Aurat March
The Aurat March is an annual political demonstration organized in various cities of Pakistan including Lahore, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Karachi and Islamabad to observe International Women's Day. The first Aurat March was held on 8 March 2018 in Karachi. In 2019, it was organised in Lahore and Karachi by a women's collective called Hum Auratein, and in other parts of the country, including Islamabad, Hyderabad, Quetta, Mardan, and Faislabad, by Women democratic front, Women Action Forum, and others. The march was endorsed by the Lady Health Workers Association, and included representatives from multiple women's-rights organizations. The march called for more accountability for violence against women, and to support for women who experience violence and harassment at the hands of security forces, in public spaces, at home, and at the workplace. Reports suggest that more and more women rushed to join the march until the crowd was became scattered. Women carried posters bearing phrases such as 'Ghar ka Kaam, Sab ka Kaam', and 'Women are humans, not honour' became a rallying cry.
Women dressed in T-shirts that read "my favorite season is the fall " and "girls just want fun-damental human rights". Some wore masks of dead social media celebrity Qandeel Baloch and one group held ‘patriarchy’s janaza’ on their shoulders. Participants were from all walks of life and included many eminent people. Social media and YouTube video messages expressed support for those who were marching. Nimra Afzal claimed in her article, that Aurat March is a women's empowerment movement which is not restricted to just peace rallies, raising awareness placards or sloganeering for women's equality in a patriarchal society. The movement is just not man-hating or elitist but a movement that asks for public spaces, with hashtags like #JaggaDein.
Context
Against backdrop of deep rooted socio-religio-political patriarchal structures of Pakistan's society and state, women in Pakistan face many types of social ills, systemic discrimination depriving fundamental rights amounting to sexual apartheid including but not limited to forced & early childhood marriage, lack of enough formal public education opportunities, lack of freedom and lack of access to use two wheeler, lack of free & safe access to public spaces, domestic violence, sexual harassment & sexual violence at homes, at public transport & at work places plus wage gap, over powering of their sexual freedom & right of choice and equality under religious garb and many serious crimes like appropriation of rights & abuse for revenge including but not limited to acid attacks, honor killings without being addressed, regularly silenced by society, frequently overlooked by state; With guidance of feminist movement, new generation of women's collective started challenging status quo with help of social media in parallel to #MeToo movement in an effort to take equal rights movement to ordinary women they started organizing annual Aurat March on international women's day.In an article published on 14 February 2016 in Forbes, journalist Sonya Rehman wrote, "while the world celebrates Valentine's Day, a number of Pakistani women succumb to honor killings by their very own kin". An honour killing is the homicide of a member of a family or social group by other members, due to the belief the victim has brought dishonour upon the family or community. The death of the victim is viewed as a way to restore the reputation and honour of the family. Pakistan has world's highest prevalence of honor killings. Pakistan, where 60 percent of the population is below age 30 and half are under 18, are influenced more by global trends than traditions. Valentine's Day serves annually as a flash point of the culture war in Pakistan. Diaa Hadid says that it is a cause célèbre for religious hard-liners, affording conservatives a chance assert themselves as the caretakers of Islamic identity. While many Pakistanis celebrate the Valentine's Day's festivities, Pakistan has officially banned Valentine's Day, and the Islamist orthodoxy has taken steps to obstruct celebrations, Women's freedom is scorned by conservatives and extremist institutions in Pakistani society. The focus is not simply to restrict women's free expression on a particular day, but rather to subjugate women to strengthen male dominance through their seclusion from public life. The complex rules of purdah which reinforce chastity and family honor, have led to socio-cultural disparities, in every aspect of women's lives. Lacking an understanding of their civil, legal, and political rights, women's opportunities for participation in society are limited and they are left vulnerable to exploitation, oppression, and abusive control by others without adequate recourse. Technically, love is not haram in Islam, but gender segregation and gender mixing prohibitions stifle the freedom of Muslim women. Access to public spaces for women is severely constrained and conservative, rigid interpretations of Islam create limits on women's behavior. In the conservative view, women are not allowed to show their faces, not allowed to talk to unrelated men unless the communication is essential, and are unable to choose their own life partner, as that is a decision made by the head of the family.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan lists 460 cases of reported honour killings in 2017, with 194 males and 376 females as victims. Of these killings, 253 were sparked by disapproval of illicit relations and 73 by disapproval of marriage choice. Additionally, out of the known suspect relationship with victims, over 93% were family relationships. Although these are most likely only a sample of the actual honour killings that were completed during 2017, it still gives a glimpse into characteristics of honour killings in Pakistan. Sources disagree as to the exact number by year, but according to Human Rights Watch, NGOs/INGOs in the area estimate that around 1000 honour killings are carried out each year in Pakistan.
