LAHORE: It’s that time of year again, when women of all ages, social backgrounds and professions, joined by their male allies, organize what’s known as the ‘aurat march’ – a procession commemorating International Women’s Day on March 8, but not without the usual criticism from the religious right, which considers the march “anti-Islam”.
Now in its fifth year, the march on Tuesday (today) will start from the Lahore Press Club and culminate outside the Faletti Hotel on Edgerton Road.
This year’s theme ‘Reinventing Justice’ or ‘Asal Insaaf’ aims to highlight the issues that women and gender minorities face within the legal justice system and how inadequate the current system is for them. victims of violence.
In a meeting with the march organizers on Monday, the Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC), Dr Atiya Sultan, on behalf of the district administration, assured them of ironclad security “to avoid any unfortunate incident”.
Following the meeting, organizers tweeted: “We are grateful for women in public office who lead the way and understand our movement and its importance.
Earlier in the day, the Lahore High Court ruled on a petition by organizers challenging the administration’s letter, issued on March 3, against the march, citing security threats and a possible dispute over roads. The letter said that if the organizers went ahead with the march, they would be fully responsible for the safety of the participants.
This year’s march features some feminist resistance artwork to highlight how participants have been harmed by Youtubers, who peddle fake news and spread misinformation, as well as the experience of gender minorities across the sounds.
Following the annual tradition, feminist anthems ‘kurriye mere des diye’, ‘Rapist is you’, some new songs, a monologue and a theatrical performance will also be part of the event. A new addition this time plays the dholki and sings a reinvented version of the traditional tappay.
Explaining the idea behind the feministtappay, one of the organizers said there was a lot of finger pointing that Aurat March is a western concept, which is wrong because it’s not just women here have not thought about their rights.
“Marriages have always belonged to women in our society and dholakis is traditionally a women’s affair; it provides a space for women to say a lot through music in the absence of a platform and festivals to express themselves. It is also a reappropriation of the party and the celebration, to have fun, to go out and sing for a cause, but also to get out of the sphere of marriage. Dholk doesn’t have to be limited to weddings.
The feminist version of the evergreentappaya aims to challenge toxic masculinity and promote gentleness, highlight state-level rewarding of harassers, and mock the right-wing backlash to Aurat March.
Organizers had organized adholkia a few days ago not only to sing and play music, but also to raise funds for the march to dispel allegations that the event is funded.
“There was an entry fee of Rs 300 for anyone who wanted to donate, in addition to the bake sale,” the organizer said.
Similar marches will be held in Hyderabad, Multan, Islamabad, Lahore, Quetta and Karachi to mark Women’s Day.
In February, Religious Affairs Minister Noorul Haq Qadri wrote a letter to Prime Minister Imran Khan, asking him to declare March 8 – International Women’s Day – International Hijab Day, saying that the march of the Aurat organized throughout the country that day went against the principles of Islam. A JEWISH leader in Islamabad had also vowed to resist the march, which he said spread indecency in the name of women’s rights. The enraged TLP’s Emir Rawalpindi also opposed the holding of the march, saying its participants resorted to “unethical slogans”.
Posted in Dawn, March 8, 2022
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