Women Empowerment- The Dark Side
According to Pakistan Today, “an empowered woman will be one
who is self-confident, who critically analyses her environment and who
exercises control over decisions that affect her life.”
In simple words, women empowerment is about the freedom of
choice and decisions to shape their lives.
Women empowerment has five elements:
·
Women sense of self-worth
(means they know their value)
·
Their right to have and determine choices
·
Their right to have access to opportunities and
resources
·
Their right to have the power to control their own
lives both within and outside home.
·
Their ability to influence the direction of social
change.
These five elements are the essence of women empowerment. The
remaining article is based on these five elements; we will criticize, and raise
question(s). I will also include some Islamic prospective regarding this topic,
whether Islam support this or not.
I firmly support women empowerment; because it is their birth
right. There are still some rural areas in Pakistan where female feoticide is
practiced; it is the selective abortion of female fetuses. Although it is
illegal, but still many people are practicing it. It is heard that there are
some communities which are practicing female infanticide- killing the girl
child once she is born.
Acid throwing on girls, in rural areas, is common for
rejecting marriage proposals, sexual advance or jealousy among relatives.
Honor killing in Pakistan is known as karo-kari. Honor
killing is happened when girl in found in love affairs, caught having sexual
intercourse or elders are provoked by someone. Pakistan has the highest the
highest honor killing documented cases per capita of any other country in the
world. About one-fifth of the world’s honor killings are performed in Pakistan,
according to Wikipedia. When male commit an immoral behavior then its ok,
because he is boy. But when the same thing is done by female, then here honor
comes…
In this regard, yeah I agree, that women must be empowered
enough to protect their selves. We need to work on women empowerment in this
regards.
But my point is, do they really consider these issues related
to women? As per my experience NO!!!. I am not against the 5 elements of women
empowerment, if they would follow those elements then there was no room for
criticism. But they are not following those elements. They wanna go beyond
this. They think that women are empowered when they are free to do anything and
everything!!! Let me explain my points in next few paragraphs.
They say that man and woman are equal. Woman can do things
like man. Women should go side by side with men. But in reality this is not the
fact. They both can never go side by side, because they are different, physically
and emotionally, from each other. Man is physically stronger than woman, while women
are emotionally stronger than men. Man is suitable for earning while woman is
most suitable for raising child and teaching. When you preach total equality,
you might lose gender identity. They can’t be equal in any aspect, because if
they suppose so, then why Allah made these gender differences?
Another criticism which I would raise on them is that they
are demanding vulgarity in the curtains of women empowerment. They say that we
must be free to do anything, no one should ask. Yeah, I would also say that no
one should interfere in some one’s affairs. But husband, father and brothers
have the right to ask their wives, daughters and sisters. It doesn’t mean that
they want to dominate over them; it’s simply means that they care about their
women. If someone don’t ask you about anything, then be understood that he
feels no concern to you.
If you read their placards and listen to their slogans then
you will realize that simply they want their man under their feet… that is the
straight forward motto of their empowerment. This desire leads the society to
big failure of the family system, because there is no love, no dedication and
no affection in such relationships, there is only feeling of dominance. I am
not saying that man should be totally free and let them do what they want. I
simply say that man should perform his own character and women should play her
own character in relationship, there will be no need of women empowerment.
According to the women empowerment’s five elements, they
should target rural areas, where there is no empowerment, there is full male
dominancy. Rural females are raped, murdered, thrown acid on them, and killed
for honor. But they don’t go there, they are empowering females in cities,
where females are already empowered, educated and know their real worth, know
laws. What does it mean “ apna khana khud garam karo”, “ tumharay mozay ka
mujhay kia pata?”, “mere mammay nahi, tumhari soch choti hai”, “ khana garam
kardongi, bistar khud garam karlo” and many more….
Where are there five elements in these slogans? What they
wanna do???? Simply there is a specific group of persons, who had attached
their own benefits with such slogans. They want freedom (vulgarity) for their
own self. They have no concern with the lady whose face is destroyed by acid
thrown, with the lady who was killed for honor. Go and do face surgery of her
and get her an earning source if you really want to empower her.
If our society really practices Islam then there is no need
of woman or man empowerment. Islam has clearly defined responsibilities for
each and every one in the society. Women are entitle to have share in her
father, brother, husband and son’s property. Islam says to man that your women
are your property, take care of her. Islam says to woman that man is your
protector, take care of his property.
Finally, I am in favor of women empowerment if they practice
their own five elements. If they fight for women rights, where there is
injustice. But spreading vulgarity behind the slogan of women empowerment is a
dark side of it. Government should make regulations in this regards and should
strictly care of real women rights.
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