Imagine a Pakistan where all women could log on to the internet without fear of abuse, go to a police station and be heard without being judged, and do the same work for the same pay without being harassed. That picture is not a dream but the basis of human rights and justice in any society. It is certainly not too good to be true. This year’s United Nations theme for International Women's Day 2026 is “Action and Justice.” “For ALL Women and Girls” demands that these issues be addressed as obligations, not aspirations.

While countless examples celebrate women who are empowered and successful, this piece is about the ordinary woman who survives every day under the weight of stigma, and whose struggles define the true state of justice in Pakistan. It is ironic that we are still arguing about women’s basic human rights — their right to safety, education, economic participation, inheritance, equality, and dignity — at a time when people are developing artificial intelligence, planning life on Mars, and experimenting with technologies that attempt to communicate with the dead. This is a clear paradox. While technology advances rapidly, social change remains painfully slow. The problems women face today should have been resolved long ago. How can living on Mars amaze us when half the population on Earth is not treated equally? How can AI transform lives when stigma continues to silence women? Can science and technology truly transform institutions and cultures that reinforce these stigmas?

According to the Social Sustainable Development Organisation’s report, from January to June 2025 Pakistan recorded 20,698 cases of violence against women across five provinces — an average of 114 cases every day. Punjab reported the highest number with 15,376 cases, followed by Sindh with 3,709, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with 875, Islamabad with 423, and Balochistan with 315. Domestic violence remains one of the most common forms of abuse, but is often dismissed as a “family” or “private” matter. Women who attempt to report it frequently encounter apathy from legal institutions, judgment from society, and pressure from their families. Divorce, abandonment, or even murder become the fate of many.

Even after death, stigma rarely leaves their stories behind. Samia Sarwar, Noor Muqadam, Sarah Inam, Sana Yousaf, and Saima Ali are only a few of the reported cases. Countless other victims remain unnamed. In response to the crisis, the National Assembly passed the Domestic Violence (Prevention and Protection) Bill, 2025. While the law offers protection and rehabilitation for victims, the real challenge lies in eliminating the stigma that discourages women from reporting abuse. Enforcement, therefore, remains crucial.

Digital spaces, which should empower women, have also become platforms for abuse. The Digital Rights Foundation reported in its 2025 annual report that it received nearly 3,171 cases of technology-facilitated gender-based violence in Pakistan during 2024, despite massive underreporting. Surveys suggest that 70 per cent of women in Pakistan have experienced some form of online harassment, including unwanted messages, cyberbullying, cyberstalking, phishing, and fake images intended to shame them.

Online abuse affects women’s jobs, relationships and mental health. Many withdraw from digital platforms altogether, losing opportunities to speak, work and participate. Persistent harassment can lead to anxiety and depression, yet mental health remains heavily stigmatised in Pakistan. Women who seek help are often labelled “weak” or “unstable”. This double stigma — first for being abused and then for seeking help — deepens their isolation. Pakistan’s mental health infrastructure also falls short, with only around 500 professional psychiatrists serving a population exceeding 240 million. Lack of family support further prevents many women from receiving help for trauma.

The same barriers appear in economic participation. Women make up less than 25 per cent of the workforce in South Asia, one of the lowest rates globally. Cultural expectations that women should remain within the home, combined with harassment, pay gaps, and limited mobility, create formidable obstacles. Education also remains a concern, as nearly 22 per cent of girls aged five to sixteen still lack access to school, with many dropping out at puberty.

Inheritance rights present another challenge. Although Islamic law entitles women to inherit property, many lose their rightful share because they are pressured to surrender it, deceived, or excluded altogether. Cultural stigma discourages women from claiming inheritance for fear of being labelled selfish or disruptive to family harmony. In rural areas, women are often expected to relinquish land entirely. Denying inheritance is not only unjust but also reinforces financial dependence and entrenches male dominance.

Stigmas in Pakistan form interconnected chains that bind women at every stage of life. Honour silences survivors and forces them to endure injustice in the name of respect. Ambition is viewed as defiance, empowerment as liability, and online visibility as danger. Speaking out against abuse is punished rather than encouraged. Seeking mental health care is labelled as weakness, while inheritance rights are undermined through coercion and shame.

These are not traditions or values; they are systems of control disguised as culture. Together, they create a pattern that keeps women invisible in boardrooms, unheard in courts, vulnerable online, and excluded from economic power.

On International Women’s Day 2026, we must remember that stigmas are chains, not values. They prevent women from reporting crimes, entering leadership spaces, claiming digital platforms, accessing mental health care, and receiving their rightful inheritance. Pakistan can honour its women only by breaking these chains — not merely in words but through action. Women deserve a future where ambition is unquestioned, visibility is safe, mental health is not stigmatised, inheritance is protected, and dignity is unconditional. The future we owe belongs to the ordinary woman who carries stigma in silence every day. Her resilience should be the true measure of justice in Pakistan.

Dr. Ayesha AshfaqThe writer is the Chairperson and Associate Professor at the Department of Media & Development Communication, University of the Punjab, Lahore.

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