With such horrific background of fundamental human right violations of women of Pakistan, millennial young adults started demanding access to public spaces with movements like Girls at Dhabas which gained significant traction from women across South Asia since 2015. and so also new generation of feminist thought started breaking the silence around issues like sexual autonomy and agency as soon as they did get opportunity to express through some of placards of Aurat March, says Zoya Rehman. That is how the March which was primarily intended for gender equity in multiple range of issues also came to explore construction of narratives relating to socio religio political exploitation of women sexuality in Pakistan and challenge posed to sexual injustices through Aurat March by new generation feminist became part of Pakistan's national debate.
Manifesto
Manifesto demands economic justice, including implementation of labour rights, the Sexual Harassment Against Women in the Workplace Act 2010, recognition of women's input to the ‘care economy’ as unpaid labour, and provision of maternity leaves and day care centres to ensure women's inclusion in the labour force. Among other things, it also demands access to safe drinking water and air, protection of animals and wildlife, recognition of women's participation in production of food and cash crops, access to a fair justice system, inclusion of women with disabilities as well as the transgender community, reproductive justice, access to public spaces inclusion in educational institutions, rights of religious minorities, promotion of an anti-war agenda, end to police brutality and enforced disappearances.Themes
According to Zuneera Shah, while etymology of word 'Aurat' indicates being misogynistic Since Western supremacy over feminist movements feeds into a distaste towards feminism in countries such as Pakistan. Localization of the struggle for women's rights has importance among South Asian activists and feminists the way to relate the feminist movement. Shah says With the Aurat March, terms such as 'pidar shahi' and 'aurat march' are being circulated and created.Theme for 2018 march was 'Equality’ whereas theme for 2019 march is 'Sisterhood and Solidarity'. Nighat Dad explains in her article that "The agenda of this march was to demand resources and dignity for women, for transgender community, for religious minorities and for those on the economic margins but more importantly to acknowledge that women’s emancipation is inherently linked with the improvement of all mistreated groups and minorities.As per Leena Ghani theme for 2020 Aurat March is Khudmukhtari and violence, both sexual and economic.
Women's March 2019
Posters, Slogans and Media Debates
The hundreds of posters featured at women's day march across Pakistan highlighted fundamental rights issues such as access to education and employment. Mera Jism Meri Marzi became a main and most talked slogan of Aurat March with a lot of debates, discussions in country over the years. This led to slogans like 'Why are you afraid of my self determination', 'A woman's right to autonomy on her own bodyIn March 2019, some posters also appeared saying "Man of quality will never be afraid of equality, "Jab tak aurat tang rahay gi, jang rahay gi, jang rahay gi", and "Keep your dick pics to yourself". Another had a drawing of a vagina and two ovaries and the words: "Grow a pair!" Another poster said, "If you like the headscarf so much, tie it around your eyes", one depicting a girl sitting with her legs spread out, Lo Beth Gayi Sahi Se or the irreverent Akeli Awara Azaad "Nazar teri gandi aur purdah mein keroun" "Aaj waqai maa behn ek ho rahi hai" depicts all women coming together without differences. One poster read that maybe we haven't seen any woman as independent as a 'tawaaif', so this is the reason we consider every independent woman a 'tawaaif', another "My shirt is not short, it's your mindset that is narrow", and posters like "these are my streets too" claimed public spaces.
