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11. The Socio-political Construction of 'Honor' in the Patriarchal Society of Pakistan

Author:
Farwa Qazalbash, Muhammad Islam, and Irshad Ullah
Publication Date:
07-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
South Asian Studies
Institution:
Department of Political Science, University of the Punjab
Abstract:
This study aims to analyze how the notion of „honor‟ is usually constructed in Pakistani society. Using the script of an Oscar-winning documentary by Sharemeen Obaid Chinoy, A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness, the researchers have investigated how various socio-political norms, linguistic tools, and strategies have been used to construct the issue of honor killing in a typical Pakistani patriarchal society. A set of tools offered by Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) practitioners (e.g. Fairclough, 1992, Van Dijk, 2006, Gee, 2011 and Reisigl and Wodak, 2000) helped the researchers to find that the concept of „honor‟, as social actors of the documentary view it, does not seem to be rooted in moral or religious codes rather it is a metaphor for political and social approval. Interestingly, only women are objectified as the carriers of this concept. They are conceived as the agents of disrespect or the violators of „honor‟ if an untoward incident happens. These attitudes clearly comment on the political power struggle between genders, which need in-depth investigations in Pakistani society. The analytical framework of this study may be used to analyze media discourse and discriminatory socio-political norms/attitudes in South Asian societies.
Topic:
Women, Media, Gender Based Violence, and Violence
Political Geography:
Pakistan, South Asia, and Punjab

12. Representation of Women in Postcolonial Literature in Pakistan

Author:
Rukhsana Yasmeen and Muhammad Iqbal Chawla
Publication Date:
07-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
South Asian Studies
Institution:
Department of Political Science, University of the Punjab
Abstract:
This article attempts to explores, investigate and analyzes the postcolonial Urdu writings on the Pakistani women‟s participation in the socio-economic, religious and political arena. Urdu literature is spread all over the subcontinent and there are no borders in literature that can split it into two. This article would like to discuss literature mainly produced by Pakistani writers. However, while arguing that most literature has been written from a patriarchal viewpoint throughout the history, two main themes dominated the postcolonial literature firstly, role of women in the patriarchal society and other, the trauma of migration and its impact on the Muslim women in Pakistan. Islamic influence enforced purdah on Muslim women and purdahless women were regarded as infidel and shameless in literature. Nineteenth century Muslim writers advocated modern education for women not with the idea of emancipation but with a view to creating the modern wife, sister and mother. In this context, we can see that Allama Rashid-ulKhairi's modernist writings which were apparently sympathetic to women, were in fact meant to strengthen existing gender arrangements. The Progressive Writers‟ Movement brought about some change in the representation of women and the family, for example, Sajjad Haider Yaldram, Azeem Baig Chughtai and Ismat Chughtai depicted the negative side of the patriarchal society in which women were being exploited. The horror and trauma of partition enabled writers like Saadat Hasan Manto to highlight contradictions within the apparently monolithic institution of the family. Aziz Ahmad and Qurat-ul-Ain Haider also poignantly painted the picture of disintegrated lives and the anguish of exile. This article also demonstrates that male domination is consolidated through binary constructions of good women and bad women in society. This has been a continuation of nineteenth century notions of Muslim womanhood most clearly portrayed in Deputy Nazeer Ahmad's novel Mirat-ul-Uroos. The article will encompass the representation of women in Urdu literature during post-independence Pakistan. The influence of patriarchal mindset of the society on literature will also be discussed
Topic:
Post Colonialism, Arts, Women, Representation, and Literature
Political Geography:
Pakistan, South Asia, and Punjab

13. The Helmand Food Zone: The Illusion of Success

Author:
David Mansfield
Publication Date:
12-2019
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit (AREU)
Abstract:
This study documents how the Helmand Food Zone was developed, its origins and architects, as well as the different actors involved in the implementation and the subsequent challenges of delivery. Initially presented as a drug control project, the Helmand Food Zone came to be accredited for supporting stabilisation and governance in the Helmand province between 2008 and 2012. Driven by political demands rather than evidence, the program became a flagship in Helmand, and lauded as a success, despite evidence to the contrary. The study builds on in-depth fieldwork and high-resolution satellite imagery collected before, during and after the implementation of the Helmand Food Zone, as well as interviews with some of the main protagonists in the donor community. In total, 4,122 household interviews took place with farmers over an 11-year period in either all or some of the 28 research sites in Helmand province, in areas both north and south of the Boghra canal. The latest body of fieldwork was conducted in spring 2018 and consisted of 310 interviews in the same research sites, supplemented with a further 52 interviews with women who resided in former desert areas.
Topic:
Food, Governance, Women, and Drugs
Political Geography:
Afghanistan and South Asia

