Women Democratic Front

Last updated
Women Democratic Front (WDF)
English name in Urdu script:
ویمن ڈیموکریٹک فرنٹ
Formation2018
TypeWomen's organization
Focus Socialist Feminism, supports women for healing from oppression
Location
General Secretary
 Alya Bakhshal
President
 Ismat Shahjahan [1]
Website wdfpk.org//

Women Democratic Front (WDF) is an independent socialist-feminist organization based in Pakistan. It was founded in the federal capital Islamabad on March 8, 2018, [2] by hundreds of delegates from Sindh, Balochistan, Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. [1]

Contents

WDF aims to unite women across the country to build a socialist feminist [3] movement to transform the International Women's Day celebration in Pakistan into real means of action. [1] The manifesto and constitution of WDF strives to a broad-based struggle against capitalism, patriarchy, religious fascism, national oppression and Pakistan's authoritarian political system. [4]

The Front was inaugurated on International Women's Day, 2018, [5] when a large number of students, working women, intellectuals and political activists gathered for Aurat Azadi March, 2018.

Background

WDF is a women's organization based in Pakistan which aims to build an organic socialist-feminist mass resistance movement by bringing together struggles of working-class women (doing mental or physical labour) from rural and urban areas. WDF adopts democratic and peaceful and means of resistance. [6]

Foundation

WDF was formally established as a resistance movement on International Women's Day International Working on March 8, 2018, in Islamabad at a foundation congress by delegates from provincial units which were functional since 2014. [7] The congress laid the foundation of Aurat Azadi March (Women's Freedom March) in Pakistan. [8]

Ideology

WDF considers violence, discrimination and patriarchal oppression as part of overall oppression and exploitation of the masses in Pakistan on the basis of class, gender and nation – pillars of capitalism, imperialism, feudalism and religious extremism. WDf is committed to continue its struggle until the women's right to life, their emancipation from all forms of oppression, progress and peace; and to establish people's democracy in Pakistan. Their ideology is described by socialist-feminism and history of women's political struggles. [9]

Organizational structure

WDF is a federal organization with country-wide presence as four national units in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, Punjab/Islamabad; Baluchistan and a federal unit. WDF also aims to make units in the disputed territories of Gilgit-Baltistan, Kashmir to organize women of these areas making them part of the movement. [10]

WDF has following intertwined elected structures:

These structures exist at three levels of district, federal and provincial/national levels.

Leadership

The Federal Cabinet of WDF comprises five members:

President: Ismat Shahjahan [8]

General Secretary: Alya Bakhshal [12]

Secretary Information and Publishing: Tooba Syed [4]

Secretary Education and Art: Shahzadi Hussain [10]

Secretary Finance: Lubna Kifayat

Jalila Haider, one of the provincial president of WDF, [10] [13] from Quetta, Balochistan was named in the 100 Women (BBC) in 2019 which is a list about inspiring and influential women compiled by BBC [14] [15]

Nargis Afsheen Khattak (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chapter of WDF) [16]

Citations/Sources

This article was created during ‘WikiGap’ [17] event, in Islamabad, Pakistan on 11,12 October 2019, organized by Swedish Embassy. [18] [19] [20]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fazal-ur-Rehman (politician)</span> Pakistani politician

Fazal-ur-Rehman is a Pakistani politician who is the president of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F). He is also the president of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), a coalition of political parties which ousted then prime minister Imran Khan through a no-confidence motion in 2022. He was a member of the National Assembly between 1988 and 2018, and the Leader of the Opposition from 2004 to 2007. He is a supporter of the Taliban government in Afghanistan and has demanded for its international recognition. In the 1980s, he was part of the Movement for the Restoration of Democracy (MRD), which was formed to end the military regime of General Zia-ul-Haq.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zari Sarfaraz</span>

Begum Zari Sarfaraz was a noted early political activist and committed social worker of North-West Frontier Province, Pakistan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Awami Workers Party</span> Political party in Pakistan

The Awami Workers Party is a left-wing socialist political party in Pakistan. The party seeks to unify the struggles of workers, peasants, students, women and ethnic and religious minorities in Pakistan under the banner of a democratic and socialist political system. After the death of the AWP's founding leader Fanoos Gujjar in 2018, Senior Vice President Yousuf Mustikhan became its president.

Farzana Bari is a Pakistani feminist, human rights activist and academic who served as the director of the Gender Studies Department at Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad Pakistan.

Nigar Ahmed was a Pakistani women’s rights activist who founded the Women’s Action Forum and Aurat Foundation. She died aged 72.

Fanoos Gujjar, was a left-wing Pakistani politician from Buner, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He was the founding chairperson and president of Awami Workers Party. He spent his life in grass root struggle for the rights of minorities, workers, peasants, women and students.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aurat March</span> Annual Pakistani womens rights marches

The Aurat March is an annual socio-political demonstration in Pakistani cities such as Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Multan, Peshawar and Quetta to observe International Women's Day.

Ismat Raza Shahjahan is a socialist-feminist political leader from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. She is the president of Women Democratic Front (WDF), the deputy general-secretary of the Awami Workers Party (AWP), and a leading member of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jalila Haider</span> Pakistani human rights lawyer

Jalila Haider is a Pakistani human rights attorney and political activist from Quetta in Balochistan, Pakistan. She is known to be the first woman lawyer from Quetta's Hazara minority, and an advocate for the rights of her persecuted community. She is a member of the Awami Workers Party (AWP), leader of the Balochistan chapter of Women Democratic Front (WDF), and also an activist in the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM). She founded a non-profit organisation, "We the Humans – Pakistan," which aims to empower local communities in Balochistan by strengthening opportunities for vulnerable women and children.