Ailia Zehra deconstructs a poster in her article that says "If Cynthia does it, she’s applauded. If I do it, I’m the villain". For those who do not know, Cynthia Ritchie is an American social media influencer facilitated by Pakistan establishment's whitewash for state propaganda. This woman rode a bicycle somewhere in Pakistan and tweeted her picture in a bid to bring down local feminists by implying that they lie when they say women cannot freely access public spaces. This placard admirably summarizes what is wrong with an American woman lecturing Pakistani women on freedom and mobility. Ailia Zehra regrets double standards saying Yes, Pakistani men are fine with women riding bicycles on the roads – as long as the women are white.
Nighat Dad who organized the women's march in Lahore, said people were angry over the posters because most Pakistanis, especially men were not yet ready to allow them free choice. As per Nighat Dad, restricted topics like women's rights to their own bodies, their sexuality, are being discussed for the first time was an immense success of the march. Dad complained, "Online harassments has gone too far in terms of death and rape threats to the organizers and also to the marchers."
Many grumbled that the marchers were "vulgar" opportunists who had transgressed on conservative values in the Muslim-majority country and "undermined" a legitimate fight for rights with a liberal, anti-Islamic agenda. Feminist writer Sadia Khatri exposes this built up of narrative in her article, "Should feminists claim Aurat March's Vulgar Posters? Ye s absolutely." Khatri says people have been posting photographs showing the posters that didn't get as much air-time, posters addressing the range of 'important' causes that news anchors have accused the March of ignoring, like education, inheritance and marital rights. By bringing up the manifesto to defend the posters, for instance, Pakistan Feminists isolated themselves from the supposedly provocative posters, and in fact confirm their 'vulgarity'. It implies that Pakistani feminists agree that feminism should operate within the bounds of 'respectability'. According to her accepting narratives prescribing boundaries of respectability are traps that needs to be avoided by feminists and not to be allowed to be cemented in any social discourse. Feminism with conditions is no feminism. It maintains the division between what is ‘acceptable’ and what is 'immodest', what is 'public' and 'private', allowed and not. It pits the two against each other, rewarding the feminists who rally for legal rights and work-life balance and slut-shaming those who reclaim gendered slurs and carry the posters they did at the March. She questions whether feminism to allow discriminate and gatekeeping, and this gatekeeping is patriarchy's way of bolstering the binary of purpose vs pleasure, where the feminism of purpose is 'good' feminism, and the feminism of pleasure is 'bad' feminism, 'immoral' and 'frivolous'. She explains as feminists use the language of real and serious, end up creating a distinction between 'actual' issues and 'pretended' ones and rush to clarify that feminists have included 'important' causes in our demands, end up suggesting that other causes are unimportant.
In an article "Womansplaining the Aurat March: Dear men, here’s why Pakistan’s women are asserting their rights" writer Rimmel Mohydin handles misogynist objections to the Women's march slogans in a different way. Rimmel Mohydin suggests those men to "smile, you'll look prettier that way." Ms. Mohydin humorously questions Women can be the subject of many sexist jokes, but if the women crack a joke on what ground that wit is considered offensive? She says Every wisecrack, every sassy one-liner, every appealing slogan masked years and years of invisible pain that women have suffered. A Woman can tell men through their placards that she won't warm his bed if he doesn't warm his food, but what really gets misogynist mind hot and troubled is that she, a woman, could laugh at his expense.
On an effort of misogynist parliamentarian's effort or agenda finding conspiracy theory behind women's march Ms. Mohydin sarcastically quips, "It is difficult to know where to place your feet when you find that the backs that you have been walking on are now standing up. That's why the author's compassion is with misogynist politicians". Referring poster slogan "Keep your dick pics to yourself." Ms. Mohydin says What seems to have affronted the male collective the most is the shattering of a fantasy world where women enjoy being subjected to unrequested pictures of male genitals. Poster slogan has hit them hard. It has upset them. And now, they are angry and trying to speak to us in a language that they think we'll understand. They tell us this is not feminism but fail to explain how. They tell us it's about sex, and as 'respectful' women, how dare we utter of it. "When women make demands about their personal lives, their bodies, their sexuality, that's when people feel threatened," Dad said. “So it’s OK to ask the government for the right to education but you can't say you are happily divorced because the breakdown of a matrimony is a shameful thing, a woman’s failure, and you can’t say 'don't send me dick pics' because so-called decent women don't use expressions like dick.” Nobody seems to say anything to the sender, but the reluctant receiver is apparently the problem. Either she likes it or she doesn't. So as usual, women cannot win Ms. Mohydin says. Remaining on the same issue Ms. Mohydin strongly questions "Are they unsettled at the loss of this opportunity to titillate women with their phallus? Why are they all shriveling up? Have protesting women given them performance anxiety or what.
