important to note also that in manydeveloping countries, the informal sec-tor is often equated with 'parallel' or'black' market activities, hence lookeddown upon by society. Consequently,public policy towards the informal sec-tor is as ambivalent as it is contradicto-ry - usually oscillating between benignneglect to periodic harassment. Theprevailing attitude of officials seems tobe given sanction by the range of activ-ities that are seen to constitute what ispopularly, and sometimes, pejorative-ly, referred to as informal sector activ-ities: from home-based petty trade,commodity production or provision ofservices by poor women to similarlyhome-based highly-paid work by pro-fessional consultants; from 'recycling'waste and living off the refuse of oth-ers to hawking to trafficking in illicitgoods to commercial sex work.

Home Based Workers (HBWs) ofPakistan may they be men or womenand who are workers and working 12-16 hours a day, but are not consideredas "workers". They contribute in thenational economy and add to the fig-ures annually but are not considered aslaborers, as those are of formal sector.Homebased worker falls under theinformal sector.

Since ages we have been buying stun-ning hand made stuff like expensivehand woven silk carpets, silk scarf's,immaculately designed colorful rugs,special pulkari work kurties , dresses ,leather products like diaries and officeaccessories , paper meshi products,classy and funky bangles, varioushome products like marvellouslydesigned chikhs , table matts , caps ,and God knows what .Not only this weenjoy buying stuff like this from multi

storied shopping malls and feel pridein spending money on them ; but havewe ever once thought how they aremade or what hands are involved in theproduction of these beautiful artefacts���no. We have never oncethought about the poor invisible handsproducing beautiful products and outfits for the ladies of elite class.

According to figures released byPakistan Institute of DevelopmentEconomics (PIDE) there are 8.52 mil-lion home based workers representing

60 per cent of the women work force inthe country. Most of these home-basedwomen workers (HBWWs) are piecerate workers involved in manufacturingand post manufacturing tasks such asembroidery, carpet weaving and hand-looms, wood work and other handi-crafts, bangle making, dates cleaningand packing prawn peeling and packing, pottery , making incense sticks oragarbati, filling matches, binding andmaking boxes, stitching jute bags orboories , binding , gem cutting embroi-dering for branded multinational com-panies and many other tasks similar towhat I have mentioned .

These women usually come from loweror lower middle income backgroundand form various age groups and withvery little or no education at all. Younggirls of age 6 to 14 are working andhelping their mothers in making andfinishing the tasks handed to them bythe middleman, in hope of getting 36Rs for making 12 shalwars or 20 Rs forfilling 12 dozen( gross) of match boxes.This is a Home Based worker.

Sadly enough the home based workerin Pakistan is not covered by the defi-

nition of "worker" in the following lawsand statutes of the country legislation :1. Payment of wages Act , 19362. West Pakistan Shops and

establishment Act , 1969, 3. Industrial Relations Ordinance, 19694. Maternity Benefits Ordinance or

Employers Old Age Benefit Act , 1958

The capacity of these poor women toimprove their conditions of living isconstrained by their powerlessnesswithin political and social systems andis linked directly to inappropriate gov-ernment policies, no access to informa-tion and resources, poor quality of

social services and gender inequalities.They operate with very little capital ornone at all, and utilise low level oftechnology and skills. Employment inthese enterprises is highly unstable andincomes are generally very low, irreg-ular and seasonal.

Looking at the constraints they face:

lack of access to productiveresources due to discriminations inproperty ownership and in employ-ment; lack of time because ofunequal gender division of labour inunpaid productive and reproductiveactivities; lack of skills due to lower lev-els of literacy and formal education; lack of access to labour as aresult of norms of gender hierarchyand separation; and lack of access to markets dueto their exclusion from the most lucra-tive markets.

The lack of access to informal and for-mal credit by women micro and smallentrepreneurs has been identified bynumerous studies as a major, someeven say, the major constraint.

With informal sources of finance beingrelatively easy to access, women relyon moneylenders and pawnbrokers,rotating savings and credit associations(ROSCAS), and friends, relatives, sup-pliers and shopkeepers. While thesesources are providing the bulk offinancial resources for female entre-preneurs and offer a number of poten-tial advantages, such as proximitybetween borrower and lender, immedi-acy of loan disbursement, small loansize, flexible repayment schedules andminimal collateral requirements, theycan be costly and discriminatory.

Formal financial institutions are evenless receptive and welcoming tofemale entrepreneurs. Their collateralrequirements, bureaucratic loan appli-cation, disbursement procedures, thetime and resources necessary to visitthe banks and discriminatory bankingculture virtually exclude poor womenas clients. The provision of sustain-able access to financial services forwomen has therefore become a corecomponent of many women's microenterprise programmes, and is at thecenter of the attention of govern-ments, social partners, civil societyorganizations and internationaldonors.

While the data about informal activi-ties are somewhat unreliable, there isconsensus that the informal sector issteadily growing in almost all develop-ing countries so much so that it waswidely accepted at the South Asianlevel that there is no policy or legisla-tion for the informal sector and specif-ically talking about women in the for-mal sector. � The author is NationalManager of HomeNet Pakistan.

