Women's Bills in Pakistan

Protection against Harassment of Women at the Workplace Bill and the Criminal Law Amendment Bill, and Domestic Violence Bill are the three bills which are under process to enactment in Pakistan. They were almost scuttled under influence of religious parties. But intense lobbying by women had pushed the bills a step further towards enactment.

In the wider picture, these bills, when they become law, may appear to be the harbingers of major change. But their significance is at the moment symbolic and only in the legal context. In practical terms, they will spell greater protection for women in their workplace only when the prescribed mechanism is made available to them to complain of sexual harassment and obtain redress if needed.

More importantly, these bills explicitly recognise the right of a woman to go out of her home to earn a living, to acquire an education, to obtain healthcare and to involve herself in the day-to-day business of caring for her family and herself. The statement of objectives of the bill passed in the National Assembly last week states, “This bill builds on the principles of equal opportunity for women and their right to earn a livelihood without fear of discrimination.”