'Opponents of Aurat Azadi March oblivious to suffering of women'.

Byline: Aamir Yasin

ISLAMABAD -- Civil society and Aurat Azadi March organisers on Friday rejected what they called religious and rightwing political parties' propaganda and threats against the march and reiterated to continue their struggle for basic rights.

At a joint press conference, the speakers called on the local administration to take measures to ensure it was held peacefully without any interference from rightwing elements.

The press conference was organised by Aurat Azadi March in collaboration with Women's Democratic Front (WDF), Awami Workers Party (AWP), Women's Action Forum, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), Mazdoor Kissan Party (MKP) and Progressive Students Federation and others.

They said opponents of the march were oblivious to the reality and suffering of Pakistani women who had been violently victimised and repressed for decades in all walks of life.

They said the march was taking place because of the stark gender inequalities in Pakistan from mass female illiteracy to their economic exploitation within and outside home, to rising domestic and public violence, high levels of child and forced marriages to denial of inheritance and property rights and exclusion in decision-making structures at all levels.

Organisers and civil society representatives say all demands are well within the rights granted to women by Islam and Constitution

The rising feminist movement is an expression of the reality that women are no longer willing to accept patriarchal oppression in the public and private sphere and are now increasing resisting violence and repression they have been undergoing for decades.

Those who are alarmed by these changes must accept that women are not going to retreat into their homes or from claiming their inalienable rights anymore, they added.

WDF President and Aurat Azadi March organiser Ismat Shahjahan said women from all walks of life were on the streets protesting for their rights and it was the responsibility of the state to listen to them, address their demands and come up with a policy framework for women's emancipation and progress.

She said rising violence from an overdeveloped patriarchal structure had made women's lives miserable which was why they were now speaking out in such large numbers.

She said the anti-march propaganda was an orchestrated campaign of defamation similar to what took place against all people's movements in Pakistan by feminist...