Small Victories
THE old stereotype of woman as the mother of generations and nations, as a junior partner of and a second fiddle to the more empowered man, is coming under increasing pressure. Above the worthy/unworthy, genuine/ condescending titles of honour bestowed upon her as nation-builder and homemaker, exposure and experience has emboldened her, as an individual, to assert her right to choice.
This change is reflected in the diversified topics of discussion chosen by various organisations for this year’s International Women’s Day that was observed yesterday. The UN’s theme this year was violence against women, but the day was used to discuss so much else. The woman as nation-builder was very much there, but proudly and confidently flanked by other women, such as the entrepreneur the bank is ready to trust with its loan. These images show that the argument which invokes the conventional model to deter and intimidate those who want to move forward is more determinedly countered today than ever before. Women all over are emerging out of their erstwhile supporting roles and acting as individuals who are setting standards, fixing objectives and leading the thrust for change.
These small victories have come after long, fierce battles. In Pakistan, in a tribute to the rights activists’ consistent efforts, parliament has in recent years taken up some serious legislation to benefit women. In a country where discrimination against women has over time been institutionalised in legal code, the recent laws have been described by some activists as a real leap. But if not a huge stride forward, these certainly signify progress. Whereas all forward looking legislation affects women, specifically, the Prevention of Anti-Women Practices (Criminal Law Amendment) Act 2011 and the Protection against Harassment of Women at the Workplace Act 2010 are two laws Pakistani women had long been fighting for. This shows that there was greater emphasis on women’s rights during the assemblies’ current term, though it actually reflected an accentuated expression of the tone set by the previous assembly that functioned from 2002 to early 2008. This must be interpreted as a sign of maturing of politics, tempered and nourished as it has been by the rights movement in the country. On the other hand the activists must also keep in mind the tendency of governments and legislators to appease intimidators at the expense of women as well as other ‘weak’ groups such as religious minorities. There is only one way for a society seeking change to counter such an approach, which in turn is also the route to greater freedoms: keep on moving forward.
PML-N MANIFESTO
THE PML-N’s manifesto has been unveiled and the party claims to have kept its goals both realistic and very much achievable. But are they? Going through the list of pledges, the PML-N appears to have described a country that everyone would like to see five years from now: slowly sorting out structural impediments to growth, for example, the power sector; increasing basic services delivery by doubling allocations to health and education; and addressing sundry political challenges (new provinces) and even civil-military relations (focusing on “seniority and merit” in appointing service chiefs). The gap, though, between what is desired and what actually transpires is often very large. Start with the obvious benchmark for the PML-N’s ability to deliver on electoral promises: the performance of its government in Punjab over the past five years.
The PML-N has promised to raise tax-to-GDP ratio from nine to 15 per cent over five years, while, oddly enough, promising to cut taxes across the board — presumably because a six per cent rise in the tax-to-GDP ratio can be achieved, in the PML-N’s thinking at least, by closing loopholes in the tax laws and documenting the informal sector. But how much has the Punjab government done to help boost overall tax revenues in the past five years? Agricultural income tax, a provincial issue, is still a taboo subject and when the federal government had mooted the idea of a Reformed General Sales Tax, designed specifically to help document the economy and business chain better, the PML-N rode to the defence of its trader base. Doubling expenditures on health and education can also sound like a very promising measure — though really a worn-out pledge of many a government — but after the 18th Amendment, both subjects are in the provincial domain. So what is the PML-N’s promise supposed to achieve? Similarly, going through the list of economic proposals, they are long on promise and short on specifics, particularly on how political resistance to reforms will be overcome. And perhaps most stunningly, militancy continues to be treated by the PML-N as a side issue that can be addressed through jobs and growth.
KCR PROJECT AT A STAND STILL
WILL the revival of the Karachi Circular Railway remain a pipe dream in a city in dire need of a mass transit system for millions of commuters? Over the years, there have only been half-hearted moves to resuscitate the KCR. The question at the moment is whether the government’s decision on Wednesday to exempt the KCR from a number of taxes to make it financially viable will help expedite the project. Undertaken during the Ayub era, the KCR was a useful project. It transported workers from the outlying colonies to the industrial area, which was connected to the harbour and to the railway main line for cargo movement. Over the decades it suffered ruination, especially because of ticketless travelling. More important, the city grew rapidly, and what was a railway line on the periphery now runs more or less through the city. This is an advantage and should be utilised to ease pressure on the buses and other type of vehicles to give Karachi a mass transit system, even if in an embryonic form.
The Japanese International Cooperation Agency has shown more interest in the KCR than the governments in Islamabad and Karachi have. The JICA offer has been there for more than a decade, but somehow there has been a considerable lack of interest at our end. It has offered a soft loan — $2.4bn at 0.2 mark-up payable in 40 years — but bureaucratic delays and the absence of political will have stood in the way. When — and if — completed in 2017, the KCR’s first phase, partly elevated and partly underground, will carry 700,000 passengers daily. A general election is round the corner, and it would be a pity if bureaucratic or other administrative changes serve to delay a project meant to ease the pressure constantly witnessed on Karachi’s roads.