March 8 is celebrated as International Women’s Day all over the world including Pakistan, on this occasion women from different walks of life are seen taking out rallies and highlighting issues related to women.
But here the question arises as to why the women’s march is celebrated, what are the reasons that this day has been attributed to women?
In this regard, when the history was studied, it was revealed that on March 8, 1907, in a garment factory in the city of New York, women working 10 hours a day demonstrated to reduce their working hours.
The women working in the factory were demanding that they should be given equal rights to men, the police did not like this act, they not only tortured the women involved in the demonstration but also arrested them.
After this incident, the World Conference for Women began to be held every year in European countries. First, in 1909, the Socialist Party of America passed a resolution to celebrate Women’s Day. Until 1913, Women’s Day was celebrated on the last Sunday of February every year. Then in 1913, International Women’s Day was celebrated for the first time in Russia. The first socialist state, the Soviet Union, officially declared March 8 as National Women’s Day.
Under Article 3 of the Constitution of Pakistan, it is the responsibility of the state to eliminate all forms of exploitation, but women are victims of double exploitation. In most Pakistani families, the status of women is secondary. This tradition is followed in state institutions and non-state institutions alike.
Now here the question also arises that Islam has not given rights to women. In this regard, I studied Islamic history in which it came out that Islam has already given rights to women fourteen years ago, the honor and respect given to women by Islam would hardly have been given to women in any other religion because Islam is the religion that taught the parents that daughters are mercy, don’t bury them alive, otherwise before Islam, daughters were buried alive as soon as they were born.
Islamic teachings enjoin respect for women as well as their protection. Islam has presented the woman as a fragile woman, not only commanding her respect but also made men and women equal in actions and rewards. Allah has made it clear in the Holy Qur’an that men have a share of their earnings and women have a share of their earnings and (both) ask Allah for His bounty (Surat al-Nisa 32).
There are many verses and hadiths regarding the rights of women, as the Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) said, “Fear Allah in the matter of women.”
Islam is the only religion in the world that gave all rights to women, it brought women out of humiliation and gave them dignity, Islam not only protected the rights of women but also made them partners in the property.
But there are some people in society who misbehave with women despite all these orders, and oppress them and this march is needed to give awareness of these people.
Unfortunately, even today in the 21st century, there are many examples around us where women are sexually harassed on a daily basis, there are many women who are thrown with acid and there are many women who are raped in the name of honor and killed.
The system in the rural areas of the country is completely chaotic, killing daughters in the name of honor, offering women in bloodshed and marrying them with Quran and many such useless rituals in which only women are oppressed.
My personal opinion is that there are a few people who use the platform of the Women’s March to promote a Western agenda, carry ‘wahiat-type’ banners in marches, and in all this they do not allow the issues to be highlighted.
These people don’t want women to talk about their rights. This particular group deliberately makes the women’s march controversial so that the harsh realities of society cannot be raised.
Aurat March is necessary to some extent because there are many women around us who hide many things due to stigma and fear of the world, so this is a platform for these women where they can raise their voices and my Therefore, the participants of Auart March should take out its rallies in rural areas instead of cities so that the women there can also know about their real rights.
