Surging violence

The plight of women in Balochistan is particularly sorry in the wake of a decades-old insurgency, much underdevelopment and widespread crime. In 2014, 75 women were killed in the name of ‘honour’ in Balochistan, a figure significantly higher than the previous year when it was put at 45. Five fell victim to acid attacks, 21 committed suicide due to domestic circumstances and others were subjected to violence of other kinds. The growth in the rate of violence is, of course, disturbing, but we should remember this could also be due to the fact that across the country, more women and their families are stepping forward to report such cases rather than covering them up. Nevertheless, there is clearly a need to act to change the order of things.

According to the Aurat Foundation, there has been a 24 per cent surge in violence against women in 2014 compared with the previous year. This is hardly a comforting statistic. There were 187 cases of violence against women recorded in Balochistan during the year, according to data compiled by monitoring input to police. Of course, many more cases could have gone unreported and almost certainly did. Protection mechanisms such as prompt action by police when they receive a complaint or warnings of a threat are one part in this.



Another can be played by the government and the agencies working under it. They must find a way to empower women so that their status can be improved. The low status of women within households has repeatedly been found as a main cause of violence. This is linked to the capacity of women to earn and help support families. When they are put in a position where they can do so, their standing within families goes up as does the role allotted to them in decision-making. Education, then, is critical to this endeavour. We must focus on factors such as this, as well as the effort to move away from violence carried out in the name of tribal tradition, as a means to save women from the brutality they suffer and to make their lives a little safer both in provinces such as Balochistan, where development is amongst the lowest levels in the country, and in other areas, too, where violence continues to be inflicted on women.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 12^th,  2015.

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