HBWs striving for equal status as workers

PREAMBLE

The General Conference of theInternational Labour Organization,

Having been convened at Geneva bythe Governing Body of theInternational Labour Office, and hav-ing met in its Eighty-third Session on4 June 1996, and

Recalling that many internationallabour Conventions andRecommendations laying down stan-dards of general application concern-ing working conditions are applicableto home workers, and

Noting that the particular conditionscharacterizing home work make itdesirable to improve the applicationof those Conventions and

Recommendations to home workers,and to supplement them by standardswhich take into account the specialcharacteristics of home work, and

Having decided upon the adoption ofcertain proposals with regard to homework, which is the fourth item on theagenda of the session, and

Having determined that these propos-als shall take the form of an interna-tional Convention;

adopts, this twentieth day of June ofthe year one thousand nine hundredand ninety-six, the following

Convention, which may be cited asthe Home Work Convention, 1996:

Article 1 For the purposes of this Convention: (a) the term [ home work ] meanswork carried out by a person, to bereferred to as a homeworker,

(i) in his or her home or in otherpremises of his or her choice, otherthan the workplace of the employer; (ii) for remuneration; (iii) which results in a product orservice as specified by the employer,irrespective of who provides theequipment, materials or other inputsused, unless this person has thedegree of autonomy and of econom-ic independence necessary to be con-sidered an independent worker undernational laws, regulations or courtdecisions;

(b) persons with employee status donot become homeworkers within themeaning of this Convention simplyby occasionally performing theirwork as employees at home, ratherthan at their usual workplaces;

(c) the term [ employer ] means a per-son, natural or legal, who, eitherdirectly or through an intermediary,whether or not intermediaries are pro-vided for in national legislation, givesout home work in pursuance of his orher business activity.

(This Convention can be accessed online at :http://www.ilo.org)

Home Work Convention, C177(We are reproducing below the Preamble and Article 1 of the Home

Work Convention, C117, which provides the defination of homeworker)

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By Samina Khan

In 2000, UNIFEM organized a SouthAsia regional meeting in Kathmandu.Nepal, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh andSri Lanka governments were repre-sented at Secretary level, along withcivil society representatives. Sungi,Aurat Foundation and Roots for Equityrepresented Pakistani NGOs.

Objectives:

1. to understand the situation of home-based women workers, who are thebackbone of the economy in SouthAsia, and are especially impacted byglobalization;

2. to evolve a strategy towards policy-making and legislation:

3. to provide social protection;4. to provide labour rights to home-

based workers.

The idea of setting up HomeNet SouthAsia was floated and terms of refer-ence were discussed. Each countrydecided to work towards setting up itsnational HomeNet. Nepal took the leadfollowed by India, Sri Lanka andPakistan (2005). Bangladesh had aBangladesh Homeworkers Association(BHA) since 1986. Pakistan delegationnominated Aurat Foundation (AF) asthe focal organization since AF hasoffices in all provinces plus:

In 1982 the preliminary results of 1981population census showed that womenworkers were only 1.76% in livestockand agricultural workers and 2.1%total in Pakistan. Only men werecounted in family unpaid help butwomen were not.

1982 agriculture census 54%women who were included in thelabour force survey by simplyadding "do you work on yourown family farm"

1983 AF lobbied with govt. tochange the definition of workfrom paid to unpaid for recogni-tion of women's work

AF conducted research with thesupport of ILO in 1988 on piece-rate women workers in Punjab,

AF convened 1st national PeasantWomen's conference in 1991where the informal sector theissue of non recognition ofwomen's work came out as a glar-ing concern.

Sungi working for rights ofHBWWs since 1994 in Hazara(NWFP) by raising awareness onfair trade practices among pro-ducers, entrepreneurs and buyers,(member of HomeNet Pakistanand International Fair TradeAssociation (IFAT)

1998 UNIFEM supported AFcampaign on inclusion of

women's work in population cen-sus. 'Other then household whatelse are you doing or did lastyear?" this question was added.

After 2000 Aurat Foundation start-ed mapping non profit and devel-opment organizations working fordisadvantaged including HBWWsin different capacities. oHomenetPakistan started Capacity Buildingtraining courses for HBWWs in2005 and exposure to marketingetc.HomeNet Pakistan had aware-ness raising events with womenparliamentarians at National andprovincial level.

In April 2006, Sungi participatedin Women in InformalEmployment: Globalizing andOrganizing (WIEGO) GeneralAssembly in South Africa.

Two major concerns emerged:

Advocacy for social protectionfor HBWWs;

Collection of Data and Statisticson HBWWS.

In 2007, Sungi translated into Urduand disseminated 6 WIEGO hand-books on advocacy tools for HBWWson social protection:

Informal employment and socialprotection: an introduction

Value Chains and social protec-tion

Health insurance Occupational health and safety Child care Organizations, networks and

alliances

Regional & National Initiatives

A woman Parliamentarian, theSecretary MoWD (GoP), AuratFoundation & Sungi (besides others)attended UNIFEM's South AsianRegional meeting on HBWWs (Delhi,Jan.2007) to prepare a Regional Planof Action for HBWWS.

During 2007, Sungi, together withAction Aid Pk, organized a series ofconsultations to take forward theRegional recommendations - withHBWWs, entrepreneurs, govt. linedepartment reps, parliamentarians,civil society, the private sector and themedia.

Consolidated findings / recom-mendations of these consultationswere presented to the MoWD forincorporating in the national poli-cy on HBWWs and for ratifica-tion ILO Convention 177.

The MoWD requested Sungi andUNIFEM to collaborate in organ-izing a two-day national consulta-tion meeting on HBWWs with rel-evant stakeholders in June 2007.

The event was organized inresponse to the MoWD's commit-ment to UN-CSW while reportingon CEDAW in May 2007, that itwould work on the issue ofHBWWs with UNIFEM

MoWD's initiative appreciated

Organizations of HomeNet Pk, whofelt that this was an appropriate time tomove towards formulating a policy toprotect HBWWs' rights, as Minster forWomen's Development and YouthAffairs, in her inaugural address prom-ised to get Cabinet approval for anational policy on HBWWs.

