HRCP Condemns Anti-Women Videos in Pakistan
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has strongly condemned a series of videos circulating on social media that use derogatory language about women’s rights to education and freedom. These videos, made by clerics, urge parents to pull their daughters out of school, claiming that schooling is associated with ‘obscenity’.
In a statement released at the National Press Club in Islamabad, HRCP highlighted another video that criticizes women for using mobile phones, also labeling it as ‘obscenity’. HRCP warned that such language could incite violence against women.
HRCP emphasized, “Such deep-seated misogyny must be curtailed at once. With an estimated 12 million girls out of school, widespread cultural restrictions on women’s mobility, and an alarmingly high incidence of violence against women and girls, Pakistan cannot afford to give any space to derogatory and anti-women rhetoric.”
HRCP urged the government to intervene and prevent these harmful narratives from spreading, stressing that education and freedom are constitutionally protected rights for females in Pakistan. They called for strong public service messages to uphold girls’ right to education and women’s digital rights.
Additionally, a report released last October highlighted the severe condition of female citizens in Pakistan. It found that around 70% of women who graduated from engineering programs are either unemployed or do not work. The research, conducted by Gallup Pakistan and PRIDE, used data from the Labour Force Survey 2020-21. It revealed that 20.9% of the 28,920 women who graduated with engineering degrees were unemployed, and only 28% were still in the workforce.
The report also showed that 21.1% of engineering graduates lived in rural areas, with 43.9% employed and 36.3% unemployed. In metropolitan areas, 16.8% of women with engineering degrees were unemployed, and 24% were employed. A significant percentage (59.2%) did not enter the workforce. Of those who chose not to work, over 64% were married, and 28.4% were single. The age range of 25-34 years had the highest percentage of female engineering graduates (50.9%), followed by the range of 35-44 years (21.7%).
