The Punjab Commission on the Status of Women rejects CII proposed ‘model’ bill

Lahore: The Punjab Commission on the Status of Women (PCSW) rejects the Council of Islamic Ideology’s (CII) proposed ‘model’ bill for the protection of women and condemns it as unconstitutional, illegal and in complete violation of women’s rights and fundamental human rights.

The CII’s proposal contravenes fundamental rights available to women in the Constitution of Pakistan as well as violates international laws and treaties Pakistan has signed and is bound by. In light of Article 25 of the Constitution that upholds equality of all citizens before the law, the proposed bill adds no value to the rights of women.

The CII bill contains some 163 recommendations addressing property, marriage, motherhood, crimes and violence against women among others. On the one hand, it proposes absolutely unintelligible advice such as allowing men to “lightly beat their wives” and banning co-education past the primary level, on the hand it makes a desperate attempt to appeal to the women of Pakistan by claiming to uphold women’s rights enshrined in shariah law. It promises that women will be allowed to enter into a contract of marriage without a guardian’s permission, seek khula; bans dowry and Vani among others. It is worth noting that all of the rights that the CII pretends to grant women under women’s protection bill are already enshrined in the laws Pakistan is constitutionally bound to adhere to.

Perhaps, one of the more ridiculous advice the CII aspires to get codified in law concerns women’s dealings in politics, by saying that “Women will not be permitted to receive foreign officials and state guests”. The PCSW urges all concerned citizens and government bodies to reject the bill as unconstitutional and redundant. The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), to which Pakistan is one of the signatories, states, “The full and complete development of a country, the welfare of the world and the cause of peace require the maximum participation of women on equal terms with men in all fields.” Not only does such a law impinge on the rights of women but it also reverses rights gained over a century through a process of evolution of fundamental rights and freedoms. By negating already existing laws, it further undermines the position of Pakistan in the global comity of nations.

The CII’s draft bill reduces the rigorous efforts made by the government to protect the rights of women to nothing. It further treats women as legal minors and properties of men by prescribing that women need to be instructed in all matters of life. It takes away from women’s fundamental freedoms and impinges on their bodily rights. According to the CII, a woman must always wear hijab if she decides to receive education at a co-educational institution; she should not be allowed to mix with members of the opposite sex, she cannot appear in advertisements because they are ‘vulgar’, and if she is a nurse she should not be tending to male patients. The CII, according to the bill it has proposed, does not wish that women have any control over their bodies because at most, women are weaklings and hence, somehow not worthy of making their own decisions. And hence, it proposes,

·              Mothers must breastfeed for two years

·              Ban on advertisements baby formula/substitutes for breast milk

·              A woman cannot use contraception without the husband’s permission

·              An abortion after 120 days will be classified as murder

·              Women should not be forced into difficult, ‘labour-intensive’ work

·              Ban on women from taking part in military combat

It dispenses all of this advice without the need to clarify or substantiate its claims. Women today, not just in Pakistan but all over the world have excelled in every walk of life. From accomplishing the most physically challenging of tasks to running governments and big corporations, there is nothing that women have not been able to accomplish. Moreover, Pakistan is among one of the few nations in the world, who has had a female head of the state. CII appears to have forgotten the roles played by eminent women such as Fatima Jinnah, Begum Ra’ana Liaquat Ali Khan, Maleeha Lodhi and current ministers Saira Tarar, Anushay Rahman, Hameeda Waheed-ud Din. CII’s position would be in all respects, a huge step back from the progress that has been made to date.

The PCSW, since its inception in 2014 has made relentless efforts for women’s empowerment and elimination of gender-based discrimination, and it stands by its commitment to ensure the full participation of women in all spheres of national life as guaranteed by Article 34 of the Constitution of Pakistan.