Members of HomeNet Pakistan,Sungi, Aurat Foundation, HawwaCrafts Cooperative, Karavan Craftstogether with PILER, FIDA, WorkingWomen's Association, LabourEducation Foundation, Action Aid Pk,and others, advocated and lobbied tobuild a conducive environment, policyand legislation for HBWWs' rights.

In 2007 the Chairperson ofParliamentary StandingCommittee on Women'sDevelopment called a StandingCommittee (SC) meeting, toshare outcomes of HBWWs con-sultation and to obtain inputs forformulation of National Policy.

The SC meeting was attended byit members who were womenMNAs from various political par-ties: PPP, MMA, PML(Q) & (N)and MQM, the Secretary MoWD,DG Health, and reps of Ministriesof Labour, Education andWomen's Development.UNIFEM, HomeNet Pakistan andSungi were invited as observers

The Ministry of Women'sDevelopment requested Sungi'sassistance to prepare a draftNational Policy on HBWWS.

Drafting of a National Policy onHBWWs in Pakistan, is based on:literature review including GoP'sdraft National EmploymentPolicy (NEP) and draftEmployment and ServicesCondition Act (2007), with refer-ence to HBWWs and consulta-tions with stakeholders;

Consultation for a situation review andinputs to the draft policy with stake-holders Quetta, Karachi, Peshawar andLahore with the relevant govt. depts,NGOs & HBWWs for; Sharing of draftwith stakeholders;

Pakistan-Specific Govt. Data

Pakistan spends 1.4% of GDP onsocial protection (World Bank).

80% of Pakistan social protectionexpenditures are devoted to pen-sions and social security, benefit-

ing those in the formal sector andnon-poor (WB).

20% of social protection spend-ing (0.3% of GDP) is spent onsocial safety nets (WB).

Safety net spending on the twomain programs (Zakat and Bait-ul-Mal) declined from 0.4% ofGDP in 1991-92 to 0.14% ofGDP in 2004-05 (WB).

The formal organized sectorlabour force in Pakistan has asocial security system withmandatory contributions fromemployers, including interalia:Pensions through theEmployees Old Age Benefits &Insurance (EOBI);

Health facilities through theprovincial Employees SocialSecurity Insurance (ESSIs);

Workers' Welfare Board (WWB),supporting registered workers'families' education and otherimmediate needs

The Constitution & Legislatures

Articles 37 & 38 provideConstitutional guarantees for,inter alia, social protection: "TheState is responsible for socialsecurity of the people".

To recognize HBWWs' work, aParliamentary Resolution waspassed in the National Assemblyon 3rd April 2007.

In 2007 a draft Bill on HBWWswas endorsed by a ParliamentaryStanding Committee on Women'sDevelopment of the former gov-ernment.

The Balochistan ProvincialAssembly passed a Resolution onHBWWs (drafted by HomeNetPakistan) on 31st May 2007.

Concluding thought�

Once the Policy is in place, there is aneed for the Govt. to work together withHBWWs, NGOs and the private sectorto develop a comprehensive action planand an enabling, conducive environ-ment, through a consultative process, tofacilitate and support the empowermentand development of home-basedwomen workers, in a non-threatening orintrusive manner, according to theirown wishes and aspirations. �Theauthor is Exective Director of SungiDevelopment Foundation

(The presentation was made at SouthAsian Reginal Consultation jointlyorganized by HomeNet Pakistan,HomeNet South Asia, AuratFoundation, SUNGI DevelopmentFoundation, UNIFEM and ILO, atIslamabad on 14-15 October 2008)

Journey of HomeNet Pakistan

5

Legislative Watch is produced by the ResourceService of the Legislative Watch Programme forWomen�s Empowerment of Aurat Publication andInformation Service Foundation at Islamabad.

Advisory Board: I.A. Rehman, Tahira Abdullah

Editorial BoardNaeem Mirza, Wasim Wagha

Letters, opinions and contributions are welcome.Please write to House 19, Street 1, G-6/3, IslamabadTel: (051) 2277512 - 2277547, Fax: (051) 2822060Email: lwprs@af.org.pk Website: www.af.org.pk

The contributions or opinions, other than by the AuratFoundation, reflect the views of the individual contrib-utors and do not necessarily always reflect the viewsof the organization.

Pakistan has witnessed a regular pattern of increasein the violence related to religious extremism since2002. During 2002-2008, around 1518 citizenswere killed and 2817 were injured in 642 incidentsof this kind of violence. The shocking aspect ofrecent surge in violence is the increasing frequencyof suicide attacks across the country. The magnitudeof suicide attacks is best illustrated by the fact thatthere were 22 suicide attacks in four years i.e.between 22 March, 2002 (when the first suicideattack took place) and 2006, while the figure rose to56 attacks in 2007 and 59 in year 2008. The imme-diate human loss of this violence were the preciouslives: 729 persons in 2007, including 552 civiliansand 177 security personnel, who were killed and1,677 persons who were injured in 56 suicideattacks, while at least 852 persons, including 712civilians and 140 security personnel, were killed andmore than 1,867 persons were injured in year 2008.

This wave of extremism and terrorism, in additionto immediate loss of lives and economy has signifi-cantly diminished the space for human rights poli-tics in Pakistan. The threat to 'right to life' overshad-owed the other basic human rights - the right tomobility, livelihoods, speech, education and culture.The extremism is fast tearing apart the socio-cultur-al fabric among diverse ethno-culture groups. Thedamage to this socio-cultural fabric, woven by along socio-political and cultural interaction, in fact,is a loss of humanity and history in the region,because the values and heritage which bring peo-ples, cultures and gender together to stand for jus-tice loses its significance. The threat to life has thussignificantly reduced space for opportunities in lifeand hope for change.

