Punjab shows the way
The Punjab government is congratulated for its bold ‘Women on Wheels’ initiative. This program will more than just increase and improve their mobility. It will, rather, liberate them, making them not only more able and confident, but also eventually far more productive. That this move has come from a right-of-centre party with conservative leanings and a largely conventional vote bank makes it all the more admirable. And it is clearly well thought out. Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s 50 percent subsidy for 1,000 ‘pink scooters’ is meant specifically for working women and students, which shows a vision to concentrate on the future. This supply chain will no doubt find eager demand in the lower and middle working groups.
More importantly, such initiatives are crucial if the government is to ever weave together that crucial national narrative which will be needed to win hearts and minds and reverse decades of indoctrination when Zarb-e-Azb enters its more subtle phase. Women have, without a doubt, suffered the most – after the killed and maimed – in the years that the mullah lobby has enforced its imported Salafi’ism on what was once a largely liberal and tolerant society. Full points, therefore, to the Punjab government for its boldness.
It wouldn’t hurt, of course, that this will also win us some international ‘image’ points. For far too long we have been known as a safe haven for terrorists; a society that for some reason promotes the international jihadi onslaught on the progressive world. All that remains is to ensure that the implementation would be as ambitious as the vision. The CM would have to ensure that no foul play creeps into this program. Also, provisions will have to be made, unfortunately, to rule out harassment. Other provincial governments, especially those that posture more liberally, are advised to take a leaf out of Punjab’s book.