Continuing her strong denunciation Ms. Mohydin says, "The placards were a mirror and instead of taking this moment as an opportunity to introspect, they have decided to beat their chest instead. Not their slain bodies, not their acid-burnt faces, not their immobility, not their lack of representation, not the dearth of affordable housing, not the moral policing their choices and bodies are subjected to, not the denial of female education, not the constant threat of sexual harassment and onslaught, not the social structures that cut women’s potential in half, not the exploitation, not the objectification, not the fact that for many, women are still not human. It seems to me that for them, the problem is women themselves, Ms. Mohydin rues.
Shaan Shahid, arguably Pakistan’s well-known film star, wrote on Twitter he thought the posters did not "represent our culture, our values". He was criticized in return for his films that blatantly sexualize women and reduce their existence to a mere prop to exert the ‘masculinity’ of his character. He defends his position as freedom of expression, but when women call out this misogynistic culture with his hypocrisy he looks down freedom of expression by women.
Veena Malik, a popular actor who caused an uproar in 2012 when she appeared with scantily dressed on the cover of an Indian men's magazine, posted that the march had "brought humiliation to women of Pakistan". Twitter users were prompt to remind Veena that "the same women you are calling out for 'humiliating' Pakistani femininities were standing by you as mullahs imposed fatwas on you."
Kishwar Naheed, a poet best cherished for a poem called "Us sinful women", was seen in a video saying: "The next time you make such slogans, remember your culture, your traditions." Sadia Khatri a feminist writer, replies back through her column in Dawn saying someone should remind Naheed, that it is specifically culture and tradition; that keeps the frivolous and the silly relegating women to private spaces where women court the greatest risks, where the threat of assault is most prevalent, and where, when women are harmed, the walls around womanhood remind women to stay silent, like ‘good’, ‘honourable’ women those culture and tradition are what upturned when thousands of women come out into the streets, dancing and laughing with exhilaration.
According to Guardian journalist Mehreen Zahra-Malik, some of the profanity-filled tirades were frightening. A film student posted screenshots of a group of boys sexually harassing her 16-year-old younger sister online and threatening her with rape for posting on Instagram in support of the march. Pakistan is a conservative society, activists sporting simple posters like "You can’t say you are happily divorced' also received messages filled with sexual innuendo and threats of sexual violence. Women participating in Aurat March had received threats of physical and sexual violence from social media users after posting photographs of the posters. In Pakistan, the threats of violence are not hollow. According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, roughly 500 women are killed each year by family members who believe their honour has been damaged.
On 20 March 2019, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly held a protest in the reaction of the Aurat March. Rehana Ismail of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal, presented the resolution, saying that women participating in the march were holding "obscene" placards and raising slogans. The resolution said that the demands made at the march about women empowerment were "un-Islamic and shameful".
One popular poster called for men to warm their own food; another asked them to find their own socks. And one read, "I'll warm your food but you warm your own bed." As per Nida Kirmani, a feminist sociologist at the Lahore University of Management Sciences such posters got the most vitriolic responses because those challenged the intimate relations of power within the household. In a NYTimes article Mohammed Hanif says the men in Pakistan who profess to guard women, in real sense only guard for their own selfish interests. Hanif says They don't want to look for their own socks, and they don't want to control that manly urge to take selfies of their private parts and send them to random women.Hanif questions how it is okay asking young woman to stop to holding up a placard and how it can be seen as a threat to the national moral order? As per Sabahat Zakariya, a newspaper editor these kinds of slogans have unleashed a wave of masculine anxiety.