The wave of terrorism has also affected the workingof government and non-government institutions andby weakening the processes of justice, accountabil-ity and transparency in formal and informal life. Thecivil society, which was emerging in the role ofservice provider and watch-dog towards peoples'access to basic human rights, has to divert itsresources, both human and capital, to the emergencyrelief and human rights violations in the conflictzone. The marginalized sections of populationswere further marginalized; the peoples already striv-ing for justice were inflicted further injustice; peo-ple born to live and love were forced to die anddespair. We need to re-collect, re-group and re-ener-gize ourselves with determination to make space forhope, change and pave the way for realization of ourrights, equality and justice for all.

EDITORIALInsani Haqooq Itehad (IHI) is a network of rightsbased civil society organizations and concernedindividuals of Islamabad-Rawalpindi. On 12February 2009, the IHI held a public discussion on"Conflict in Swat: Viable Solutions" at Islamabad.The main discussion points and recommendationsmade by the participants are given below:

Swat operation is badly affecting women, as theyare barred from working outside the house, andfrom going out without a male companion.Women and girls are being raped in Taliban con-trolled areas.

A total of 248 schools had been affectedand119248 girls had been forced to stop theireducation.

The military had occupied 28 schools and 8 col-leges to use them for their stay.

Tourism industry has collapsed and livelihoodsdestroyed in the area. Around 40000 personworking in hotels had lost their jobs, and they arebeing paid and forced to join the Taliban.

That people don't want Taliban-style sharia andno special package is needed for Swat. TheConstitution of Pakistan is already based onsharia, thus the Taliban's demand for sharia isonly a political ploy. The problem was in thedelay in delivering justice.

IDPs are in a dreadful condition. Those inMingora have insufficient food and no winterclothes. Alternate arrangements for children'sschooling must be made urgently. A permanentbody should be set up to deal with the crisis onan emergency basis. We need to be assured thatthe government is with us!

The military is not serious in attacking theTaliban, which is proved by the fact that:i) Maulvi Fazlullah's FM radio broadcasts, start-ed five years ago, have not been jammed yet; ii)The Taliban leaders have not been captured wheneveryone knows where they could be found; iii)

Taliban continue to have access to sophisticatedweapons without hindrance; v) Schools are mys-teriously destroyed during curfew hours and noone is caught.

Whether they are Taliban or the military, the peo-ple are victims of both. If people step out of theirhomes during curfew hours they are shot andkilled. Children and women are particularly vul-nerable to army attacks. The militants are perpe-trating horrific cruelties on anyone who opposesthem. The military operation has seriouslyaffected all business activities in the area.

The consultation made the fowllowing recommen-dations:

Recommendations:

Indiscriminate shelling and aerial bombing mustbe stopped, as it killing innocent peoples anddestroying their property and livelihoods andother infrastructure.

IDPs must immediately be provided with basicneeds, such as food, shelter, education and healthfacilities.

All political parties and civil society must force-fully condemn Taliban and militancy and declaretheir support to the people of Swat and FATA.

All illegal FM radios that are spewing hate andviolence and terrorizing the people, must beclosed down and alternate FM radios shall be setup to promote peace and harmony.

Government should ask PTV to telecast more pro-grams in Pushto and other languages as cableoperators have been forced to close down.

All decisions related to the Swat operation andinternally displaced persons (IDPs) shall be takenby the elected representatives.

Government must dispel the impression thatArmy and Taliban are two sides of the samecoin.� AF Correspondent

The UNIFEM's latest report 'Progress of the World'sWomen 2008/2009: Who Answers to Women?,released in September 2008, makes some interestingobservations about the present state of women inlegislatures and governments around the world. Itstates: "Today there are more women in governmentthan ever before. The proportion of women innational assemblies has increased by 8% to the cur-rent global average of 18.4% in the decade from1998 to 2008, compared to an increase of just 1% inthe two decades after 1975. Yet even at the currentrate of increase, developing countries will not reachthe 'party zone' where neither sex holds more than60% of seats until 2045".

The report highlights that political accountability towomen requires:

Strong mobilization: Women's movementshave played an important role in challenging author-itarian regimes in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Nepal,Peru and the Philippines; in building pressure forpeace in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Uganda, Burundi,Timor-Leste and the Balkans; in lobbying for leg-islative change to stop genital mutilation in Senegaland Burkina Faso, guarantee inheritance rights inRwanda, and promote rights in marriage in Braziland Turkey. Strong representation: Quotas and other tem-porary special measures, such as reserved seats, are aproven means for supporting women's engagement inpolitical competition; they are currently used at nation-

al and sub-national levels in 95 countries. In electionsheld in 2007, the average representation of womenwas 19.3% in those countries that used some type ofelectoral quota, as opposed to 14.7% for those coun-tries without quotas, regardless of electoral system. Strong Legislation and policy: Higher num-bers of women in parliament generally contribute tostronger attention to women's issues. A 2008 studyof UK politics, for example, confirms that since thenumber of women in parliament doubled to 18.2%since the 1997 election, issues of particular impor-tance to women - such as childcare and social pro-tection - have received more attention. Strong implementation: Even when thepolitical will does exist, many governments do nothave the capacity, resources, or know-how to ensurethat gender equality policies are carried out. InAfghanistan, the government recently committed tofast track the increase of women's participation inthe civil service at all levels to 30% by 2013.Currently, only 22% of all regular governmentemployees are women and only 9% of these are atthe decision-making level.

