ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: Experts and policy makers highlighted the struggle of women here Saturday at a seminar on “Women Reclaiming Culture” to mark International Women’s Day at National Institute of Folk and Traditional Heritage, Lok Virsa.
The seminar engaged the speakers and women participants on the theme of “Developing Discourse on Indigenous Feminism” to highlight the writings or action on women’s rights associated with the western ideologies in Pakistan.
International Women’s Day is celebrated globally to mark the struggle for women’s rights, celebrate the successes and build solidarity for the struggles that need to be done in the future.
This year’s theme for international women’s day is art and culture.
Lok Virsa being a national premier institute of culture, with history of four decades, embodies the identity of a keeper of traditional culture and folklore. In year 2016 Lok Virsa intends to celebrate the International Women’s Day on the 12th – 13th of March and unleash the power of culture.
It will encourage women to reclaim the progressive spaces provided within the culture and use this day as a step forward into this process.
For long, traditional culture has been abused to restrain and suppress women. Crimes against women were legitimized in the name of honor and tradition. Women were restricted from utilizing their abilities in public life in the name of their “traditional role” and society stayed silent at heinous atrocities, protecting, so to speak, “sanctity of feminine”.
What people do not realize is that traditional culture requires pruning all the time. Strange practices, that violate women’s rights, need to be rooted out like unwanted wild weeds from the desired plants, the speakers said.
Interestingly, enough women have been repositories of traditional culture and folklore throughout South Asia. They have been keepers of rituals, folk songs, language, clothing, foods, relationships and many other aspects. They have played an important role in continuation of cultural identity in a society. However, when it comes to their own rights and breathing space, the society uses the same culture as a beating stick.
They said that Women have the same cultural rights to enjoy creativity, performing arts, esthetics and means of expression as anyone else in a society. But these areas get stigmatize when it comes to women, sometimes in the name of morality and sometimes as a means for their `protection’.
The seminar also provided opportunity for women to share their struggles in the light of the discussion. They inspired people of the strength women show and fight against those who violate in the name of tradition. This took place in an outdoor area where
Ministry of human Rights already set up information-dissemination booths. Women shared their experience and to acknowledge them. Deputy High Commissioner of Australia Mr Jurek distributed shields to recognize their bravery.
The resource persons of the seminar included Mehtab Rashdi, Cultural scholar, politician, former head of Sindhiology Institute, Zobaida Jalal, Cultural scholar/ Educationist, from Balochistan, Amar Sindhu, journalist and scholar from Hyderabad, Dr. Riffat Haque, Head of Gender Studies, Allama Iqbal Open University, Nazish Brohi, Gender Scholar, Fouzia Saeed, Cultural folklorist from Islamabad, Sarwat Mohiuddin, poet, scholar of Sufism.
