Firdous opposes ‘provocative’ slogans of Aurat March
The Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting, Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan on Friday opposed the controversial slogans of Aurat march, saying these things do not match with the norms of our society.
Speaking at a function here, Firdous said that fighting for their rights was the right of every woman but the slogans which these women are using to get rights should not be used under the garb of snatching their rights.
“These slogans which do not exist neither in our system, society nor religion and a handful of women are bent upon ‘misleading’ our women, so we need to look into it,” she regretted. In the same breath, she continued that the women who want to fight for the rights of women, must not hesitate for holding such marches but they must keep the sanctity of the “veil and four walls” policy in their minds.
“If you are following the ‘chadar’ and ‘char diwari’ or veil and four walls policy, I will be the first to stand by you people,” she declared. She said that the government would extend complete support for the upcoming Aurat March provided it “does not trample on Pakistan’s honour”, adding strengthening women was the government’s most important mission.
“We regret that those people who are introducing slogans in the media to empower women do not realise that the victims of that mindset are the women of the society,” she added. She questioned that what kind of march these women want to hold by coming out on roads and raising slogans that are not allowed in a society like ours, as well as family and religion.
She pointed out that the Constitution provided protection and rights to women and that it was the aim of the government to make women independent.
The ‘Aurat March’, as it has come to be known since its first iteration in 2018, was organised by Hum Aurtain – a feminist collective. It has a manifesto demanding basic rights for women in each field of life.
For the past two years, it has been organised to coincide with the International Women’s Day on March 8, which is also the scheduled date for the rally this year.
Last year, the holding of the rally led to a backlash against the organizers and participants for “violating Islamic principles” and “disrespecting women”. Most critics had issues with the placards and banners used during the march, which they said transgressed Pakistan’s cultural values.
There were also reports of the organizers of the march receiving threats on social media. This year, the March’s manifesto revolves around khudmukhtari (independence) of women. The marchers of the Aurat March have been facing immense criticism for the slogan ‘mera jism meri merzi or my body, my choice.’
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