Participants and members of various Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) at a Seminar has stressed the need of empowerment of tribal women and provision of equal rights to them, and asked the government to take practical steps to mainstreaming the Federally Administered Tribal Areas.
The seminar titled, "Make it happen" was arranged by jointly Takrha Qabaeli Khwendey (Brave tribal sisters) (TQK) and District Influencing Group (DIG) while South Asia Partnership Pakistan (SAP-Pk) organized it held in connection of International Women Day (IWD) here at a local hotel Tuesday. Women from Federally Administer Tribal Areas (FATA) and Peshawar participated in the seminar and those shared their views regarding women empowerment and their rights including Nusrat Ara, Maryam Bibi, Rakhshanda Naz, Shahida Shah, Jameel Gilani, and a former MNA of Awami National Party (ANP) Tehmina Afridi, Aisha, Ishrat, Nazra Saeed, Vice Chairperson of Women Chamber Nasira Laghmani, Aneela Tajik and others.
The participants said that tribal people particularly their women had deliberately been kept illiterate and backward in order to gag them forever. "Though education and equal rights is basic human rights, yet they are still deprived of such facility even in this modern time," they regretted.
They said that those nations provided equal and basic human rights to their women including education, politics and other routine activities like men, got developments while those kept their women illiterate and deprived of their education remained undeveloped. "When Islam gives rights and status to women, then why women are deprived of it," a woman social activist from Mohmand Agency Aisha lamented and added that she was proud to be among those rising voice for women rights despite facing innumerate ordeals in her agency. There are some traditions are hurdles in women's development, she viewed.
Jamila Gilani said, no doubt, Islam gives rights to women but the demand should be sought from the government to take measures for the empowerment of women particularly of the women belonging to FATA. "It is onus of the state to provide equal rights on humanitarian basis," she demanded.
Nusrat Ara on the occasion said women is given complete representation in politics and national, provincial and local government (LG) especially of tribal women so that they could acquaint the governments with issues being faced by them, she asked the women to make preparations for their participation in the upcoming LG elections.
Nasira Laghmani, the VC chairperson of Women Chamber said there were a lot of talents in tribal women regarding embroidering, handicrafts, stitching etc while the chamber had been established for women empowerment, so, the tribal women should have come forward and make part (Membership) of the chamber to play their vital role for boosting economy of Pakistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) particularly FATA.
Shahida Shah, a convenor of TQK read out poems for women rights written by Aliya Mirza while other women participants also shared views about their problems in FATA and Peshawar as well. On the occasion, a cake was cut to observe World Women Day while a stage drama was also performed aimed at conveying a message about curse of Swara, benefit of education to girls.
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