The UNIFEM report concludes at some point in thediscussion that "political accountability to womenbegins with increasing the number of women in deci-sion-making positions, but it cannot stop there. Itrequires governance reforms that equip public insti-tutions with the incentives, skills, information andprocedures to respond to women's needs". � AFCorrespondent

Conflict in Swat: viable solutions

'Progress of the World's Women 2008/2009:Who Answers to Women?�

6

Pakistan acceded to the Convention onthe Elimination of All Forms ofDiscrimination against Women(CEDAW) on 12 April 1996. Countriesthat have ratified or acceded to theConvention (CEDAW) are legallybound to put its provisions into prac-tice. They are also committed to sub-mit national reports, at least every fouryears, on measures they have taken tocomply with their treaty obligations. InPakistan Ministry of Women'sDevelopment is responsible for theCEDAW Country Report, in consulta-tion with key line ministries. PakistanCompliance report was due with in ayear's time but somehow it could notbe produced along with subsequenttwo periodic reports. The Ministry ofWomen Development prepared thecombined initial, second and thirdperiodic report of Pakistan, coveringthe period up to December 2004,which was later extended upto 2006, inresponse to some queries by theCEDAW Committee.

The Government of Pakistan presentedthis combined initial, second and thirdperiodic report before CEDAW ExpertCommittee on 22 May 2007 in its 38thsession at the United Nations in NewYork. The Committee considered thereport and after discussions deliveredthe following concluding observations:[we are reproducing below most ofthese for public knowledge while sum-marizing some of the observations]

The Committee commends theState party for its accession to theConvention on the Elimination of AllForms of Discrimination againstWomen. It expresses its appreciation tothe State party for its combined initial,second and third periodic report.

Positive aspects:

The Committee commends and appre-ciated the State party on its followingsteps:

On legal reforms aimed at elimi-nating discrimination against womenand promoting gender equality; andincreasing women's political participa-tion in the National Assembly and theSenate; and the 2000 amendment to thePakistani Citizenship Act, 1951, pro-viding for nationality to the children offoreign spouses; The adoption, in 2002, of thePrevention and Control of HumanTrafficking Ordinance; the adoption, in2004, of the Criminal LawAmendment Act to facilitate prosecu-tion of "honour killing"; the adoption,in 2006, of the Protection of Women(Criminal Laws Amendment) Actamending some of the HudoodOrdinances; the adoption of theNational Plan of Action, in 1998; theadoption of National Policy forAdvancement and Empowerment of

Women in 2002; and in 2005, theGender Reforms Action Plan; theestablishment of National Commissionon the Status of Women in 2000; andthe establishment, in 1989, of the FirstWomen's Bank. The Committee welcomes the ini-tiatives undertaken to provide supportto women victims of violence, includ-ing the creation, by the Ministry of theInterior, of the Gender Crime Cell inthe National Police Bureau and theestablishment of a Human Rights Wingunder the Ministry of Law, Justice andHuman Rights, mandated to addresshuman rights violations in the countrywith a special reference to women.

Principal subjects of concern

The Committee express following con-cerns over the report:

The Committee urges the Stateparty to withdraw its declaration to theConvention without delay. The Committee recommends thata definition of discrimination againstwomen in line with article 1 of theConvention, which encompasses bothdirect and indirect discrimination, andprovisions on the equality of womenwith men in line with article 2 (a) ofthe Convention be included in theConstitution or in other appropriatelegislation. The Committee calls upon theState party to undertake a comprehen-sive and systematic review and revisionof all discriminatory legislation, includ-ing the Citizenship Act of 1951, theLaw of Evidence of 1984 and theHudood Ordinances of 1979, withoutdelay and with time-bound targets, inorder to achieve full compliance withall the provisions of the Convention andthe Committee's general recommenda-tions, in consultation with civil society,including women's organizations. While welcoming the efforts of theMinistry of Women Development andthe National Commission on the Statusof Women, the Committee is concernedthat the national machinery for theadvancement of women does not haveenough authority or the human andfinancial resources to comprehensivelycarry out its mandate and promote theadvancement of women and genderequality. It is also concerned about thelimited capacity of the Ministry ofWomen Development to undertakeeffective coordination and cooperationwith all gender equality mechanisms atthe federal and provincial levels, aswell as cooperation with women'sorganizations. The Committee is fur-ther concerned about the lack of aneffective mechanism to monitor theimplementation of the National Plan ofAction and the Gender Reform ActionPlan based on the standards and provi-sions of the Convention. The Committee recommends thatthe State party strengthen the national

