Aurat March, which is now an official women's day ritual in Pakistan took place in karachi in which many

people from different societies and beliefs gathered every year for one thing, to support women gender
in all aspects and to highlight and stand against thoes who are treating her lesser then she is. The theme
of 2023 aurat march in Islamabad was "Feminization of climate justice" which aimed to describe climate
justice from a feminist lens. Aurat March rallies have courted controversy in the past because of banners
and placards waved by participants that raise subjects such as divorce, sexual harassment, and
menstruation. Despite the challenges, organizers maintain the march aims to raise awareness of
pressing issues faced by Pakistani women, including violence and sexual exploitation. Same happened in
2023 march where marchers were baton charged by police and faced many complications but still didn't
backed off. The organizer of aurat march told in clear words that we have right and we will take our
rights. nothing can change our minds not even security issues we are facing right now. “Inflation, rising
prices, food prices, poverty, the effect of climate change on women’s lives, the effects of floods on
women, all these are issues that we are discussing this year,”

Sheema Kermani, a prominent Pakistani dancer, social media activist, and an organizer of the march,
told Arab News. “This time our emphasis is on poverty,” she added, explaining that soaring inflation
affects women and their health.

Mira Sethi, a Pakistani actress, and author, rejected the perception that only elite women attend the
march every year.

“People have come here from all over, there are “surkhas” [leftists] here as well, people from normal
everyday life as here as well, women, the elderly and young people, all are here".

Maqsood Ali Khan, a retired civil servant, said he had accompanied his wife and two daughters to the
march, as a society we couldn’t progress without women’s participation.

“The country cannot progress if you keep 50 percent of the population at home".

As it is mentioned above that 2023 march's highlights, aurat march is no harm to anyone as far as it
goes by the rules of our religion and society. Calling out for thr rights of oppressed women ? what can be
bad in that ! standing up for thoes who faces violence and are harassed because she is a women and she
has to face these problems makes us feel pity. but taking this opportunity to another path just to show
supremacy of women to get man on their knees is not something that should be done. but in that and
on going trends as much as this is a positive impact for them , this is also spreading negativity and
enthilicity because of vulnerable slogans and banners. As much as this march carries hope and Justice
for the women gender, it also highlighting whole loads of negativity.
The conflict between women and security police
Islamabad
Aurat March 2023 became a reason for the clash between security police and women who were
gathered to march.

On asking for permission for an Aurat March, the hearing of the case was conducted in Islamabad high
court where advocate Nazakat Hussain Abbasi said that "According to the constitution of Pakistan, the
religion of this state is Islam, so in order to provide license, instead of considering article 16, it is being
neglected.

While Chief justice of the high court, Amir Farooq gave his remarks and said that "the placards and
banners are a matter of the past. Furthermore he enquired "what are you worried about now? Hasn't
the freedom of assembly of the constitution of Pakistan provided them the rights? To which Nazakat
Hussain Abbasi advocate stated that "freedom of assembly has made few restrictions, which is not
possible in the Islamic state". Reference (BOL TV)

In an interview, Organizers of the Aurat March said that they applied for the NOC (no objection
certificate) on 6 January, 2 months before the Aurat March. They even met the district administration
twice to discuss the matter but got no good response from the police authorities.

One of the organizers of the Aurat March, Huda Bhurgri said that, on the day of the Aurat March, two
police officers came and told us that there are some security issues, while we knew that they were doing
all this just to waste our time". She also compared the Aurat March to the Haya March as they were
being provided the NOC. (Reference the diplomat.com)

Most of the news channels reported including geo news, bol tv, and aaj tv that women attacked the
police authorities during the Aurat March in response to the placement of barbed wire alongside the
road which was leading to the venue. For hours, march wasn't allowed to proceed to their destination D-
chowk.

One of the reporters of GEO NEWS reported that majority of the women were marching on an Aurat
March including transgender a few of them were being stopped by the police authorities but after a
while, they were allowed to come. They also added that the participants and organizers were batons
charged by the police but on contrary, it was seen that the women and media persons were grappling.

According to the reporter of AAJ News, during the grappling and attack from women, a female reporter
of a private channel was being tortured and got hospitalized, a cameraman's head got exploded, and 2
cameramen got injured.

Above mentioned evidence and reports shows that there is no respect barrier between men and women
anymore. Where women's march is supposed to be a march to stand for their rights, shameful and awful
banners and placards are being carried by the protestants, and weird dances are being performed by
women and transgenders. It was the first time in the past 6 years, that a harsh clash happened between
men and women which is surely the worst thing. To continue the Aurat March, men and women both
need to know the context and real meaning of the Aurat March. The main purpose aims and objectives
should be clear when it comes to standing for rights. Women should protest for their actual rights to live
in society, instead of carrying senseless and inappropriate placards and banners that don't even make
any sense.