Tooba Syed is a Pakistani feminist organiser, writer, and gender researcher. She is the secretary information and publishing of the feminist organization Women Democratic Front.

Ammar Rashid is a Pakistani researcher, academic, political worker and organizer of the left-wing party Awami Workers Party. He has written many columns for Daily Times (Pakistan) and Dawn News. He has taught as faculty of Centre of excellence for Gender Studies in Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan and Pakistan Institute of Development Economics. He ran for the National Assembly seat NA-53 in the Islamabad capital territory for 2018 Pakistani general election. He is senior researcher at Heartfile.

The Aurat Azadi March was started in 2018 in Pakistan by members of Women Democratic Front, other organizations like Women's Action Forum, Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls alliance, Young Teachers Association, Home-Based Women Workers Union, Awami Workers Party, Awami Jamhoori Party also joined the march on International Women's Day in Islamabad. Aurat Azadi March and Aurat March are organized by different groups of women since 2018. Aurat Azadi March is organized by group of socialist feminists whereas Aurat March is organized by group of liberal feminists. Aurat March was also started the same year by the group of individual women known as "Hum Aurtein" collective in Karachi and Lahore.

Alya Bakhshal is a Pakistani feminist, political worker and organizer. She is general secretary of the Women Democratic Front and women secretary of Awami Workers Party, Sindh.

Amna Mawaz Khan is a Pakistani classical dancer of Bharatnatyam, theatre artist, feminist and political worker. She is founding member of Women Democratic Front.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Next Pakistani Senate election</span>

The Next Pakistani Senate election is scheduled to be held by March 2024. 52 out of 100 incumbent Senators including 4 FATA senators will Retire after completing their 6 year terms. After the merger of FATA with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the remaining 4 out of 8 seats will also be abolished. 48 seats from four Provinces and the Federal Capital will be up for election.

Yousuf Mustikhan was a Pakistani politician who was the president of the Awami Workers Party.

National Women's Day in Pakistan is 12 February of each year, chosen to mark the first women's march in Pakistan against the Zia ul Haq's military regime. The date 12 February 1983 is significant in the history of women's rights in Pakistan because the first such march was brutally suppressed by the martial law enforced by the police of General Zia ul Haq's regime. The Day is over three weeks before International Women's Day when the Aurat Marches take place in Pakistan.

The 2022 Azadi March I was a protest march initiated by the ousted former Pakistani prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party chairman Imran Khan against the government of his successor, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. On 24 May 2022, Khan announced a long march towards Islamabad starting on 25 May 2022. Khan lead the march from Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where his provincial government helped him. Senior PTI members lead the march from Lahore, the capital of Punjab.

Progressive Students Federation (PrSF) is a left-wing socialist students’ organisation based in Pakistan. PrSF was formed in 2014 in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa but was later joined various factions of National Students Federation in Punjab and Sindh. The organisation has mobilised students and youth all over Pakistan for democratisation of campuses, restoration of student unions and universal education.

The 2022 Azadi March II was a protest march led by Imran Khan, former prime minister of Pakistan, from Lahore to Islamabad against the Shehbaz Sharif ministry. It succeeded 2022 Azadi March I, which took place in May.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Women's Democratic Front launched to build a vibrant, socialist and a feminist movement". Daily Times. 9 March 2018.
  2. ↑ Ali, Hasan (28 September 2021). "Pakistani Women Are Leading the Struggle for Human Rights".
  3. ↑ She Who Struggles.
  4. 1 2 "WDF demands to repeal ban on media coverage of KP's girls' schools | Pakistan Today". www.pakistantoday.com.pk.
  5. ↑ "Reflection of increasing awareness, acceptance of women's rights". www.thenews.com.pk.
  6. ↑ "Women Democratic Front to be launched on March 8". Awami Workers Party, Pakistan. 14 January 2018.
  7. ↑ "What made Aurat March possible? | Dialogue | thenews.com.pk". www.thenews.com.pk.
  8. 1 2 "Pakistan – Aurat Azadi March: WDF launched with a pledge to fight patriarchy, social injustice and violence - Europe Solidaire Sans Frontières". www.europe-solidaire.org.
  9. ↑ "'State policies, laws discriminatory towards women'". Business Recorder. 9 March 2018.
  10. 1 2 3 "Leadership". Women Democratic Front.
  11. ↑ Correspondent, The Newspaper's Staff (12 November 2023). "'Women congress' decries patriarchal laws, forced conversion". DAWN.COM.
  12. ↑ "'Liberal feminism not enough to address social oppression women face' | ePaper | DAWN.COM". epaper.dawn.com.
  13. ↑ "Azaranica: Women Democratic Front's Jalila Haider announced indefinite hunger strike against the on-going target killings of Hazaras in Quetta". Azaranica. 28 April 2018.
  14. ↑ "BBC 100 Women 2019: Who is on the list?". 16 October 2019.
  15. ↑ "Hazara woman from Pakistan named in BBC's 100 Women of 2019". www.geo.tv.
  16. ↑ "K-P women lament lack of rights". The Express Tribune. 9 March 2020. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  17. ↑ "WikiGap Challenge - Meta". meta.wikimedia.org.
  18. ↑ Shahid, Jamal (13 October 2019). "Volunteers gather to add information online about Pakistani women". DAWN.COM.
  19. ↑ "'WikiGap' event by Swedish Embassy puts more Pakistani women on Wikipedia". Islamabad Scene. 13 October 2019.
  20. ↑ "Content added to Wikipedia about Pakistani women". www.thenews.com.pk.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.