Daily Times

I recently saw a notification from a well known University in Taxila last week which surprised me. The notification gave directives to students regarding conduct on campus, particularly regarding mixing of men and women. Male students have been prohibited from sitting in areas reserved for women in classrooms. Another notification gave guidelines to women regarding how to dress. It is unfortunate that a university, where academic learning should be the main goal, the administration is still concerned about interactions between male and female students along with how female students dress. The consequences of such decisions on the university environment need to be thought on.

The debate about coeducation in Pakistan is not new. People have opposed coeducation in cultural and religious grounds. There are a number of women’s universities and segregated campuses in this country to placate people who are against mixing of sexes at educational institutions.

I was once at meeting at a women’s college where I asked to exchange numbers with an Ms Scholar who was finishing her degree program. My simple request seemed to cause her quite a bit of anxiety. When I asked her what was upsetting her she told me she was worried her phone number might end up in the hands of a boy. Men and boys from male only institutions also display strange behaviours, for example I once had a male colleague who insisted on calling all his female colleagues his ‘sisters’ because he respected them. Eventually I had to ask him if a woman had to be his sister for him to respect her.

Mutual respect between the sexes will never develop in a gender segregated society

For the past few decades there have been efforts in Pakistan for streamlining both genders and improving the status of women’s rights through various legislations. Bodies have been formed to protect and promote women’s rights which are supported by civil society and human rights activists. There are many examples of successful women in Pakistan today, but it can still be argued that to be successful in a male dominated system one has to swim against the tide.

Our media and school textbooks continue to portray women in a stereotypical manner. This has to change if we want people in our society to see women as independent individuals instead of using the yardsticks our society uses to judge a woman’s character. One still often see’s billboards in which women’s faces have been marked with black paint by so called religious parties. Yet these same parties don’t have any objection to men appearing on sign boards. Women still have to tip toe while going around their everyday business lest they give anybody ammunition which they could use to malign her character.

Change in perception regarding mixing of genders and attitudes about women has to begin at home. Parents and family members have to stop reminding girls that they are girls every step of the way and hence they have to make compromises all their lives. And while I understand that as a Muslim country there are bound to be some restrictions on the mixing of genders, at the end of the day total segregation means that boys and girls will not be able to empathise with each other or understand each other. Meanwhile their curiosity about each other will continue to grow. Mutual respect between the sexes will never develop in a gender segregated society.

The writer has experience in the field of education and is currently working as a resource person in the development sector

Published in Daily Times, October 22^nd 2017.