Romaisa Khan says telling women to leave Pakistan is 'not a real solution'

Actor questions how women can leave without education, jobs or rights, while families remain unsafe behind

Actor and content creator Romaisa Khan has rejected the idea that women facing safety concerns in Pakistan can simply leave the country, saying education, employment and basic rights remain out of reach for many. In a video shared on Instagram, she said that while she wished she could tell every woman to leave Pakistan, doing so was not a realistic solution.

Going abroad, she pointed out, requires education and a job — opportunities that many women may not have access to in the first place. “Where is the education, where are the rights for women in this country, for them to even get a proper degree?” she asked.

Khan also questioned what happens to families when women leave. A wife, daughter or sister cannot simply move abroad and leave everyone else behind, she said, asking whether the men in their families are then expected to remain in a country where people continue to face violence.

“If a wife, daughter or sister does manage to go abroad,” she asked, “are the men in her life meant to stay behind alone in a country where someone is killed or assaulted every other day?” “We will all become anxiety patients thinking about everything that has happened,” she added.

 

 

 

 

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For Khan, the issue extends beyond women being able to relocate. She said simply making it through a day in Pakistan without something happening has increasingly begun to feel like an achievement.

She described travelling from one place to another as a constant battle, with families worrying about whether their loved ones have reached home safely or could be targeted the next time they leave the house.

Living with that fear, she said, leaves little room for people to think ambitiously or contribute meaningfully to the country.

Khan then turned her attention to the attitudes that contribute to women feeling unsafe, questioning why society continues to raise men who view women as people who should be hidden away rather than treated as equals.

“It's not necessary to sexualise a woman walking on the street,” she said, adding that predatory behaviour can also take place inside homes, including against relatives and children who “can't even fathom what's happening to them”.

She also criticised men who describe themselves as protectors of women but become defensive when women speak about their safety. “If you call yourself a protector, then why does your ego get hurt when we ask for one?” she said.

Citing several examples of violence, Khan referred to young married women killed by their husbands, schoolgirls murdered on their way to class and children assaulted at madrassas or abducted while carrying out everyday errands.

She said such incidents have made it difficult for mothers to feel at peace when sending their children to school.

 

 

 

 

 

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Khan also pointed to the recent fire at Gul Plaza in Karachi and the blaze at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences in Islamabad, in which 14 newborns were killed, as examples of how even vulnerable people can be left without adequate protection.

Her comments come amid renewed public concern over safety and accountability following a number of cases that have drawn widespread attention and prompted Pakistani celebrities to speak out. “There is no justice, no one is listening,” she said, questioning why people are expected to remain hopeful when meaningful action does not appear to follow such incidents.

In a separate post, she reiterated her call for accountability, saying the country cannot continue losing lives and then simply move on. “We demand justice. We demand accountability. For every woman, every child, every family that has been failed,” she wrote.

Khan also called for authorities to introduce concrete protective measures before more victims are reduced to hashtags on social media. “Justice for those we lost. Protection for those still here,” she wrote.