As the world marks International Human Rights Day, coinciding with the conclusion of the global “16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence” campaign, Khawateen Mahaz-e-Amal (Women’s Action Forum – WAF) has expressed deep concern over the findings of the recently released UN Global Report on Femicide, calling the statistics “alarming and heartbreaking.”
WAF reflected on the current situation of women in Pakistan, recalling the constitutional guarantees of gender equality, democratic rights, justice and fundamental freedoms enshrined in the unanimously adopted 1973 Constitution. The organisation noted that despite these commitments, decades of discriminatory and undemocratic constitutional amendments and policies—especially under military regimes—have undermined women’s rights and civic freedoms. WAF reiterated that it has never accepted such measures and never will.
The statement highlighted Pakistan’s participation in key global milestones for women’s rights, including the landmark world conferences on women held in Mexico in 1975 and Beijing in 1995. It also pointed to the upcoming 30th anniversary of Pakistan’s ratification of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), raising critical questions about the State’s sincerity in honouring international commitments. WAF questioned whether Pakistan’s endorsements of global charters and conventions—beginning with the UN Charter in 1947 and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948—were made with genuine intent or simply to comply with international expectations or economic considerations such as the EU’s GSP+ trade incentives.
The organisation expressed particular concern over Pakistan’s longstanding reservation on key clauses of CEDAW and the lack of enabling legislation, including a proper definition of discrimination. As broader human rights protections continue to erode, WAF reaffirmed its solidarity with feminist, democratic and progressive movements across the country.
WAF renewed its call for decisive and measurable action on constitutional rights and international commitments. It urged the government to ensure transparent and credible state reporting to global bodies, integrate women’s empowerment measures into political party manifestos, and prioritize population stabilization. The organisation also stressed the need to repeal discriminatory laws dating back to the Hudood Ordinances of 1979.
Highlighting the socioeconomic challenges facing Pakistani women, WAF drew attention to the feminization of poverty, pervasive underemployment, and the exploitation of women in informal sectors such as agriculture, domestic work and home-based labour. It called for full enforcement of the Right to Education up to age 16, especially for the 26 million out-of-school children—most of them girls—and reforms in curricula promoting respect, inclusion and life skills.
The statement further emphasized universal access to primary and reproductive healthcare, gender-responsive climate financing, and the inclusion of women in senior decision-making roles across economic, health, education and environmental sectors. WAF underscored the urgent need to protect women from gender-based violence, including femicide, and to safeguard their rights against religious extremism, coercion, sexism and misogyny.
WAF concluded that Pakistani women must no longer be denied their basic human right to life, dignity and freedom from violence.
