‘Enough is enough’: Oxfam launches massive campaign against VAW

Pakistan ranked second-worst for gender inequality

Violence against women and girls is a global crisis already affecting one in three women in their lifetimes, devastating their lives and fracturing communities. Women and girls face violence throughout their lives: more than 700 million women alive today were married as children. Violence is the most extreme form of gender discrimination, rooted in inequality and in a belief that it is acceptable to treat women and girls this way. Pakistan is the second-worst country in the world for gender inequality, says the Gender Gap Index.

Oxfam on Tuesday launched a new campaign called “Enough: Together We Can End Violence Against Women and Girls” to stop one of the most prolific human rights violations. The campaign was launched with support from the governments of Denmark, Canada and Australia. The campaign features a rickshaw drive in 24 districts, across Punjab and Sindh provinces, in which more than 3000 rickshaws are displaying campaign message, carrying artwork and playing feminist folk songs. The rickshaw campaign is championed by rickshaw drivers who are acting as advocates for women rights.

The campaign is launched today at Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi in an event organised by Oxfam in partnership with Aurat Foundation.

Oxfam Pakistan Country Director Mohammed Qazilbash said, “Despite significant progress made towards legislation and policy formation to protect women and their rights in Pakistan, harrowing stories of violence against women emerge every day from all corners of the country. This testifies that our society has somehow accepted violence against women as normal behaviour. This violence takes many shapes and forms, it perpetuates women’s sufferings and in turn disrupts the fabric of the society.  However, what has been learned can be unlearned. It is high time we say enough.”

Addressing the audience, Khawar Mumtaz, Chairperson of the National Commission on the Status of Women said “Peace at home is the foundation of the peace at society. We need to make and monitor policies to end violence. We must promote women’s political and economic empowerment to give them a voice. Enough is enough, we need to move forward.”

Justice (retd) Nasira Iqbal said, “2016 marked some distinguished achievements in terms of law making for the protection of women. Now, the implementation of these laws is the key to ending violence against women. We must understand that women are not properties of men, they are equal contributors in society.”

The ceremony was attended by representatives of civil society, diplomats, media, academia and students of Arid Agriculture University.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 30^th, 2016.