Thousands of women rally in Pakistan despite legal hurdles

LAHORE, Pakistan: Thousands of women took part in rallies across Pakistan on Wednesday despite efforts by authorities in several cities to block the divisive marches. Known as the Aurat (women) March, the rallies have courted controversy because of banners and placards waved by participants that raise subjects such as divorce, sexual harassment and menstruation. Each year, some of the most provocative banners ignite weeks of outrage and a slew of violent threats.

“The whole point of the Aurat March is to demand the security and safety that women are not afforded in this country and society,” said Rabail Akhtar, a schoolteacher who joined a crowd of around 2,000 in Lahore to mark International Women’s Day. “We are not going to sit silently anymore. It’s our day, it’s our time.” Videos posted on social media showed several police officers baton charging participants as they tried to join the demonstration.

In a tweet, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah said the capital’s police chief had been summoned and the officers involved suspended. City authorities had at the weekend refused to provide security, despite allowing a “modesty” countermarch to go ahead, before a court ordered them to back down. “It’s ridiculous how we have to go through the same drama every year...

Why are they so afraid of women demanding their rights?” asked Soheila Afzal, a graphic designer. In Karachi, judges dismissed a legal challenge by an individual to ban a related rally scheduled for the weekend so that working women could attend. In the capital Islamabad, organizers refused to comply with orders to confine the gathering to a city park where a woman was gang raped in February.