“When you are a woman in a male-dominated society, you have to work twice as hard to prove yourself,” observed Asma Jahangir, the late human rights lawyer whose tireless advocacy exposed systemic injustice. In a world where every institution, policy, and social norm—whether tangible or intangible—is infused with gendered expectations, the status of women remains precarious across all dimensions of life. Yet, in Pakistan, this fragility of position deepens into a crisis of empowerment and protection.

Recently, the Thomson Reuters Foundation ranked Pakistan the sixth most dangerous country for women, citing rampant sexual violence, honor killings, domestic abuse, and a lack of legal recourse. If Pakistan’s men already face significant risks, one can only imagine where women stand: at the sharp end of cultural prejudices, legal loopholes, and societal neglect. In decisions from the household to the national assembly, women in Pakistan struggle to secure a meaningful voice. In corporate boardrooms, their presence is often symbolic rather than transformative. In local councils, their candidacies encounter intimidation and threats, not to mention the pervasive “glass ceiling” that stalls careers before they truly begin.

Yet these statistics only scratch the surface. In rural districts, where about two-thirds of Pakistani women live, literacy rates lag dramatically behind men’s. Without education, economic independence remains........

© The Spine Times