Just couple of days ago I received a picture from Pakistan of a newly born baby in the garbage, in black bin bag and title of the picture was “Because I am Girl”. It made me very upset and it wasn’t the first time and it will not be the last. Girls are considered to be liabilities for two reasons; Dowry and second main reason is to supervise her all the time. Dowry is Goods or money that girl’s family give to her which she takes to next house. Concept of dowry was to help with the marriage and starting new life but it has taken entirely new form due to our greed. Now a day dowries are so extravagant that it often puts girl’s family in debt . Dowry is one of many reasons which deprived girl from her basic right of education. Since family has to save for the dowry so they don’t spend on girl education. So they remain in home and are neglected most of the times.
I belonged to a very conservative society. Where sons are strength and daughters are weaknesses. Where gender discrimination is still a big issue. Where there is celebration on the birth of a boy and mourning on the birth of a girl. In my country boy bring security to family, Hope of better future, as they think he will grow up get a nice job and help the family. And above of all boys are the bearer of family names . Where as girl is considered to be burden, her place is in the house all the time.
We Pakistani women live in a society which is based on strict self made religious, family, and tribal customs that forces us to live in submission and in complete fear. Women in Pakistan are subjected to discrimination and violence on daily basis due to our cultural and self made religious norms. Our majority of religious leaders who are mostly uneducated, preaches views which indicate that women are men’s property as a result of which women are physically, mentally and emotionally suppressed. Traditional Pakistani values depicts that women are considered to be property of male family members. Women are owned by their father and brother before marriage and after marriage husband and his family takes over. It’s obvious when men believes that women are just an object or property, they are feel that they can do whatever they want to, which results in increased number of domestic violence.
In majority families in Pakistan boys are allowed to do anything, They are entitle to freedom ,rules are different and linear for them where as for girls they are not entitle of any freedom, rules are different and strict for girls. For example in many houses girls don’t pick up the telephone. Girls are not allowed to go out. Girls are not allowed to marry by their choice. Our culture is to get married girl as soon as possible. In few families girls are engaged as soon as they are born. Girl reputation is so delicate she is not suppose to be seen talking to any opposite gender as it shows loose character and it will ruin her prospect of getting married.
According to a survey conducted by the Thomson
Reuters Foundation, Pakistan is the world’s third-most dangerous country for
women, after Afghanistan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
