Harnessing hope, middle-aged women pursue high school

Following the ban on female education, the group gathered to beat the odds.

SWAT:

Militants banned female education and obliterated schools in Swat, but they could not suppress the will of some women to get an education.

Having lived under the shadow of the militants, a group of middle-aged women in Kabal Tehsil have become determined to escape the throes of ignorance.

Defying the stereotypes of gender and age, Razia*, 45, seems at content studying in the ninth grade. “School has taught me a lot. Not only in terms of reading and writing but I feel like a changed person,” she says. However, she regrets not being able to get an education earlier and blames the society’s flawed norms for that. “My parents did not want to educate me but I only realised my loss after meeting educated women.”



But it is still not easy for her to pursue her education, as her brothers, with whom she still lives with, oppose her decision to attend school. Undeterred, she says she aims to graduate and self-sufficient. “I don’t depend on anyone for my subsistence,” she said.

Meanwhile, Rozina*, 35, also a ninth grader, says she was impressed by some female teachers at a school near her house. “To the utter shock of my family, I was able to get admission in the eighth grade and then get promoted to the ninth grade,” she said.

At first, she felt awkward sitting among younger class fellows, but with the gradual encouragement of her teachers, she was able to fit in with the rest of the class. “Over the course of time, I made good friends with the other students, who called me baji,” she says, grinning. She wants to complete her Masters degree and become a teacher to lead a respectable life.



Halima*, the head mistress at the tehsil’s middle school and the focal person of the group, dedicated her efforts to enable these women to get an education. “It was not easy, but with discipline and patience, they have passed middle school and are now pursuing high school,” she says. She underscored the need to educate women, especially those who are unmarried, so they can support themselves without becoming a liability.

Halima says these women are facing financial problems in pursuing their education. We need assistance to purchase essential school supplies and pay transport fares, she added.

* Names have been changed to protect identities

Published in The Express Tribune, December 25^th, 2012.