14. Reasons and Victims of Honour Killing in Pakistan: An Analysis

Author:
Fozia Naseem, Asma Shakir Khawaja, and Ishtiaq Ahmad Choudhry
Publication Date:
07-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Political Studies
Institution:
Department of Political Science, University of the Punjab
Abstract:
Honour killing in Pakistan is a very critical issue which is being echoed throughout the world. Parallel to it are the governmental claims that this issue has been addressed, by enhancing the representation in the legislature assemblies and by the strict and hard laws in this regard. However, this problem is the deeply rooted in socio-economic and cultural values and traditions of the country. The supporters of such values are sitting in the lawmaking bodies and openly support such negative practices. They have kept the doors open in the legal and judicial system for the escape of the offenders. Overwhelming majority of the victims are women of the remote rural areas, while the offenders are, mainly, the husbands, fathers or brothers. The reasons of this cruel practice, as found in this study are related to the alleged extra marital relations of the women (which never proved) or exercise of the choice of marriage by the victims, and very rarely the disputes of the property. Majority of the crimes remained unregistered, hence no question of the trial or the punishment. Major hindrances in the improvement of lack of women education, poverty, poor implementation system of law, poor grip/writ of the government in the remote rural areas of the country.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Women, Marriage, and Honor Killing
Political Geography:
Pakistan and South Asia

15. Reasons and Victims of Honour Killing in Pakistan: An Analysis

Author:
Fozia Naseem, Asma Shakir Khawaja, and Ishtiaq Ahmad Choudhry
Publication Date:
07-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Political Studies
Institution:
Department of Political Science, University of the Punjab
Abstract:
Honour killing in Pakistan is a very critical issue which is being echoed throughout the world. Parallel to it are the governmental claims that this issue has been addressed, by enhancing the representation in the legislature assemblies and by the strict and hard laws in this regard. However, this problem is the deeply rooted in socio-economic and cultural values and traditions of the country. The supporters of such values are sitting in the lawmaking bodies and openly support such negative practices. They have kept the doors open in the legal and judicial system for the escape of the offenders. Overwhelming majority of the victims are women of the remote rural areas, while the offenders are, mainly, the husbands, fathers or brothers. The reasons of this cruel practice, as found in this study are related to the alleged extra marital relations of the women (which never proved) or exercise of the choice of marriage by the victims, and very rarely the disputes of the property. Majority of the crimes remained unregistered, hence no question of the trial or the punishment. Major hindrances in the improvement of lack of women education, poverty, poor implementation system of law, poor grip/writ of the government in the remote rural areas of the country.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Women, Marriage, and Honor Killing
Political Geography:
Pakistan and South Asia

16. Break the Silence: Pakistani Women Facing Violence

Author:
Rukhsana Iftikhar and Maqbool Ahmad Awan
Publication Date:
07-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Political Studies
Institution:
Department of Political Science, University of the Punjab
Abstract:
Women have always been treated as second grade citizen in Pakistan. Pakistan is considered the 3rd unsafe country for women to live. Pakistani women are facing problems in their private and public life. Violence is the most thriving issue for the women in Pakistan. The main reason of the wide spread violence is poverty and ignorance. Social structure is not supporting woman although gender ratio of population is more than half. This paper is an attempt to explore the causes and types of violence in Pakistan. It also deals with the effects of violence in society. State has introduced a number of legislations but the common woman in Pakistan is conscious about her rights. The state of Pakistan is not progressed without the help of other gender. State and women both have to take the task to eradicate the issue of violence.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Women, Gender Based Violence, and Violence
Political Geography:
Pakistan and South Asia

17. Female Domestic Workers of Lahore: A Neglected Community

Author:
Khalid Manzoor Butt and Arooj Khan
Publication Date:
01-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Political Studies
Institution:
Department of Political Science, University of the Punjab
Abstract:
In Pakistan, women are considered as a stigmatized community and beholden to different social and cultural norms. Though they are almost half of the population but it seems that they are restricted from having liberty, education, economic exposure and rights. As far as notion of working women is concerned, it is a general perception that in Pakistan, poverty stimulates poor women to work and support family otherwise Society does not accept the notion of working women. They are under male domination and very few women take part in economic activities. However, the women who work mostly work in informal sector which further exacerbate their problems. In urban areas like Lahore, domestic service sector is the major sector of employment for women. Due to toothless laws and lack of regulation of this work, these female workers confront numerous problems. This descriptive research will explore some crucial problems of domestic workers in Lahore; identify the underlying reasons that compel the women to join this sector.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Poverty, Labor Issues, Women, Exploitation, and Abuse
Political Geography:
Pakistan and South Asia

