Training centre for empowering women

A social welfare project aiming to empower women by training them began function in Pindori village, Attock, about 60 kilometres from Islamabad on Sunday.

A press release issued by Malik Muhammad Jafar Social Welfare Trust said the organisation is dedicated to the memory of renowned writer, politician and lawyer Malik Muhammad Jafar, who was a native of Pindori. It was established in June 2010.

In its maiden venture, the non-profit organisation has made provisions for imparting free-of-cost tailoring techniques to women from in and around the village.

Funded entirely by private donations, the female training centre currently employs three qualified teachers to provide practical lessons in various skills such as cloth-cutting, stitching, tailoring and embroidery. In its initial phase, the centre will admit only 40 girls belonging to the local community.

In the future, the trust plans to expand the project to a network of facilities in other parts of Attock to impart training in other fields such as handicraft and artisanship.

Born in a well-to-do family of Pindori, Jafar’s early life was characterised by a struggle for survival and getting education, as his parents passed away while he was a young boy.

Perhaps this made him sensitive to the misery of society’s marginalised people, for he dedicated a major portion of his life’s work in improving the lot of the disadvantaged.

As a lawyer, he stood firm by the poor, the needy, and those discriminated against on the basis of religion and gender. As a researcher, scholar and prolific writer, he struggled against ignorance, injustice, inequality and intolerance. As a politician, he stood on the side of the wronged and the persecuted. He provided shelter to the homeless and looked after the needy, especially women.

Jafar and Faiz Ahmed Faiz were close friends, and together established the Pakistan National Council of the Arts, the Institute of Folk Heritage, the Academy of Letters and the National Film Development Corporation.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 16^th, 2011.