Video Dispatch Pakistan: Women and Power BY Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy
Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy is a regular correspondent for FRONTLINE/World and is based in Karachi.
Video editor: Charlotte Buchen.
I was 11 years old when Benazir Bhutto was elected Pakistan’s prime minister. It was a momentous occasion for many of us because her election signified that women could achieve whatever they wanted to in the country.
It is true that Pakistan, a Muslim country of more than 160 million people, has a rich history of women in politics. It is also true that many of them have found their way to power because their husbands or fathers or brothers were already in politics, which gave them access. Lately, that mindset has begun to change.
In January 2000, former President Pervez Musharraf initiated a series of local government reforms that allowed women to enter politics at a grassroots level. Nasreen Jalil, Karachi’s deputy Mayor feels that this step allowed women from different income levels to participate in government.
Sitting in her office in Karachi she tells me that the city council she presides over has 255 members, and 33 percent of them are women. “These women are from the lower-middle classes; they are not even well educated. But just the fact that they have been elected and sent to this forum, means that they are now part of the decision-making process and this will bring about a difference.”
Jalil is a good example. She doesn’t come from a political family, and when she joined the political party, Mohajir Quami Movement (MQM) 20 years ago, they didn’t even take her seriously. “My husband was accepted immediately because he was a man. I was taken casually and given menial jobs like making tea, or cleaning or photo-stating,” she says.
Jalil worked hard to be recognized and eventually served as a senator in Pakistan. But she also admits that she is lucky — most women in the country are unable to enter politics because of family pressures or lack of opportunities. She believes it’s the same in the United States.
“The United States lacks strong female candidates because people probably don’t want them there. They are afraid of strong women all over the world,” she tells me. “Look at how they disregarded Hillary Clinton,” pointing to the fact that Barack Obama did not nominate her as his running mate.
In the past few weeks, local Pakistani newspapers have taken a keen interest in the upcoming U.S. elections, especially in Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin. Of course, part of that interest stems from her now infamous recent meeting with President Asif Ali Zardari, in which he not only remarked that she “looked gorgeous” but also made, what some here say, an inappropriate comment about wanting to hug her.
The Urdu language newspapers ran prominent accounts of the “embarrassing” incident, and television channels played romantic ballads over footage of the meeting. Pakistan’s late night comedy shows lampooned the president’s faux pas, and the outcome of the meeting enraged many women across the country.
“I think it is offensive that women have to be pretty and that counts for the majority of their popularity,” says Jalil. “Why don’t people comment on whether Mr. McCain is wearing the right kind of suit or about the color of his hair? “It was a mistake. I think the people of Pakistan felt humiliated.”
President Zardari’s remarks are not new to Pakistan. A few weeks ago, a prominent English Language newspaper here published an article “Hotties in the House” listing the names of all the “good looking” politicians who are serving in the local and national parliament. Featured prominently on that list is Shazia Marri, who comes from a political family but only began her political career a few years ago. She is a member of the late Benazir Bhutto’s Pakistan People’s Party.
Marri became a child bride at the age of 14 and was divorced with a child by the time she was 16. That experience has made women’s rights issues a top priority for her. She is also also a beneficiary of Pakistan’s reserve seat quota for women, which guarantees a certain number of seats for women in local and national assemblies. Marri is now an information minister in the province of Sindh.
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| Pakistan politician, Shazia Marri. |
When I walk into her office, she is surrounded by men, women and children who have come looking for her help. Although she is chiefly the government spokesperson and liaison to the media, she’s inundated daily with people who need jobs, health care, basic sanitation — the list goes on. Her can-do attitude has made her very popular with all walks of life.
While Marri compares her challenges to that of American women, she believes that Asian women have more political drive than their U.S. counterparts. She is not especially interested in whether Gov. Palin is elected vice president or not — to her she is just another person running for office. “I don’t think there should be any special allowance made for being a woman. She [Palin] has to have the potential and the mindset,” says Marri. “Becoming the vice president of one of the most powerful countries in the world is a tough job.”
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