Women's rights: 'true implementation of Islamic principles needed'

There is a great potential in Pakistani women which needs to be properly recognised and used for overall development of the society. This was the unanimous view expressed by the speakers at the one-day seminar on 'Women's Role is Social Development', held at the University of Karachi on Thursday in connection with the Universal Women's Day.
Organised by the Karachi University Public Relations Society of the Department of Mass Communication, the seminar was presided over by the Vice Chancellor, University of Karachi, Professor Dr Pirzada Qasim Raza Siddiqui, while former information secretary, Government of Sindh, Mrs Mehtab Akbar Rashdi was the chief guest on the occasion.
Delivering his presidential address, the vice chancellor said the foremost agenda of both men and women in any society is collective development. He said this agenda couldn't be fulfilled if almost half of the population, for one reason or the other, remains out of the process of development.
Dr Pirzada said we need to bring about a change in our attitude towards the womenfolk. The situation now, he said, is different than what it was some decades ago. 'Today women are playing active role in social development and they even occupy senior executive, professional and entrepreneurial role in the corporate sector'. The vice chancellor said in the rural set up women's role can never be underestimated as she works along with men in the farmlands. He congratulated the department for holding the seminar and said that such functions be held regularly.
The chief guest Ms. Mehtab Rashdi said the Western societies started thinking about women's rights some 200 years ago but our religion provided a basis for women's emancipation 1400 years ago. The need, she said, is true implementation of Islamic principles for women's rights.
Mehtab said the tragedy in our social set up is that women's labour is never computed and they are treated as 'unpaid maids'. The trend, she said, is changing and now there is a greater realisation of potential of women-folk and their condition is now far better than what it was at the time of independence.
Now women are contesting and winning elections of national and provincial assemblies on general seats and that is a heartening change. There is also no reason for women's backwardness in education when our religion calls for education for both men and women, she added.
Dr Farzana Feroz, group chairperson of the City Schools, speaking on the occasion said supporting family is the primary responsibility of men and women has only the supplementary role. This role, she said, should not be considered as subordinating role. Women's prime responsibility is effectively taking care of their families and it is essential for them to be successful mothers and wives, and she can do it by supplementing to men's efforts for a better and quality life.
Ms Shireen Naqvi, Chief Executive Officer, School of Leadership has called for a balance and harmony in the society by assigning due role to women. 'We have to encourage women and help them to get self confidence so that they can play useful role in the society', she added.
Ms. Musarrat Misbah, who runs an NGO for the welfare of women, speaking on the occasion said empowerment of women is essential for social development and that we need to spread awareness to bring women out of their backwardness.
A PR practitioner Ms. Zainab Ansari said it is only for women to work for their progress while it is the collective responsibility of the society to mentally and emotionally emancipate the women-folk. She said in fact emancipation of women actually means emancipation of man as an emancipated woman can better take care of the entire family.