Social media hashtag
One of the hashtag at 2018 rally was #KhaanaKhudGaramKarLo. Whereas in 2019 it transformed to 'Ghar ka Kam, Sab ka Kam' slogan'2019 March '#WhyIMarch' became the social media hashtag and slogan for the event, with many celebrities, human rights activists, and locals sharing their stories of why they marched #HumAurtein #auratmarch #AuratMarch2019 #JaggaDein.
Ahead of Aurat March 2020 hashtags like #AuratMarch2020 and #MeraJismMeriMarzi are run on various platforms.
Women's March 2020
Aurat march was held in Karachi, Hyderabad, Lahore and Quetta whereas Aurat Azadi March was held in Islamabad, Sukkur and Multan.Aurat March Lahore
Artist Shehzil Malik started collecting poster design submissions for Aurat March of 8 March 2020. Participants of the March created a Mural of posters submitted by Volunteers in Hussain Chowk of Lahore which was ransacked within hours in a hate crime attack. Janita Tahir says participants in the March are being threatened by orthodox men and need to be taken seriously before any untoward incidence could take place and government need to do needful for protection of participating women.A petition was filed in the Lahore High Court by the Judicial Activism Council Chairman to stop Aurat March 2020, calling it "against the very norms of Islam". This petition was rejected by the Lahore High Court Chief Justice who underscored that freedom of expression could not be banned.
In Lahore, marchers gathered outside the Press Club and passed through Egerton Road to culminate outside Aiwan-e-Iqbal. Participants were holding a plethora of placards. Despite the social media storm before the march, men were present in large numbers in support of the Aurat March. The participants delivered speeches and held placards and banners displaying thought-provoking slogans to raise the pressing issues of gender-based violence including sexual harassment and assault in the workplace, deep-rooted misogyny and the patriarchal mindset prevalent in the society. A resolution was submitted in Punjab Assembly by Kanwal Liaquat, demanding an end to gender discrimination. The resolution condemned under-age marriages and demanded that women be granted legal, social and economic protection.
Aurat Azadi March Islamabad
A petition was also filed in the Islamabad High Court to stop Aurat Azadi March 2020 which was rejected by Chief justice Athar Minallah. On March 3, extremist mob vandalised, mural of two women painted by organizers of Aurat Azadi March Islamabad. The organizers of march were given the no-objection certificate after many days of negotiations and a range of unnecessarily strict conditions were applied in NOC. On March 8, 2020, the Aurat March procession in Pakistan's capital Islamabad was attacked by religious extremists who were holding a counter-march to celebrate Haya or modesty. It was attended by women from the Jamaat-e-Islami, JUI-F, Lal Masjid, and female students of different seminaries including Jamiat Hafsa, staged as Haya March. Bricks, stones, shoes and sticks were hurled at the peaceful marchers on the Aurat March side, leaving several people injured. Earlier even before the March, a van carrying newly-printed banners of Aurat March was stopped and driver beaten. During the March The BBC correspondent Irfana Yasser and her children were assaulted with chilli powder which temporarily blinded them. At least one media camera person hospitalized. Subsequently, the attack was stopped by the police authorities that were present, and the March continued forward despite the opposition. An FIR was registered against the men who attacked the march participants.Aurat Azadi March Quetta
2020 Aurat Azadi March in Quetta Balochistan began from and returned to the Quetta press club, was organized by the Women's Alliance.Along with rest of social discrimination issues, end of previous year i.e. 2019 was noted with exposing of security establishment and University administration officials of Balochistan University had secretly installed cameras in washrooms and student meeting areas and blackmailing students for years together.Women's Day Songs
As preparation of upcoming 8 March 2020 Aurat March, released and subsequently performed at the march a song 'tum ho rapist' an Urdu version of the feminist anthem 'Un Violador en Tu Camino' — or 'A Rapist in Your Path'. While 'A Rapist in Your Path' is based on Argentinian anthropologist Rita Segato's work and created by Valparaiso feminist collective, Las Tesis, Chile; Urdu version has been localized with relevant issues of Pakistan by mentioning feudalism as part of the Pakistani patriarchy Aurat March also released & sung one more anthem song "Hum Inquilab Hain" Song "Hum Inquilab Hain" is written by Ismat Shahjahan, composed by Ammar Rashid song is sung in chorus by Areej Hussain, Ammar Rashid, Huda Bhurgri, Ismat Shahjahan, Ayesha Khan, and Shahzadi Hussain. A Canadian-Pakistani singer Sophia Jamil too released her song 'Mera Jism Meri Marzi' on YouTube.Propaganda against women march
