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Women
break male stranglehold over Pakistan politics
Wednesday, October 06, 2010 12:48:38 PM,
Awais Saleem, IANS
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Islamabad:
Women are now making a mark in Pakistan's male-dominated political
arena as seats have been reserved for them and candidates have to
hold a graduation degree to contest polls.
There is reservation for women in the federal parliament as well
as 33 percent quota for women in all legislative assemblies.
The firebrand Pakistan Muslim League(Q) members, Kashmala Tariq
and Marvi Memon, Jamaate Islami's burqa-clad Sameea Raheel Qazi,
Pakistan Peoples Party's very vocal Fozia Wahab and Sherry Rehman
are some of the active lawmakers who have joined the assembly on
these reserved seats.
"This trend was certainly encouraging because no male could
realise the issues of females or raise their voices properly
earlier," said Kashmala during a media interaction.
"I don't agree with the argument that these members are inferior
because they have not contested open elections," she said, adding
that they should be judged on the basis of their performance.
The most significant change in traditional mindset due to the
imposition of the condition that a candidate has to be a graduate
to be able to contest elections.
Most of the seasoned politicians had to take a back seat and allow
their wives, daughters and sisters who were graduates to contest
polls and address large election rallies. The women in these
political families were found to be more educated than their male
counterparts.
Some of these women include Samina Ghurki, wife of PPP's central
executive committee member Khalid Ghurki, who is now serving as
federal minister for social welfare.
Hina Rabbani Khar, who is serving as the first female minister for
finance, comes from a powerful political family in South Punjab as
her father Noor Rabbani Khar was unable to contest elections
because he wasn't a graduate.
The Supreme Court last year waived off the condition of being a
graduate to contest the polls. As the 2008 general elections had
been held prior to that, so the women are now part of the house
till 2013.
"It has to be seen how many of them now return in the next general
elections" since the Bachelor of Arts degree condition has been
waived off, political analyst Hasan Saeed told IANS.
There has been no major resistance from the families or parties in
fielding women. But, there have been some dissenting voices within
the political parties who feel that no reserved quota should be
there and the women should compete in general elections to join
parliament.
Politicians have been fielding their relatives in the elections.
Aamir Yar Waran, who had to resign for allegedly having a fake
degree, fielded his wife Khadija Waran in the by-elections and she
won the seat easily. Saira Tarar, daughter-in-law of former
president Rafiq Tarar, was elected on a PML-N ticket from a
Hafizabad town.
"We are happy to be in this position because we can deliver if our
family wants us to," said Samina Ghurki, adding that she had "no
qualms about returning to the household chores and taking care of
kids at a later stage".
(Awais Saleem
can be contacted at ians.pakistan@gmail.com)
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