Women's Freedom

Women and Freedom do not sit right with each other in Pakistani society because here women are conditioned to sacrifice their needs for their loved ones. They have to give up their dreams because either they do not align with their family values or their family is scared of what other people will think. Society will judge them for letting their daughters live a normal life. We live in a patriarchal society which has been benefiting men for centuries. There is a low ratio of men who understand this and consider it a problem instead of being threatened by it. The others just turn a blind eye towards it because it does not affect them directly.

In some regions, women are denied the basic human rights, such as the ability to leave their homes unaccompanied or the right to make personal choices about marriage or reproduction. They are taught to compromise and sacrifice themselves for others because apparently that makes you a good or desirable woman in the eyes of society.

I have seen women losing their identity after marriage. They are either someone's wife or mother. These relationships are important but should a woman be defined only by these associations? When will she get the time to be her own self? To do something for herself, to let herself be free, to engage in meaningful conversations with people who will expand her horizon and let her see the world from a different perspective. Most of the marriages in our country rob a woman of her freedom and that's honestly one of my biggest fears. To marry a man who'll not see me as an equal but rather an unpaid slave.

Financial independence can save a woman's life because most of the times, the reason for staying in toxic marriages is that women have nowhere to go and they are financially dependent on their husbands. Parents do play a great role in that. They can empower their daughters before marriage so she doesn't have to go through that. Such toxic marriages not only destroy a woman's life but it also affect the next generation too because in our country, it is believed that reproducing an offspring might be effective in fixing a marriage. In this way, a new life bears the trauma that continues through the next generations.

It breaks my heart when I look at my mother and wonder how she was once my age with so many dreams and ambitions but she was not allowed to pursue them. If she were a boy, she would have the liberty to chase her passions and live a life she truly wanted. And that's the story of so many women in our country. Despite all the hardships, women continue to be resilient and brave. Although society is evolving and it is starting to realise the importance of women empowerment but we still have a long way to go as patriarchy is deeply rooted and we can not get rid of it overnight.