Following in the footsteps of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) and the Pakistan Difa Council (PDC), the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) held its all-women rally ‘Empowered Women, Stronger Pakistan’ on Sunday at the Bagh-e-Quaid, opposite the Quaid’s mausoleum. To all the parties that have previously arranged their public meetings at the Bagh-e-Quaid for showing the country the support they have in the city, MQM’s rally on Sunday was a strong response that said Karachi is not a city of any one party.
Most of the security arrangements for the women’s rally were made by MQM activists and City Wardens, whereas police and other law enforcers were also deployed in the vicinity. Around 50 stalls selling food, refreshments, tea, coffee, cosmetics, henna, mobile phone cards and other items were set up outside the venue, whereas the facility of 40 public toilets, including mobile toilets, was also provided to the participants of the gathering.
MQM’s Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ebad Khan surveyed the rally from a chopper, as two helicopters circled the venue, with cameras recording the entire event. Party workers claimed that there were 100,000 chairs at the venue, whereas independent sources said there were 40,000 chairs and a large number of women sat on the ground. It is pertinent to mention here that this was the first-ever meeting of the MQM for which chairs were arranged, as in all the party’s previous meetings, the participants sat on the ground. Almost all women and children, many of whom had arrived in the metropolitan from other districts of Sindh, carried MQM flags; however, two girls insisted on having the national flag in return for their vote.
Many women’s dresses, dupattas (long, multi-purpose scarves) or bands flaunted the colours of the MQM flag.
A group of women living in rehabilitation camps at the Superhighway and other parts of the metropolis were brought to the public meeting in buses.
“I don’t know whether they have arranged transport for taking us back or not,” said an evidently upset old woman.
The male and female members of the MQM’s student wing, the All Pakistan Muttahida Students Organisation, performed a tableau ‘Inkar-e-Sitam’ for the participants’ entertainment. Speeches started around 4:30 pm, with MQM Member National Assembly Bilquis Mukhtar saying that mullahs are using Islam to suppress the women in the Muslim society. Laila Parveen addressed the participants in Hindko, Asifa Tahira in Punjabi, Nadia Gabol in Balochi and Heer Soho in Sindhi, whereas Kishwar Zehra and MQM’s former naib nazim Nasreen Jalil also spoke on the occasion. MQM chief Altaf Hussain’s sister Saira was also asked to be on the stage, but she did not deliver any speech.
During her address, Jalil appealed the participants of the gathering to vote for the MQM in the general elections. She also presented some resolutions for women’s rights, adding that the BBC has declared MQM’s rally “the biggest in the world”. Similarly, MQM Rabita Committee Deputy Convener Dr Farooq Sattar told the participants that not only in Karachi or Pakistan, MQM’s rally is the biggest female rally in the world. It is pertinent to mention here that according to the MQM chief’s claim, the number of the participants of his party’s rally was over 1 million. He especially thanked the Bengali women who had attended his party’s rally, which is an interesting thing to consider, as during all previous public meetings at the Bagh-e-Quaid, every political and religious party has thanked the Bengalis for attending their gathering and making it a success. While the MQM succeeded in arranging a huge public meeting of women, the party’s volunteers failed to maintain pin-drop silence during the MQM chief’s address, which is characteristic of the party’s rallies.
Many bored women were stopped from leaving the venue during Hussain’s address several times by MQM volunteers until the women finally disregarded the party workers’ requests and left.
Among bajis, Bhai makes ladies go GA GA
