Government lacking will
PML-N won precious points from liberal, progressive circles – a constituency it has not traditionally bothered much about – when the Punjab government came forward with the Women Protection Bill. But then the wind clearly got knocked out of its sails once the conservative, far right lobby – a constituency it has cared deeply about traditionally – lobbied against it. Now, despite a series of horrible crimes against women – the so called honour crimes – the government has been silent. There seems little realisation, also, that by keeping silent over the matter the government is actually helping the conservative bloc.
Most social circles, far beyond the traditional clergy, were outraged when Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy won her second Oscar not too long ago. They were upset that she chose to highlight one of Pakistan’s weaknesses on the world stage, instead of its many fine points. The charge would have been mildly valid if there were a visible effort – on the part of the government as well as civil society – to rid the country of honour crimes and violence against women once and for all. Yet we are a country fast regressing when it comes to most social issues; and women’s rights, of course, stand out.
It’s not just that our less liberal countrymen want women to merely take a backseat to men. It is, rather, that they ultimately wish to shun women out of all spheres of public life. And it is worse that they are allowed to attach religion to their regressive ideals. In such times, especially considering the moral and intellectual collapse our society is facing, it is even more important for the government to take a strong stand. But for that the ruling party would be required to settle sensitive issues strongly. And that, unfortunately, has never been the PML-N’s strong point.
