Aurat March is a big event for women activists and feminists in Pakistan, as they celebrate it as an annual event for women’s rights in Pakistan. This event is celebrated with full enthusiasm across all major cities like Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, Multan, and Hyderabad, and many local organisations also celebrate this event with their staff in different cities across Pakistan.
Theme / Slogan
- The central slogan was “Riyasat jawab do, bhook ka hisaab do” which means “State, answer for hunger / account for hunger.”
- Another broader theme used was “Feminism in Times of Crisis”, addressing crises such as economic, environmental, social, and safety crises.
Key Issues / Demands
Aurat March 2023 raised many interlinked issues. Some of the main demands included:
- Food insecurity, inflation, and poverty — their effects especially on women, children, and elderly people.
- Implementation of laws for women and trans people: e.g., the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act 2018, child marriage restraint, and ending forced conversions.
- Safe shelters and support services for women, trans, and non-binary persons in Pakistan.
- Bonded labour, flood rehabilitation, and social security especially for women and marginalised communities.
- Trans rights, ending domestic violence, forced conversions and gender-based injustices.
Significance
- The march emphasised that issues like hunger, inflation, climate change, etc., are not just “economic” or “environmental” issues—they are feminist issues because women are disproportionately affected.
- It also showed a more intersectional approach: including trans people, non-binary people, people from marginalized castes, flood-affected groups, etc.
- It challenged patriarchy not just in individual behavior but in state responsibilities (social safety, law enforcement, public policy).
Aurat March is not just a public demonstration; it is a collective outcry against systemic inequalities that continue to oppress women and trans people and ignore their labour and dignity. These slogans, “Riyasat jawab do, bhook ka hisaab do”, and demonstrations remind the state and society that hunger, displacement, and violence are not isolated issues but deeply gendered realities. Yet, despite the courage of those who march, a deep-rooted insensitivity persists in our society, as our society is divided on such issues. Women and transgender individuals are met with ridicule and violating comments and are harassed physically and virtually. The refusal to listen, to empathise, and to acknowledge the humanity of those most marginalised reveals how far we still have to go, and it will take decades to educate people on such sensitive issues.
The participants of Aurat March and feminists face multiple challenges, like state negligence and societal apathy. Our society is biassed towards women and other genders, and we have to unlearn such inherited biases and behaviours and have to resist their normalised silences and reclaim a future where everybody, every identity, and every voice matters.
