The Express Tribune
Published Date: Dec 11, 2014
Marginalised: Women, the forgotten population in conflicts
adversely affected by the ongoing conflicts but their sacrifices have
largely been unacknowledged.
This was stated by Shagufta Malik, former MPA of the Awami National
Party from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, while speaking at a panel discussion on
the ‘Role of Women in Peace Process’ at the three-day Sustainable
Development Conference on Wednesday.
The politician said a number of women have lost their male family
members in the ongoing fight against terrorism and are now left at God’s
mercy.
“On the one hand they have lost their sons, husbands, fathers,
brothers and to make matters worse, they are forced to shift to the
internally displaced persons (IDPs) camp where they have to face a
number of challenges,” she said.
Though their woes are still unheard, these women are still determined
to make more sacrifices for peace and prosperity of the country, shared
the lawmaker.
South Asia Partnership Pakistan Director Irfan Mufti, while
addressing participants, said there was a need to give women, who have
directly or indirectly been a victim of terrorism, a platform where they
can highlight their issues.
He said it is the need of the hour to use UN Security Council
Resolution 1325 as a base to formulate a plan to address issues being
faced by Pakistani women.
“If we look into the past, we find many examples where women have
stood up against enemies of our country; Malala Yousufzai being one of
the best examples,” he said.
Sociologist Dr Eisha Tareen said the most crucial aspect when
considering peace-building in conflict areas are gender dynamics at play
in local contexts. This involves analysis of root causes of inequality.
Source : http://tribune.com.pk/story/804928/marginalised-women-the-forgotten-population-in-conflicts/