Fiza Nadeem / Sialkot, Punjab, Pakistan
Feminism in Pakistan, few words stir as much debate and discomfort as feminism. For many, it conjures images of rebellion against religion, the breakdown of family structures, or an imitation of the West.
Yet, this perception could not be further from the truth. Feminism is neither anti-men nor anti-culture; it is a call for fairness, dignity, and equal opportunity. The problem lies not in feminism itself, but in how it has been defined and debated within Pakistan’s sociopolitical landscape. The concept has been oversimplified into a battle between “liberal” and “traditional” mindsets.
In reality, Pakistani feminism has always existed in the courage of women who fought for education, justice, and representation, long before the word “feminism” even entered the national discourse. Let’s explore the true face of feminism in Pakistan: what it actually stands for, how it evolved, and why its meaning has been misunderstood.
Actual Feminism vs “Pakistani” Feminism
In Pakistan, the word feminism carries different meanings depending on who you ask. Among educated circles, it represents empowerment, self-reliance, and social justice. But for many conservative or rural settings, it is seen as a threat. Feminism in such society is an imported ideology that challenges religion, morality, and family norms.
For decades, feminism in Pakistan has been viewed through a Western lens. The term itself, translated loosely in local discourse, is often equated with “rebellion” or “disobedience.”
Yet, when we look beyond slogans and stereotypes, it becomes clear that the call for gender justice is not a Western import, it has deep roots within Pakistan’s own social and religious traditions.
Many Pakistani women draw on Qur’anic principles of justice, mutual respect, and accountability to challenge patriarchal interpretations that limit their roles. For them, feminism does not mean rejecting religion; it means reclaiming it from cultural biases that have overshadowed its original spirit.
Figures such as Dr. Riffat Hassan and Asma Barlas have written extensively on how Islam supports women’s empowerment rather than suppresses it.
Are these Movements Inclusive of Rural Women or Only Urban Elites?
While urban activism dominates headlines, the true backbone of Pakistani feminism often goes unnoticed. The millions of women in rural areas who practice equality through resilience, not rhetoric.
Their struggles are less about slogans and more about survival. They may never identify as “feminists,” yet their daily battles against injustice, illiteracy, and poverty embody the very principles feminism stands for.
According to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, nearly 67% of rural women are engaged in agricultural work, often unpaid or underpaid. Despite their economic role, they remain excluded from land ownership, decision-making, and education.
Figures like Mukhtaran Mai represent this silent strength. Similarly, numerous grassroots organizations, such as the Khawendo Kor (Sisters’ Home) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Home-Based Women Workers Federation, advocate for labor rights, literacy, and legal awareness among working-class women.
These movements may lack the visibility of the Aurat March, but their impact runs deep within communities where silence used to be the norm.
The Islamic Perspective
In Pakistan, religion is often used as a weapon to conceal injustice and justify social problems, and feminism has become one of its latest casualties. It is frequently perceived as a threat to religion, as if demanding fairness and dignity for women somehow distances them from faith.
Many scholars and even educated individuals associate feminism with disobedience to husbands, parents, or even to Allah. They argue that feminism encourages women to defy family structures and religious boundaries.
In fact, Islam was the first to stand up for the dignity, autonomy, and rights of women. Long before modern feminist movements, Islam granted women the right to education, property, inheritance, and the freedom to marry by choice.
The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)’s first wife, Khadijah (RA), was a successful businesswoman, and women like Aisha (RA) were renowned for their scholarship and leadership.
“And for women are rights similar to those of men, according to what is equitable” (2:228).
Al-Quran
Yet, over centuries, the interpretation of religion fell into the hands of male scholars and political powers who began to reshape these teachings to serve their own authority.
As a result, many religious spaces today reflect not Islam’s true spirit but the fears of those who wish to maintain control. The anxiety around feminism is, in many ways, the anxiety around women gaining agency.
When a woman is educated, independent, and aware of her rights, she becomes harder to silence and that challenges long-standing hierarchies within both the family and society.
The irony is clear: Islam empowered women, but those interpreting it often restricted them. When seen through its true essence, Islam does not contradict feminism, it completes it.
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The Male Ego and the Fear of Empowered Women
One of the most unspoken dimensions of feminism in Pakistan lies in the male ego. For many men, a woman who earns, speaks up, or steps outside the home is not seen as defiant.
The idea that a man’s worth is tied to his dominance still lingers deep within our social psyche. Many husbands, brothers, and even fathers demand gratitude from women, regardless of whether their basic needs or emotional well-being are being met.
This mindset has given rise to a dangerous belief that a man should “die before his woman steps out of the house.”
Such thinking is more about possession. What is often framed as “honor” is, in truth, a fear that an empowered woman threatens the fragile foundations of male superiority that society has built for centuries.
Feminism Supports Men Actually
Feminism in Pakistan is often misunderstood as a movement that benefits only women, yet its true spirit advocates for the wellbeing of both men and women. An educated wife becomes a partner in progress, supports her husband emotionally, intellectually, and financially when life tests their stability.
An educated daughter can share her father’s burdens, care for aging parents, and offer new perspectives that strengthen family resilience. Studies consistently show that countries where women actively participate in the workforce experience higher growth, lower poverty rates, and stronger social development.
When half of a nation’s population is restricted from education or employment, it is not just women who suffer, the entire country does.
“Feminism is not just the belief that women and men deserve equality. It’s the understanding that we all benefit when women and girls have the same opportunities as men and boys.”
Justin Trudeau, the Prime Minister of Canada
Feminism is Not the Rejection of Men
Feminism has never claimed that women do not need men; it simply insists that women deserve the same freedom to become, to learn, to work, to decide, and to live as men do.
It calls for a world where opportunities are not distributed based on gender but on capability.
Women should be allowed to hold careers, to travel freely, to start businesses, to inherit property, and to have a voice in the decisions that shape their safety, dignity, and future.
The movement’s essence is simple: women are human beings, not extensions of men.
They are not confined to the four walls of a house, nor are they created solely to serve or obey. They have dreams, ambitions, and the right to experience life in all its fullness, and to define themselves beyond the roles assigned to them.
A feminist Pakistan is not one that erases men; it is one that allows both genders to coexist with mutual respect and shared agency.
According to the World Bank, closing the gender gap in the workforce could boost Pakistan’s GDP by over 30%.
In a Nutshell,
Feminism is not anti-family or anti-culture, it is anti-injustice. It is the belief that women, too, are human beings with the right to breathe freely, to walk fearlessly, and to experience life fully. They are not dependents or caretakers alone, but as individuals with dreams, choices, and dignity.
“When women rise, nations rise with them.”
UN Women
