http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\03\15\story_15-3-2010_pg3_5
Monday, March 15, 2010 VIEW: Equal rights and equal opportunities -Fauzia Yazdani Female empowerment will not happen through political slogans, but through carefully designed policy interventions that focus on integrating women so as to further gender mainstreaming I was part of the critical mass of women that was created to celebrate the International Women's Day in Islamabad, jointly organised by the Ministry of Women's Development (MOWD) and PTV on March 8, 2010. The critical mass had to wait, as usual, for almost two hours for the prime minister to grace the occasion. It was a show of pomp that failed to dedicate a moment of silence to recognise the large number of women who had lost their lives in conflict and abuse of human rights in Pakistan in 2009. Unfortunately, while the grand finale was singing 'Let's Touch the Skies', the theme song of the day, six girls in Rawalpindi, 30 minutes from the venue, lost their lives to a fire in their hostel. But the show must go on. The prime minister gracing an occasion has become a political indicator of the importance of the event, hence, this day also stood acknowledged at the highest level. The gift hamper for the women of Pakistan included: (i) the establishment of the Office of Women's Ombudsman, (ii) 10 percent quota for women in the Central Superior Services (CSS) and (iii) the conversion of youth development centres into working women's hostels. Besides, he announced that the National Commission on the Status of Women would be given complete administrative and financial autonomy, adding that the government had also decided to strengthen the First Women's Bank to empower women economically. He ordered the Establishment and Finance Division to strengthen the MOWD and all other federal and provincial ministries and departments to mainstream gender equality. This was my umpteenth women's day function. Each year they start with a need to recognise the wajood (existence) of women in Pakistan and this year was no different. Our dilemma is that we focus on being the 'first' in the world and forget about the 'rest' at home - be it the first female Prime Minister, Speaker of the National Assembly, Governor of the State Bank or others. By ratifying international conventions like the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), with marked reservations, the government plays to the gallery for international actors only. No doubt, these personalities and actions are landmark affirmative indicators, but what does all this mean for the 80 million vulnerable and marginalised women of Pakistan? Does it make 52 percent of the women in Pakistan feel safe, respected and empowered? Let me discuss the ineptness of these announcements. The bumper prize - the Establishment of Women Ombudsman - leaves one wondering why another parallel, vertical, federal institution will be put in place. Having a women-specific institution does not translate into female empowerment, it rather adds to their marginalisation and compartmentalisation in this case. The regular ombudsman has legislative backing and a mandate, which facilitates across gender lines. A women's ombudsman will neither empower nor increase the access to justice for women, as it is a federal set-up. Surely the authors of this institution neither attempted to gather feedback on the in-activation of district ombudsman set-ups under the Local Government Ordinance 2001, nor on the achievements of Justice and Arbitrary Committees (musalihat anjumans), which are available even at the Union Council level with women's representation. That is why the new Local Government System has retained the musalihat anjumans, which deliver much more than a women's ombudsman. This left me wondering about what had stopped the prime minister to accord administrative and financial independence and autonomy for the National Commission on the Status of Women (NCSW) with provincial outreach. A strong NCSW with provincial outreach would not only be a policy watch set-up, but could also facilitate set-ups like musalihat anjumans and provincial women's development departments to deliver much more than a women's ombudsman. Gift number two: reservation of 10 percent quota for women for recruitment to public office, through a competitive examination called the Central Superior System (CSS). This system already has its due share of quotas: 10 percent seat allocation on merit, the rest of the seats as per provincial quotas and 10 percent quota for induction from the armed forces that land in premier service groups only, e.g. the foreign office. This system is based on open, nationwide competition. A substantial number of women have been competing and joining the Civil Service of Pakistan, besides being toppers. With the introduction of another quota slab for women, the word 'competitive' should be dropped from the CSS. What is the basis for this decision? Did the MOWD, NCSW or FPSC conduct any analysis that recorded a marked decrease in the induction of women to demand this reservation? I guess not because the statistics would have revealed a different trend. Around the world such competitive systems of public office recruitment are gender neutral and Pakistan is no exception. Gift number three: converting Youth Development Centres into women hostels in Quetta and Peshawar. The youth constitutes almost 60 percent of our population, which, in itself, is a marginalised segment. This order would mean that the entire management system of these set-ups will be either jobless or will add to the free lunch brigade of public servants, because men cannot run women hostels. This means the capacity building of staff to manage a specific gender, besides refurbishing these set-ups in line with women specific needs, e.g. new toilets, higher boundary walls, etc., hence a complete institutional changeover. Again, is this decision based on statistical analysis? And how much would this institutional change of hands and transition cost the respective provincial governments, especially in Balochistan where the women's development department became independent merely a few months ago? The prime minister instructed the Establishment and Finance Division to strengthen the MOWD. I am reminded here of a verse by Allama Iqbal that says even God cannot improve the status of those who do not want it for themselves. This is apt in the case of MOWD, which could not even capitalise on the opportunity of having the prime minister of the country as its minister-in-charge for over a year. Unfortunately, it is perceived as one of the weakest ministerial set-ups, lacking staff, technical expertise and adequate financial allocation. It is further rated as an apex sidelined ministry. Numerous efforts of its strengthening and restructuring, with heavy financial inputs, are nicely shelved in its archives, leaving one to wonder how it will be strengthened by the input and support of the Establishment and Finance Division. Last but not least, all federal ministries and provincial departments should be asked to facilitate gender reform and gender mainstreaming. There is no policy directive or guideline that can be used as a checklist to assess the level of sensitivity to women and responsiveness in governmental policies. The budgetary allocations and expenditure of the government are yet to be on a gender disaggregated basis. The PC-1 format of the Planning Commission also remains gender blind. Within such an environment, I wish gender mainstreaming was easier done than said by the prime minister, especially when even the term gender is being misused in the government set-up to indicate women only. The prime minister assured everyone that his government was determined to follow and implement, in letter and spirit, Ms Bhutto's vision of a greater and stronger Pakistan. I wish he had recognised the institutional, social and religio-cultural challenges that we are facing as a nation, where the definition of fundamental human rights is becoming skewed. Female empowerment will not happen through political slogans, but through carefully designed policy interventions that focus on integrating women so as to further gender mainstreaming. It is high time that we take women's empowerment beyond political rhetoric and slumber. Fauzia Yazdani is an independent policy researcher and analyst. She can be reached at theconsultingresearch...@gmail.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