Aurat march vs haya march

As aurat march has been held in pakistan since 2018, most of the people are not truly happy because of
the subjects that have been raised in aurat march such as divorce , sexual harrasment, menstruations .
People accuse those femininst and organisations for promoting western and liberal culture and
disrespect religious and cultural values of pakistan. They made such placards which offended a lot of
people like " mera jism meri marzi" that's where aurat march has become very controversial and
participants in aurat march has started facing backlash . A lot of people think that this is not our culture
and this is not what our religion teaches us . So many religious groups such as jamiat ahle sunnat wal
jamaat and jamaat e islami decided to start another march which is called haya march . Haya march has
been held on the same day. In haya march 2023, all participant were women who were fully covered
and they were promoting their hijaabs. Plus those women raised their voices for their rights which was
given by islam many years ago but their point of view was totally different from that liberal aurat
march . They also made some play cards like " proud to be a housewife" , " strong families make strong
society" , "mera hijaab mery rab ka hukum" , "aurat naam hai parday ka" , "haya hamara waqar hai" etc .
All play cards and rallies were organised according to pakistani religion and pakistani culture. Even
government has been supporting this march while the lahore high court has banned aurat march in
lahore . These religious parties hold peaceful haya march in different cities of pakistan . Such activities
should be encouraged by the government of islamic rebulic which promotes culture and religion of a
muslim country . Because islam has already given all the rights to the women and prioritise them above
all the genders .

Aiman’s part
Aurat march and it's illogical slogans/banners:-

The participants of aurat march had united under the loosely defined banner of ‘unity’, ‘empowerment’,
and ‘reclaiming public spaces’. In successive Marches, organisers circulated a different theme for the
event every year. This year’s slogan, “riyasat jawaab do, bhook ka hisaab do” [The state must give
answers, give accountability for our hunger], draws our attention to the state’s failure to provide and
protect.

What is fascinating is that the mainstream understanding of the nature and demands of the Aurat
March is overwhelmingly informed by the popularity of a select few posters that are debated on social
media sites and national television. The anger towards the posters and the overall movement has over
the years.

Among the posters that raised a social media storm was “apna khana khud garam karo” [heat your own
food] poster that was spotted at the aurat March 2020. The poster, along with many other similar ones
in different Marches, was heavily criticised for its irrelevant demands — it was accused of lacking the
seriousness of the March by highlighting matters that basically are ‘non-issues’ in a country where
women were still being murdered in the name of honour like qandeel Baloch's example fits perfectly
overhere.

Another popular one following the same features of the “heat your own food” poster was “mujhay kia
maloom tumhara moza kahan hai?” [How would I know where your sock is?].

Amna’s part

The media coverage of Aurat March in Pakistan has been a topic of debate in recent years. Some media
outlets have provided comprehensive coverage of the event, highlighting the issues and demands of the
participants, and giving a platform to women's voices. They have also covered the reactions of various
stakeholders, including politicians, civil society, and religious leaders, providing a nuanced perspective
on the movement and its impact.

Overall, the media coverage of Aurat March in Pakistan has been mixed, with some outlets providing
balanced and nuanced coverage, while others have taken a more polarized and sensationalist approach.
However, the movement has succeeded in generating national and international attention towards
women's rights and gender equality in Pakistan.

First, it's worth noting that media in Pakistan is diverse, with a mix of state-run, privately owned, and
independent media outlets. Some of the largest media groups in Pakistan include Geo News, Dawn
News, and ARY News.
In general, mainstream media in Pakistan has tended to be more conservative and traditional, reflecting
the dominant cultural and religious values of the society. This has influenced the coverage of Aurat
March in different ways.

On the one hand, some media outlets have been supportive of the movement and its goals. For
example, in 2019, Dawn News published an editorial in support of Aurat March, stating that "the
movement has the potential to push the boundaries of what is acceptable in public discourse and create
a space for women's voices to be heard." Similarly, Geo News has provided extensive coverage of the
marches, with on-the-ground reporting and interviews with participants.

On the other hand, there have also been instances of biased and sensationalist coverage of Aurat March
in Pakistan. For example, in 2021, some media outlets focused on the controversial slogans and banners
used in the marches, portraying them as being against cultural values and norms. In 2019, a female
journalist was attacked and harassed by participants in the Lahore march, leading to widespread
condemnation from media organizations and civil society.