machinery by providing it with ade-quate human and financial resources soas to make it more effective in carryingout its mandate. This should, in partic-ular, include sufficient capacity andauthority for coordination of the vari-ous gender equality mechanisms toproactively implement the Convention. The Committee notes with concernthat violence against women and girlspersists, including domestic violence,rape and crimes committed in the nameof honour. The Committee is especiallyconcerned about the Qisas and Diyatlaw, which allows for the victim of vio-lence or his/her heir to determinewhether to exact retribution (Qisas) orpayment of compensation (Diyat) or topardon the accused, thus providingimpunity for perpetrators of violenceagainst women, especially perpetratorsof crimes committed in the name ofhonour. The Committee notes with con-cern the lack of data on all forms of vio-lence against women in the report. The Committee urges the Stateparty to accord priority attention to theadoption of a comprehensive approachto address all forms of violence againstwomen and girls, taking into accountthe Committee's general recommenda-tion 19 on violence against women.The Committee calls on the State partyto ensure that the Qisas and Diyat lawhas no application in cases of violenceagainst women, especially crimes com-mitted in the name of honour, and toadopt the Bill on Domestic Violence,within a clear time frame, in order toensure that women and girls who arevictims of violence have access to pro-tection and effective redress and thatperpetrators of such acts are effectivelyprosecuted and punished. The Committee urges the Stateparty to, without delay, implement thejudgment of the superior court to elimi-nate informal dispute resolution forums(jirgas) and to ensure that members ofsuch forums who have participated indecisions that constitute violenceagainst women are held accountable. The Committee is strongly con-cerned about pervasive patriarchal atti-tudes and deep-rooted traditional andcultural stereotypes regarding the rolesand responsibilities of women and menin the family, in the workplace and insociety, which constitute serious obsta-cles to women's enjoyment of theirhuman rights and impede the fullimplementation of the Convention.The Committee is also concerned thatprevailing trends of fundamentalism,intimidation and violence incited bynon-State actors, including throughillegal media, are seriously undermin-ing women's enjoyment of their humanrights in the name of religion. The Committee remains con-cerned that The Prevention andControl of Human TraffickingOrdinance of 2002 does not adequate-ly address the needs of women andgirls who are victims of trafficking; the

State party should amend thePrevention and Control of HumanTrafficking Ordinance of 2002 The Committee encourages theState party to take sustained measures,including temporary special measuresin accordance with article 4, paragraph1, of the Convention to accelerate theincrease in the representation ofwomen in elected and appointed bodiesin all areas of public and political life. The Committee urges the Stateparty to step up its efforts to ensureuniversal registration of births andmarriages and to ensure that all womenhave national identity cards. The Committee calls upon theState party to place high priority on thereduction of the illiteracy rate ofwomen, in particular those who arefrom rural areas. The Committee urges the Stateparty to ensure equal opportunities forwomen and men in the labour market;the Committee also calls upon theState party to ratify the InternationalLabour Organization (ILO)Convention No. 177 on Home Work. The Committee calls on the Stateparty to take concrete measures toenhance women's access to health care,in particular to sexual and reproductivehealth services The Committee urges the Stateparty to pay special attention to theneeds of rural women and women withdisabilities The Committee urges the Stateparty to amend the Dissolution ofMuslim Marriage Act of 1939 to elim-inate all discriminatory provisions, The Committee encourages theState party to ratify the OptionalProtocol to the CEDAW and to accept,as soon as possible, The Committee urges the Stateparty to utilize fully in its implemen-tation of its obligations under theConvention, the Beijing Declarationand Platform for Action, TheCommittee also emphasizes that afull and effective implementation ofthe Convention is indispensable forachieving the MillenniumDevelopment Goals. The Committeeencourages the Government ofPakistan to consider ratifying thetreaties to which it is not yet a party.The Committee requests the wide dis-semination in Pakistan of the presentconcluding comments in order tomake the people, including govern-ment officials, politicians, parliamen-tarians and women's and humanrights organizations, aware of thesteps that have been taken to ensurede jure and de facto equality ofwomen and the further steps that arerequired in that regard. TheCommittee requests the State party torespond to the concerns expressed inthe present concluding comments inits next periodic report under article18 of the Convention, which is due inApril 2009. �AF Correspondent

CEDAW Committee's Concluding Observations onPakistan's Country Report

7

A total of 7571 cases of violenceagainst women were recorded all overPakistan during 2008. Of these, 4416cases of violence were recorded inPunjab, followed by 1380 in Sindh,779 in NWFP, 767 in Balochistan and209 in Islamabad Capital Territory(Islamabad). These incidents of vio-lence against women occurred during aperiod of one year commencing from 1January 2008 and ending at 31December 2008. Almost 90% of thesecases were reported in the print mediaand were picked from there by theAurat Foundation's teams. Out of atotal of 7571 cases of violence againstwomen in Pakistan, the offence-wiseand province-wise breakdown is as fol-lows:

According to the statistics gatheredprimarily through Aurat Foundation'sPress Clipping Service, the crime rateof violence against women is on muchhigher side in big cities or the mainurban centres of the country, includingthe federal and provincial capitals.

During the first quarter of the 2008,there were 1172 cases in Pakistan (545in Punjab; 275 in Sindh; 160 in NWFP;149 in Balochistan; 43 in Islamabad);there were 1669 cases in second quar-ter (878 in Punjab; 325 in Sindh; 170in NWFP; 233 in Balochistan; 63 inIslamabad); 2580 cases in third quarter(1600 in Punjab; 428 in Sindh; 267 inNWFP; 219 in Balochistan; 66 inIslamabad and; 2150 cases in fourthquarter (1393 in Punjab; 352 in Sindh;202 in NWFP; 166 in Balochistan; 37in Islamabad).

It appears from the data collected andpresented below in tabular form thatover half of the total cases of VAWwere occurred in Punjab i.e. 4416 outof 7571 with the percentage of the totalat 58%. In Sindh, the number of suchincidents was 1380 with 18 percent ofthe total cases. In NWFP, the numberof cases were799 (11%), and inBalochistan the number of such caseswas 767 (10%). In Islamabad, thenumber of these cases was 209 (3%).

It is observed from the data producedabove that murders of women haveoccurred with some similar propor-tions in all provinces and Islamabad,though most cases of murder haveoccurred in Punjab, followed byNWFP. Twenty women were killedeven in Islamabad in 2008. However,killings of women in the name of 'hon-our' are mostly committed in Sindh andBalochistan, and more noticeably, insome districts of the two provinces sit-uated in close proximity to each otherforming a geographical belt.

