Why politicians are insensitive in giving statements against women?
Politicians continued to appear insensitive in giving statements about women as Imran Khan and Khawaja Asif delivered objectionable comments that objectified women.
Women have once again become a target in a verbal fight between top politicians as Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan hurled a ‘bound to be harassed’ remark against woman journalist Gharidah Farooqi, on the other hand, Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) leader Khawaja Asif has also mocked the PTI chief by using the name of lawmakers on the reserved seats for women.
Politicians continued to appear insensitive in giving statements about women as Imran Khan and Khawaja Asif delivered objectionable comments that objectified women. Surprisingly, Asif’s statement was apparently endorsed by PML-N VP Maryam Nawaz.
Imran Khan was quoted as that he would issue special instructions for his supporters for stopping the harassment of female journalists in the PTI rallies. Later, he remarked about Gharidah Farooqi, “If she would invade male-dominated spaces, then she is bound to be harassed.”
He also said that he could not stop social media trolling as they were not under anyone’s control.
The PTI chief delivered the remarks while speaking to a delegation from the National Press Club (NPC) and the Rawalpindi Islamabad Union of Journalists (RIUJ) in Islamabad.
His statement was widely criticised by all segments of society.
Reacting to Khan’s remarks, anchorperson Gharidah Farooqi told VoicePk that Imran Khan’s remarks against her are tantamount to incitement of violence in a civilized society. Women journalists rallied to her support against the former PM’s misogynistic views, she added.
However, Farooqi was not considering launching a complaint with the police or the office of the anti-harassment ombudsperson saying any such decision would be made after consulting her family, colleagues and legal team, if it all.
She termed the targetting of women journalists as a new form of media censorship.
“In the digital space, character assassination and harassment is an attempt to silence critical voices of women journalists,” she pointed out.
On the other hand, Khawaja Asif shared a post on Twitter to mock Imran Khan, saying that the PTI chairman would soon contest elections on the reserved seats for women. Maryam Nawaz retweeted the post with a laughing emoji.
— Maryam Nawaz Sharif (@MaryamNSharif) October 19, 2022
Analysts said objectification of women in political statements should be condemned and stopped by taking effective actions. They said the politicians have once claimed the empowerment of women but on the other hand, they use the name of the woman as a derogatory term to malign the rivals.
They added that women politicians of all political parties should also take a firm stand to not allow anyone to objectify women in their speeches and conversations.
