The Punjab assembly passed the Punjab Protection of Women against Violence Act (PPWAVA) in February, which provides unprecedented legal protection to women against domestic, psychological and sexual violence. The law faces legal and clerical challenges, but the biggest issue will be its implementation, as laws are made but their enforcement remains weak. The law emulates some clauses of legislation in the west, but as per some critics of the law this has been done without much consideration to the fact that while most women in advanced countries are financially independent, in Pakistan many are still dependent on their fathers, husbands or other family members for shelter, food and other needs. Most of them do not lodge a complaint even if their husbands torture them, and even their parents do not allow or encourage that. For the societal environment to truly change for women, government will have to create job opportunities for females and launch a nationwide drive to discourage domestic violence. Even if there is violation of social norms, and violence is reported, there is a remote chance of any real dispensation of justice. It may also increase the rate of divorce in the country, as most men will not tolerate ‘humiliation’ from their wives. The bill had been proposed in May 2015, but faced obstruction in the Punjab assembly. According to Punjab government, the bill is comprehensive and brings several previously ignored offences within its ambit, and covers domestic violence, emotional, economic and psychological abuse, cyber crime, stalking and abetting of offenders. Unlike previous laws, it introduces an ingenious implementation mechanism. It proposes the setting up of 24-hour, women-run, district violence-against-women centres. The centres will have all required services, including first aid, police reporting, FIR lodging, prosecution, medical examination, forensics and post-trauma rehabilitation under one roof, and accessible to women. A toll-free helpline will be set up where women could call for assistance, legal advice, prompt evidence collection and immediate protection. Moreover, alleged offenders may, through a protection order, be instructed to maintain distance from women whom they victimised, and to enforce this, GPS tracking devices have been introduced. The bill also accounts for hindrances faced by women in their traditional settings by providing civil remedies. A victim of domestic violence can enforce the Residence Order whereby she will not need to vacate the house; otherwise, she can demand from the defendant an alternative accommodation or monetary relief. The bill does not contradict pre-existing laws, but instead fills in gaps and facilitates implementation. The new law criminalises all forms of violence against women, but it is not the first time in Pakistan that a law for women rights has been framed. Many laws were made in the past but all remained futile and failed to produce results for lack of enforcement. Laws exist for far worse crimes against women, but they are still being killed in the name of honour. They still face acid attacks. They are burnt to death for bringing meagre dowry. In 1976, government passed legislation on dowry and bridal gifts, which remains ineffective to date. In April 2000, the Musharraf government had declared that honour killing would be treated as murder. The ministry of women development set up 10 crisis centres to help victims of domestic violence and create awareness among people. However, all proved useless. In 2009, a domestic violence protection bill was proposed by the PPP in the National Assembly; the bill was passed, but was not ratified by the Senate. The Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) opposed it on the assumption that it would increase the rate of divorce. In 2011, the Senate passed the Acid Control and Acid Crime Prevention Bill to control acid attacks in the country, but to no avail. According to the Human Rights Watch, a New York-based international non-governmental organisation, 70 to 90 percent of women in Pakistan had suffered some form of abuse in 2009, and approximately, 5,000 women were killed every year in domestic violence, with thousands of others maimed. An Aurat Foundation report in 2013 showed that the Punjab alone accounted for 5,800 crimes against women, 74 percent of crimes against women in the whole of Pakistan. A 2011 Thomson Reuters Foundation poll ranked Pakistan the third most dangerous country in the world for women, after Afghanistan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. However, in 2016 in response to the PPWAVA, clerics and religious parties have termed the new Punjab law ‘un-Islamic’. The CII said the bill is against the constitution and the two-nation theory; they claim that the law is a western conspiracy to harm the family system of Pakistan. They are also of the view that the clauses in this bill will eventually lead to the break-up of society. Besides opposition from religious quarters, implementation of the law will be a real challenge to the provincial government. In a country where more serious crimes against women continue despite laws, there is no hope of any improvement in their plight. Ume Laila Azhar, a renowned women rights activist, said, “Protection of Women against Violence Bill is a good step as at least government of Pakistan is admitting that domestic violence exist in our part of the world. It has taken a long time for people like us who were working on declaring domestic violence a gruesome violence within home boundaries where mostly the notion is that women are safe. The bill appears to be a rather comprehensive attempt to institute a system for protection of violence against women and for protection and rehabilitation of the women victims.” Moreover, she said, “The Act falls short both in outlook as well as in philosophy. Punjab government needs to fix the ambiguities and inaccuracies and introduce an implementation framework, which is more local, doable, and create awareness and consensus among the member parliamentarians as to what the law means and how it will protect women from violence within home boundaries. We are yet too far away from taking this law and digesting it. As a society we need to sensitise our men to give space to their spouses, and not to take their space.” On the other hand, I am of the view that there needs to be a real reform for a real change. This bill is a positive step forward, as men who torture, rape and assault women will now have a legal deterrence to deal with. Social taboos don’t allow women to speak up, and fear of reprisal causes them to continue being victim of abuse. It is about time they were encouraged to seek justice and relief. Just to highlight history to those who are opposing this law that they forgot who stood by the country’s founding father, Mohammad Ali Jinnah until the very end: a woman, his sister, Fatima Jinnah. That was a woman who probably wouldn’t have thought twice about empowering all other women in Pakistan. It is about time our government did the same, because if on matters such as rape and violence, government bows down to the right, it will be taking 10 steps back for each step taken forward. The writer is a Lahore-based social and political activist. Presently, he is linked with a humanitarian organisation working in interior Sindh, and can be reached at salmanali088@gmail.com