PESHAWAR,
Pakistan, Jan 25, 2010 (IPS) - As a political activist and president of the
women’s wing of the Awami National Party (ANP), Zahira Khattak has been
working relentlessly for the empowerment of women in the war-torn North West
Frontier Province (NWFP) in Pakistan. She believes that by empowering them,
they can contribute more to the peace efforts in the region.
"We
are holding a peace jirga in the near future in which women from the whole
province will be invited to speak on the prevailing situation," Khattak
said, referring to the spate of violence in the NWFP, one of Pakistan’s four
provinces. Women have also been providing comfort to the bereaved families of
the victims of militant attacks in NWFP, she said.
When a
suicide blast killed 34 people in Charsadda district in the NWFP in November
2009, the female members of the ANP, including the parliamentarians, offered
prayers for the victims to embolden the people, she said. ANP’s women also
visit the sites of bomb blasts and houses of the slain victims to encourage their
families.
"Men
dying in these attacks have mothers, wives, daughters and sisters, who are
grieving. We go to their houses to give them psychological, mental and
emotional support in these trying times," said Khattak.
The ANP is
part of a coalition government in the NWFP alongside the Pakistan People’s
Party of Benazir Bhutto, the former prime minister who was assassinated in
December 2007. It was swept to power in the February 2008 elections, ousting
an alliance of Islamic parties.
Following
the 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States, the Taliban government in
Afghanistan was toppled, forcing the militant fighters along with al-Qaeda
extremists to flee to the porous Pakistan-Afghanistan border, taking
sanctuary in the Federally Administered Tribal Area in Pakistan. They later
spilled over into the nearby NWFP and started targeting business
establishments and security personnel and installations. They also restricted
women from venturing out in public without the accompaniment of close family members,
and going to schools. In Swat district alone, some 185 girls’ schools have
been bombed by the Taliban.
Noting that
the violence inflicted on women must be stopped, the former chairperson of
the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan has also been working to expand
public discourse to include the plight of the women in the province.
She sat
down with IPS to share her thoughts on the ongoing efforts to create more
space for women in the war-torn NWFP.
Q: The spate of
violence in NWFP, including suicide attacks, can easily scare anyone. How are
the women coping?
A: Women
have always expressed concern over the situation and struggled to live each
day fighting off the dire consequences of such incidents. The women of this
region have lost a lot as a result of militancy in the region.
Q: You said ANP is
organising a peace jirga (or council) where women will have a voice. How do
you plan to mobilise them in this peace effort using the ANP platform?
A: The ANP
has always played a pivotal role in the efforts to mobilise the women to
pursue peace initiatives in the region. An example of this was the peace
rally organised by the women’s wing of the ANP in March 2009, which was aimed
at promoting peace and harmony in the region while focusing on the role women
could play in (achieving this goal).
Q: After the peace
council in March 2009, what’s next?
A: The ANP
women’s wing is planning to organise a peace conference in March this year,
which would also include inputs from women who belong to other political
parties. Even a sister of Baitullah Mahsud (chief of the outlawed Tehrik
Taliban, who was killed in the U.S. drone attack on Aug. 5, 2009) is welcome
to join our campaign against terrorism and contribute to our peace efforts.
Q: How much more can
women contribute to the peace efforts in the NWFP?
A: Women
can actually do more in establishing peace and stability in this region if
they are given their due place within the socio-political structures of
society.
An example
of this is the female governor [Habiba Sarabi] of the province of Bamyan in
Afghanistan, who is working towards establishing reasonable conditions for
promoting peace and stability in the province.
Q: That’s interesting,
but how come very few women are going into the political arena to vie for
electoral seats?
A: The
political atmosphere in this country has never been conducive to women’s
participation in electoral contests.
In 2008,
before the elections, a lot of women, such as Bushra Gohar of ANP, wanted to
run for elective posts. But because of the situation obtaining then (mainly
owing to the attitude of the mullahs or clerics in the NWFP, who frowned on
women participating in politics), it was not possible for them to pursue
their political aspirations.
Hopefully,
in the coming few years, the situation will change and women will finally be
able to join the general elections, thus proving what they are capable of in
the political sphere.
Q: How does the ANP
ensure that women are accorded the rights due them, including political ones?
A: The
constitution of the party has always given its women members equal status. We
have used this very effectively, and because of the measures that we have
taken (to ensure that they enjoy equal status with men), the number of women
parliamentarians who represent the party has increased steadily over the last
couple of years.
Q: Are more women
awakening to their rights?
A: Yes, and
they have done a lot to ensure that their struggles and efforts toward their
political and social emancipation do not go to waste. The coming days will
prove that.
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