Aurat March Kashmir- Why It Is Necessary And The Subsequent Challenges.
A week ago I came across a tweet which said that Kashmir needs an “Aurat March” similar to that in Pakistan. I was actually very much impressed by the fact that we are finally having discourses based on feminist movements. I actually very much support of idea of Aurat March Kashmir Edition. I’ll be making few arguments in this article in which I will stress upon the need of Women March Kashmir and the challenges it’ll have to overcome and some things it’ll have to take care of.
Aurat March was started in Pakistan and soon it spread on social media and elsewhere like wildfire for good as well as bad reasons. It’s criticized for its sexist sloganeering and problematic posters. Some said that it just exposed the “toxic” and “fragile” masculinity, while others argued that the march diverted from its basic idea, some argued that it was an elite and “liberal” driven march and barely addressed the basic problems women face. The bottom line is that women came out and spoke up which is what really matters.
However when we talk of Aurat March in context of Kashmir, things get complex. Kashmir is riddled with conflict, and in conflict zones many issues which would have been priority in other regions get sidelined here. One of many such issues is “patriarchy”, one doesn’t have to venture too far to understand the somewhat deep rooted patriarchal society of Kashmir. Right from our homes, to schools, to workplaces to mosques we see instances of patriarchy at display. In some places it’s so deep rooted that even brutal domestic violence incidents pass as something normal or how can one forget that many people actually put the blame of 2014 floods on jeans wearing girls. Secondly, we have issue of women in conflict zones, Kashmiri women are brave and despite the ongoing conflict Kashmiri women have come out hard. But do women get their credit? No. Be it leadership roles or basic appreciation, society is reluctant to give credit to a woman. All these biases make “feminism” necessary and it’s one of the main argument why Aurat March kashmir should become a reality.
Secondly, Aurat March is an instrument to assess the ground situation, the reaction to it will be an indication of how women speaking up is treated by society. Is this discourse limited to social media? Or is this a self creation of intellectual circles? Aurat March will make it clear whether common Kashmiri women are really concerned or bothered about such marches. Do they consider it an elite gimmick? In my opinion apart from such indications Aurat March will prove to be a ground breaking movement. It’ll ensure women reclaim their space. It’ll display the power women hold. It’ll bring to forefront the voices of women which had for long been suppressed.
Challenges:
If Aurat March Kashmir follows the footsteps of previous Aurat Marches I’m afraid it’ll have to ensure this doesn’t turn ugly. As in the beginning of my essay I’ve stated that Kashmir being a conflict zone makes it tricky. First and foremost challenge will be the definition of feminism Aurat Kashmir will march under. Kashmir is a muslim-dominated region, our culture and our habits are defined by our religion. It’s worthy to note that while the West is debating equal wages, leadership roles of women, meanwhile in Kashmir women struggle to get their basic religious rights. Property Rights (1/3rd of the total property), education rights (Islam doesn’t stop girls from getting educated), or female feticide is still very much prevalent in Kashmir. Will Aurat March ensure it’s the main agenda of the march or will it take the “Liberate-The-Body” turn?
The discourse around feminism in Kashmir is mostly talked about by privileged and/or educated women. While Aurat March in Pakistan had an active participation of unprivileged and rural women, women from all domains of life had come up with their grievances. Will our Aurat March ensure to make this rural-urban connection or would it just be another elite outing, a selfie and photo-shoot session. Imperfect feminism shouldn’t be an excuse for non-diversity.
Apart from this, the transgender community should be a part of this ground breaking initiative. Being a small but significant community they are also facing brunt of the society. A diverse Aurat March will be a voice for this community.
One important point which really touches the significance of this March is justice. In a place like Kashmir where a mothers move from pillar to post in search of their loved ones, where brothers are snatched from their sisters will slogans like “khana khud garam karo” really make an impact? Justice isn’t ensured with symbolism. We’ve Kunan Poshpora too, thereby it’d be really imperative if such a march has justice for victims of violence as priority agenda. It’d be one of a kind march, and not just catchy slogans. I end with the a quote by Malala Yousafzai
