Kashaf Banbhan - #MeToo Movement In Pakistan

Subject: Creative writing
Practical work carried out under supervision of Siddique Soomro Sb

Kashaf Banbhan

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The Rise Of #MeToo Movement In Pakistan

We can call 2017 and 2018 ‘years of women” because of a social movement called #MeToo which phrase was coined by an American social activist Tarana Burke for the victims of sexual harassment and abuse. #MeToo movement got worldwide momentum in 2017 when an American actress Alyssa Milano used this hashtag in one of her tweets. She wanted to talk about her experience of being harassed, abused and to encourage other women to come forward and break their silence on harassment they had faced in their lives.

#MeToo movement plays a significant role in raising awareness in a society where such issues are downplayed due to bias. We live in a society where opening up about such experiences of harassment at workplace or streets is considered a shameful and embarrassing act; where people are bound to stay quiet and are forced to deal with it alone.

After the emergence of #MeToo movement many Pakistani women, actresses and politicians came up and spoke out about being victims of harassment and violence. This not only motivated other women to break the barriers of silence but also encouraged local media to highlight what was earlier considered a taboo in Pakistan.

The rise of #MeToo movement started when a Pakistani popstar Meesha Shafi accused her colleague Ali Zafar of sexually harassing her during their jamming sessions through her tweets on 19^th April 2017. Her tweet was retweeted almost 5,400 times but many people denied her allegations by saying she misused #MeToo movement against Ali Zafar. However, it stirred up a storm in film industry for a long time.

Federal ombudsperson for protection against harassment (FOSPAH) Kashmala Tariq said “Since March 2018, there has been a drastic rise in the number of cases being filed. According to FOSPAH annual report, from July 2017 to June 2018, 244 cases of harassment were reported, out of which 87 took place in Islamabad, 131 in Punjab, 17 in Sindh and 9 in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

According to Kashmala Tariq, the number of cases reported from the public institutions is higher than those of private sector because in government offices people are not scared of being fired but private sector employees are scared of losing their jobs.

In late October 2017 Oscar winning documentary filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy also raised her voice over her sister’s sexual harassment by a doctor in a series of her tweets. The doctor was later suspended by AKUH.

Ayesha Gulalai also alleged her party’s chairman Imran Khan of sexually harassing her, but she faced backlash from the general public and they called her political opportunist.

None of these cases received any momentum or attention but they showed a pathway, a ray of hope to other victims.

Recently two cases came up which left the general public shocked and disheartened at the same time. Few months back Fatima Sohail, Mohsin Abbas Haider’s wife, posted her pictures being injured. To cut a longer story short, she wrote in post that Mohsin beat her when she caught him cheating on her with his girlfriend Nazish Jahangir. It was the case of domestic violence and is one of the major issues Pakistani women face. In response Dunya TV channel removed Mohsin from “Mazaaq Raat” and many people from industry came forward to talk about this.

Another case was of Ukhano, Pakistani Vlogger Umar Khan. A month ago, random girl tweeted about Ukhano, posting his screenshots of vulgar and inappropriate chats. After which other girls came forward with such proofs of chats of same patterns exposing ukhano, claiming they had been victims of ukhano’s ugly intentions too.

Change eventually does come. Particularly when it is a matter of honour and prestige. In today's awakening of Pakistani women, a change, even if it is late, is bound to come and the result of #MeToo movement will go beyond just speaking up. There are a number of women who are breaking the taboos dared to come forward and speak with their stories. Even then we still have a long way to go to ensure all men and women are safe and secure. May all those cases and unfortunate situations find legal closure and justice is served.

Subject: Creative writing
Practical work carried out under supervision of Siddique Soomro Sb