This is also surprising that out of the12 districts where at least 150 or morecases of violence against women wereactually reported, 8 were in Punjab;and 7 of all the 12 districts were CityGovernments.

The District Lahore has the highestcrime rate in terms of the incidents ofviolence against women with 911cases out of a total of 7571 cases inPakistan and a total of 4416 cases inPunjab; followed by Faisalabad (494);Rawalpindi (492); Quetta (334);Peshawar (331); Sheikhupura (322);Multan (235); Islamabad (209); Kasur(196); Gujranwala (184); Sahiwal(176) and Karachi (163).

Murder and 'Honour' Killing: Theprevalence of the crimes of murder and'honour' killing in the four provincesand Islamabad Capital Territory isbroadly shown in the graphs below. Ofthe total 1,422 cases of murder, therewere 695 (49%) cases from Punjab;352 (25%) from NWFP; 240 (17%)from Sindh; 115 (8%) fromBalochistan and the remaining 20 (1%)cases from Islamabad.

During 2008, 475 women were killedin the name of 'honour' (karo kari) allover Pakistan. Out of these 475 cases,244 (51.37%) were reported fromSindh; 127 (26.74%) cases mainlyfrom some districts of Balochistan, 89(18.74%) from Punjab; 13 (2.74%)from NWFP and 2 (0.42%) cases fromIslamabad.

The cases of 'honour' killing are foundto be higher in rural/tribal areas wherejirgas and panchyat system is stilloperational and override the law ofthe land and formal institutions ofconflict resolutions. The highest casesof 'honour' killings were reportedfrom the following districts ofPakistan: 44 from Jaffarabad; 31 fromNaseerabad; 36 cases from Ghotki; 28from Kashmore; 27 from Shikarpur;24 from Sukkur; 29 from Jacobabad;25 from Khairpur Mirs; 11 fromQambar Ali Khan Shahdad Kot; and16 from Lahore.

Abduction and Suicide: In contrast to'honour' killings which were commit-ted more in numbers in Sindh andBalochistan, the highest number ofcases of abductions of womenoccurred in Punjab.

In fact, abductions or kidnappings ofwomen appeared to be a major crimein Punjab, and 1439 cases of abduc-tions out of the total of 1784 abduc-tions occurred in the province ofPunjab, which is 81% of the total fig-ure in the province, meaning therebythat four women were reportedlyabducted everyday on an average inPunjab. Also alarming and quite'unthinkable' is the figure of abduc-tions from Islamabad as compared tothe provinces of NWFP andBalochistan.

The total numbers of reported cases of

suicide were 599 in 2008, according tothe media scanning by the AuratFoundation teams. Unfortunately likethe abductions, the highest number ofcases of suicide occurred in Punjab,followed by Sindh and NWFP withhigh percentages. 362 (61%) womencommitted suicide in Punjab in 2008,followed by 146 (24%) in Sindh and66 (11%) in NWFP. There have been18 (3%) cases of suicide fromBalochistan and 7 (1%) of the totalcases of suicide from Islamabad.

Rape/gang-rape: Most regrettablyand shamefully, the numbers of inci-dents of rape and gang-rape also forma very high percentage of all the crimescommitted against women, i.e. overall778 such incidents occurred in 2008 indifferent parts of the country. Thisshows the extent of suppression andhumiliation creeping into the societyand how women are being made vic-tims of this most heinous crime which

ruins the lives of the women alongwith their family and children for therest of their lives, with the situationgoing even worse when they do notfind any recourse to justice.

The highest number of cases of rapeand gang-rape were committed inPunjab, i.e. 608 of the total 778 cases(365 or 77% cases of rape and 243 or80% cases of gang-rape), or 78% ofthe total cases. Sindh, too, have a high-er degree of occurrence of this crimeand 139 (18%) cases of rape and gang-rape (85 or 18% cases of rape and 54or 18% cases of gang-rape) werereported form the province. In NWFPand Balochistan, the incidents ofrape/gang-rape were reported signifi-cantly less than other provinces, 9 and12 cases, respectively. However, therewere ten such incidents in Islamabadduring 2008.

Acid throwing and stove burning:Acid throwing and stove burning arethe most ignominious of all gender-based crimes. Acid throwing is a formof violent assault. Perpetrators of theseattacks throw acid at women, usuallyon their faces, burning them and muti-lating and damaging their skin tissues,often exposing and sometimes dissolv-ing the bones. The consequences ofthese attacks include blindness andpermanent scarring of the face andbody.

In majority of the cases, the motivesbehind the offence are domestic con-flict or husband's desire to remarry,demand of dowry items, demand ofdivorce or showing resistance againsthusband's second marriage In most ofthe cases the perpetrators were in-laws,specially husbands of the victims/sur-vivors. It was found that most of thevictims were young married women,and also daughters-in law.