18. Gendered Discourse on Human Security: Women’s contribution towards Peace Building in South Asia

Author:
Ayra Indrias Patras
Publication Date:
12-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Political Studies
Institution:
Department of Political Science, University of the Punjab
Abstract:
The UN Nairobi Forward Looking Strategy defined peace as not only the absence of war, violence and hostilities; it means the enjoyment of economic welfare, social justice, human rights and fundamental freedom within the society (United Nations, 1986). South Asia is plagued with conflicts and contradictions in its political, social and economic spheres and falls short of employing democratic ways by engaging different stakeholders of the society to cultivate peace. History is evident to the fact that women have been placed at the margins and excluded from the peace building initiatives; however, women still find spaces either within or outside religious and state institutions and pursue peace actively. Women Peace Activists and Peace Organizations employ creative ways to get their voices heard and contribute towards positive measures in the peace building processes both in inter or intra States discords and disputes. Employing 5 in-depth interviews of Women Peace Activists and analyzing the academic literature, the paper deliberates and discusses the human security discourse from a gendered perspective and bring into light the contribution of women peace builders in South Asia and their strategies used for upholding democratic values in order to make peace a lived experience and reality.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Women, Peace, and Human Security
Political Geography:
South Asia

19. Local Networks for Peace: Lessons from Community-Led Peacebuilding

Author:
Lesley Connolly, Laura Powers, Senzwesihle Ngubane, Patrick Kanyangara, Kessy Ekomo-Soignet, Nicolas Chamat Matallana, Stephen Kirimi, Hasini Haputhanthri, Masana Ndinga-Kanga, and Webster Zambara
Publication Date:
09-2018
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
International Peace Institute
Abstract:
In recent years, there have been increasing calls to ensure local ownership of peacebuilding design and practice, to take local knowledge fully into account in designing peacebuilding programs and assessing conflicts, and to strive for the meaningful participation of local peacebuilding actors. In the search for new approaches to connect local-level initiatives to international programs and to move local knowledge from the bottom up, community-led peacebuilding networks may have a key role to play. This volume includes case studies of community-led peacebuilding networks in Burundi, the Central African Republic, Colombia, Kenya, Liberia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, and Zimbabwe to identify approaches for more inclusive and integrated peacebuilding. These case studies, written by local peacebuilders working in each of the countries, underscore the organizational, political, and financial advantages and risks to operating as part of a broader network. The aim of this report is to enhance understanding among international peacebuilding practitioners and policymakers of peacebuilding network structures, including their comparative advantages and challenges. In doing so, it aims to guide efforts not only to incorporate local knowledge and expertise into international initiatives but also to identify how these efforts can support and magnify local efforts. By better understanding how local peacebuilding networks operate in their communities, the international community can begin to better understand the challenges local organizations face, how to support and strengthen peacebuilding work on the ground, and how such initiatives contribute to building and sustaining peace.
Topic:
Civil Society, Women, Youth, Networks, Peace, and Community
Political Geography:
Kenya, Africa, South Asia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Colombia, Liberia, Zimbabwe, Burundi, and Central African Republic

20. Women & Violence in Pakistan: Designing Institutions for Women’s Protection

Author:
Maryam Khan
Publication Date:
05-2018
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Abstract:
The most recent study on reported incidents of gender-based violence (GBV) in Pakistan shows an upward trend of violent crime against women – with kidnapping, rape, murder, honor killings, domestic violence, and acid throwing as the most commonly reported. Conviction rates for these crimes remain dismally low, but within this grim backdrop lies a ray of hope. In the past decade, the government has enacted a quick succession of pro-women legislation despite strident political opposition from the religious right. Among other things, new laws provide women with rights and protections against workplace harassment, acid crime, and anti-women practices while strengthening the existing legal frameworks on gender crimes. The latest legislation comes from Punjab, the largest and best-resourced province in the country, but also one with a disproportionately high incidence of GBV. The 2016 Punjab Protection of Women Against Violence Act (PPWVA) protects women from all forms of violence, serving as a high point in the lengthy struggle to get GBV on Punjab’s political agenda.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Women, Violence, and Institutions
Political Geography:
Pakistan and South Asia