From 25 November (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) to 10 December (Human Rights Day), the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign is a time to galvanize action to end violence against women and girls around the world. This year’s theme is to “End Gender-Based Violence in the World of Work”. These 16 days we will be sharing the stories of our very own ‘Siyani Sahelian’ (Wise Friends) who have faced violence and freed themselves through education. There are many more like them but they are faceless; these have come to the forefront due to their deeds and images.

Razia Fatima is a 14-year-old girl living in a slum area in Rahim Yar Khan. Her father is bedridden with deteriorating health and her mother earns minimal wages. She has one elder brother but he does not live at home nor is able to contribute financially to his family. Her mother is quite aged but still works as a domestic labourer, earning below living wage, to at least feed her husband and daughter. Razia had to drop out of school due to lack of access to public schools in her locality, having only one private school in the vicinity for which her family could not afford to pay the high fees. Instead, Razia was forced to be employed as a child domestic labourer due to the desperate circumstances she was in and lack of other opportunities. As a child labourer, Razia was not only exploited as cheap labour but also faced physical violence and few incidences of sexual harassment by male bosses.

Razia was a quick thinker and knew this was not the life she wanted to lead: she needed safety from abuse and sexual harassment. With hardly any education to fall back on and thus limited dignified career options, she knew her means to empowerment was through second chance education. She enrolled in ITA’s Siyani Sahelian program, looking to finally attain an education to earn a respectable livelihood and be in a position to stand against any violence against her or other girls and women. Razia has been so empowered through her education that when she was recently aggressively approached by her family members and they were forcing her to quit her education to ‘protect’ the family name, she confidently responded by stating that she had a right to education under the law and nobody was allowed to keep her from it anymore. 

*Note: Names have been changed to protect the identity of the mentioned persons.

Disclaimer: The views expressed here are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of Idara-e-Taleem-o-Aagahi (ITA)