Domestic Violence: Overall, thenumber of cases in the category ofdomestic violence is small i.e. 281(out of a total of 7571). However, itwas observed that the majority of thecases in the category of hurt and body(846), as well as, 312 cases of torture,172 cases of sexual assault, 74 casesof threat to violence, and even 61cases of stove burning were related toone or the other form of domestic vio-lence, mostly relating to physical vio-lence within the domestic sphere.This brings the total number of cases,having some linkage with the domes-tic violence, to roughly about 1746cases out of a total of 7571 during2008. The percentage is around 23.06.Sadly, it is a huge ratio of the total fig-ures suggesting the wide prevalenceof domestic violence in Pakistandespite the non-inclusion of data inthe present report about the emotionaland psychological violence againstwomen due to its non-availability forvarious reasons mentioned earlier. �AF Correspondent

Violence against women in Pakistan during 2008

Civil Society Events8

In order to critically see women parlia-mentarians' performance in the 12thNational Assembly (2002-07), anddocument and highlight their achieve-ments, Aurat Foundation did a detailedstudy, titled "Five Year Report on: -Performance of WomenParliamentarians in the 12th NationalAssembly (2002-2007)", in 2008.The study was first inaugurated by MsSherry Rehman, former Minister forInformation, on 5 March 2009 atIslamabad, and followed by regionallaunch at all the four provincial head-quarters. The study not only attractedthe parliamentarians, concerned civilsociety but equally inspired the printmedia where eminent journalists wrotetheir analysis and opinion on the study.At Peshawar, Provincial Minister forSocial Welfare, Ms Sitara Ayaz inau-gurated the Five Year Report on 26

March 2009. At Lahore, the study wasinaugurated by Ms Yasmeen Rehmanand Ms Beelum Hasnain, on 31March. The LWP-WE Quetta staff held

the inaugural ceremony of the reporton 28 March 2009 which was chairedby Ms Rubina Irfan, Ministers for Law& Parliamentary Affairs, Balochistan.

AF study praises performance of women parliamentariansof the 12th National Assembly

Ms Sherry Rehman, Federal Minister for Information, addressing at the launchingceremony of the report on Performance of Women Parliamentarians at Islamabad.

Ms Shabina Ayaz presenting the reportto Ms Sitara Ayaz, Provincial Ministerfor Social Welfare, at Peshawar.

Aurat Foundation, in collaboration with DAMAAN Development Organizationand SUNGI Development Foundation, organized a seminar and travel exhibitionon 'Gender and Water Insights, Innovations and Transformation - the Case ofPakistan', in Islamabad on 13th March 2009. Ms Zil-e-Huma, MNA andParliamentary Secretary Ministry of Women Development participated as ChiefGuest. Among various strategies of highlighting the gender and water relation,Travelling Exhibition (TE) is a new concept which has been on show in LatinAmerica for the past 1.5 years, as well as in South Africa and now embarking onSouth Asian. In South Asian, the travel exhibition on gender and water has beenon display in sixcountries, namelyBangladesh, Bhutan,India, Nepal, Pakistanand Sri Lanka. Dr Zil-e-Huma agreed thatthere is a need toincorporate the gen-der and water as sepa-rate segment in theNational Policy onW o m e n ' sDevelopment. Shesaid that she wouldtake up the issue inthe parliament andexpected that her mencolleagues in theNational Assembly would support the cause of gender and water justice. Someparticipants pointed out that Radio Pakistan, in its programme for farmers, usesthe terms 'kashtkar bhaio' (cultivator brothers) which sends the message as if thecultivation or farming is only a men's business. It was agreed that the participat-ing organizations would write letters to Radio Pakistan to sensitize its broadcast-er / announcers to address 'kashtkar behno aur bhaio' (the cultivators brothers andsisters). Mr Naeem Mirza, Ms Farhana Wagha, Mr Mohsin Baber and Mr WasimWagha also spoke on the occasion.

Gender and Water Insights -the Case of Pakistan

Wasim Wagha explaning features of the exhibition to DrZil-e-Huma, MNA and Parliamentary Secretary MoWD

The participants of a two-day training workshop on 'Women Participation inPolitical Process', organised by Aurat Foundation, in collaboration with The AsiaFoundation in Karachi on 13 January 2009.

Karachi: In support of lawyers' move-ment, Aurat in collaboration with civilsociety organizations gathered at HighCourt in small groups to avoid the vio-lation of Section 144. Mr Rasheed ARizvi, president of the Sindh HighCourt Bar Association, and eminentlawyer Mr Munir A Malik addressedthe lawyers, civil society members andpolitical workers that the struggle

would succeed and would continue tillthe re-instatement of Chief JusticeIftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry (MrChaudhry was re-instated as ChiefJustice of Pakistan on 16 March 2009).During the protest demonstration,Aurat's team including Ms AnisHaroon, the Resident Director, Karachi,were dragged and taken to the policestation. During the long march, LWP-WE coordinator Ms Rubina Brohi,along with the LWG member Ms NoorNaz Agha Advocate, also had a meetingwith the Chief Justice of PakistanIftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry to dis-cuss the lawyers movement.

Long March for Justice

Ms Rubina Irfan, Ministers for Law &Parliamentary Affairs, Balochistan, chairing thereport launch at Quetta.

Ms Yasmeen Rehman, MsBeelum Hasnain, Justice (R)Nasira Iqbal and Ms MehnazRafi at the Lahore ceremony.

On 20 March 2009, Minister for Lawand Parliamentary Affairs, BalochistanAssembly Ms Rubina Irfan tabled aresolution on the rights of Home-basedWomen Workers (HBWs), whereas MsGhazala Gola, Minister for WomenDevelopment and Ms RoqayyaHashmi seconded it. After discussion,the House passed the resolution unani-mously.

The resolution asked the provincialgovernment that it should approachethefederal government with the informa-tion about the present situation ofwomen workers. The great numbers of

home Based workers are working intheir houses seeking work from thecontractors to earn their livelihood;they do not have opportunity to get jobsin factories. Further the contractorsengage them with petty works or theythemselves work in their houses forearning income. The resolution said:�If we desire to save Pakistan from thisterrible situation, and want to developit in real means, then we must have toinclude and consider all labor workersand especially women workers inLabour Laws and funds should be allo-cated for their development in order toprotect them under Labour Laws."

Balochistan�s Resolution on rights of HBWs