Prime Minister Imran Khan must be appreciated for forming a committee to study and investigate the plight of women in prisons, both convicted and awaiting trial. That the committee has been put in place in the larger context of gender bias prevalent in society is even better news. The plight of women has been in crying need of official attention for the longest time in this Islamic Republic. Everybody knows of their trials and tribulations often in their homes, workplaces and especially in places like jails. This issue especially, the abuse and degradation they go through as a matter of routine in prisons, has gone unaddressed for so long that people have come to accept the state of affairs as they are. And nobody, really, expects anything to change anymore. That is why this particular news will have to become something more than just a breath of fresh air. Sure, all long journeys begin with the first step, and this is as good a first step as any, but there will be a long list of issues to address as this road opens. They way women are treated and abused while they are in jail, sometimes for very long durations even without formal charges, is simply appalling yet it has come to be accepted as the way things are just going to be. A lot of these women become drug addicts and mental patients during their imprisonment, and a very large number also has children that are forced to grow up in such an environment. To even begin to do something about the plight of women prisoners, the government will need to rewrite the whole book on their treatment right from trial to and during incarceration. Then there is the wider picture to consider. It is indeed a good thing that each year sees an even larger number of women getting educated as well as entering the job market. But most of these fine ladies are still coming from the upper-middle and upper classes. And it’s not as if their many problems like harassment and discrimination have ended. The fate of those lower in line is, as we all know, a lot less to write home about. PTI has long stood for empowering women and while other parties have also raised similar slogans and never delivered when in power, many expect this time to be different. And the prime minister seems to have remembered this particular promise and decided to finally get on with it. *