Laraib Nisar
Women are subject to all kinds of violence, torment, inequalities, and harassment across the globe. Even the most developed states exhibit increased frequency and intensity of crimes against women. However, such incidents are more frequent in slow developing and under developed countries. Pakistan, being a developing country, is no exception. The number of anti-women practices in the country has been high since long, and has sky-rocketed in the last few months. In the 2019 “Women, Peace and Security Index,” Pakistan stood at 164th position out of 167 countries.
It is important to not only include women in the political, economic, and social sectors but also to facilitate women’s access to justice, which is secured for all citizens in the constitution of Pakistan. Fortunately, despite Pakistan’s patriarchal cultural and social structure, a lot is being done by the state institutions to ensure women’s safety. Excellent legislation has been done to protect women from physical, emotional, and sexual violence in the domestic as well as public sector.
Despite having a low percentage of female force, the Police Service of Pakistan has made excellent progress in the gender protection domain. From posting at least one female officer in almost every police station across the country, so women can comfortably report the injustices they witness and the grievances they have, to establishing specified women focused facilitation center, the police department has been taking vigilant measures to ensure safe and easy access to justice to common women from all parts of the country.
In addition to the establishment of a specialized ‘Gender Protection Unit’ which is a female only facility providing services for the protection of women through just a phone call at the helpline 8090, the police department offers facilities like medico-legal aid, psycho-social help, and even free legal aid to the victims, along with providing shelter and daycare facilities for easing the lives of the litigants.
But unfortunately, the number of women who report the injustices they face and take legal help from law enforcement bodies like the police is abysmally low in Pakistan. The major reason behind the low female representation in the complainants is the cultural and social barriers which consider the police force a male-only force and inhibits women from taking help from legal professional at the hour of need. Moreover, our culture encourages women not to be vocal about their grievances and hence they endure the pain inflicted upon them silently.
Another reason hindering women quest for legal aid is the low representation of women within the ranks of the police department, and the general misperception about the police being an evil force which only helps the privileged class. But as per the initiatives taken by the police service, it looks like the image created about women are pretty much false and the force is a women-friendly force.
It is high time that the media and the public start portraying the positive initiatives taken by the police department so that more people are encouraged to report the abuses they face and proper legal action can be taken to eliminate the evils from the society. Awareness campaigns about the legal services on offer for women, and workshops to teach women about the procedures and processes of seeking help from the police must be conducted at educational institutes as well as in the working environments. Moreover, the initiatives taken and services on offer by the police must be disseminated through national electronic and print media so the common Pakistani women are aware of their rights and responsibilities.
It is very important to teach our girls to be confident and to stand up against any abuse that they come across. Because complete access to justice and legal aid will be materialized only when all women come together and start defying the norms that restrict them from reporting crimes against them, because reporting is the first step towards justice.