As International Women's Day came nearer the hard line conservatives in Pakistan increasingly got impatient and intolerant, and took to mainstream media and online social media alleging Pakistani feminists of encouraging unIslamic vulgarity by raising slogans that hinted that a woman had the right to do as she pleased. Conservatives further threatened participants when feminists clarified that they would rightfully own up and support pro-rights, pro-choice slogan Mera Jism Meri Marzi. Aurat March participants insisted that there is nothing vulgar in asking their rights; besides it is societal duplicity in Pakistan that besides open display of sexual harassment of women, adverts of 'Mardana Kamzori' are openly displayed, sexualized abusive linguistic commonly used, online search histories of many men would show wide porn consumption, word 'Aurat' itself originally talks of women body in wide use; but when it comes to better awareness and women's rights their slogans are thought to be inappropriate.As pro-Aurat March hashtags trended on Twitter, including that of Mera Jism Meri Marzi, cultural and intellectual clashes happened in mainstream media. Online social media eventually did show off-line impact. In an analysis of opposing Twitter trends by Rizvan Saeed it emerged that #WeRejectMeraJismMeriMarzi and #HayaMarch were most likely organic few other hashtags which were trended on Twitter like #AmirLiaqat_Laanti #ایکسپائر_کھسرے
In April 2019, Jawad Naqvi a cleric, termed Aurat March Organisers ‘Most Evil Of All Women’.
In the run up to 2020 march, polity in Pakistan started drawing subtle political lines either favoring or distancing from the march in various degrees. Ultra-conservatives claimed Islam is already the most feminist religion and has secured all the rights to women, so they need not have any more demands, but need to go back and adopt more of the modest culture expected of Muslim women. These people arranged counter 'Haya' marches to stop Aurat March with the slogan "Our bodies, Allah's choice". Erstwhile Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's Muslim league party, while it did not oppose Aurat March openly, cautioned marchers not to cross Islamic cultural markers. Contemporary Prime Minister Imran Khan's government, ruled by his Pakistan Tekreek-i-Insaf while formally supporting march connected religio-cultural appropriateness of slogans of the march with national honor. Subsequently, after the Aurat March took place, Prime Minister Imran Khan expressed criticism of the lack of uniform education which would have educated marchers better. The left-of-center Pakistan Peoples Party was more welcoming of Aurat March. Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar, the Senator representing PPP, criticized Prime Minister Imran Khan and his party to be favoring ultra-conservative and PML-N and PTI positions as an undeclared anti-women alliance. PPP were replied back opponents by pointing out lacuna on their side. Janita Tahir noted that participants of Aurat March are questioning Imran Khan while he speaks so much for human rights for minorities world over, is he doing enough for human rights of half the population of Pakistan which finds itself in weaker position? Farzana Rasheed further asks in her article that why Pakistan can't be Islamic republic & free at the same time? She further questions contradictions of Imran Khan & Pakistan's conservative polity that instigates and condones extremist violence same time claiming to be democratic and peaceful and that they do not support violence but understand sentiment behind it, as usual victim blaming non violent women's protest for the violence committed on them.
Posters & slogans 2020
The 8 March 2020's slogans also included slogans like, "Saying Mashallah does not make your harassment halal", "Domestic violence kills more than corona", "I march so one day my daughters won't have to", "IMAGINE Not Loving The Women in your Life Enough To Advocate For Their Rights"Supportive gents did hold placards like, "I am surrounded by the opposite gender and I feel safe. 'I want same for them'", "Proud husband of a feminist, proud father of a feminist, proud feminist", "I will be a proud 'jorru ka ghulam"