Men’s involvement to promote gender equality stressed

Islamabad
Experts emphasised the importance of men’s constructive engagement to promote gender equality in society in a seminar ‘Men, Masculinities and Gender Justice’ organised by Rozan and Trocaire on Tuesday.
They were of the opinion that men, through their positive role in community, have the potential to bring about change in attitudes, roles, relationships and access to resources and decision-making which are critical for equality between women and men.
Prominent speakers of the seminar were Professor and Parry Chair in Health Promotion and Disease Prevention at Texas Women’s University Dr. Judith McFarlane, Director of South African Medical Research Council’s Gender and Health Research Unit Professor Rachel Jewkes, writer and activist Kausar S Khan and Managing Director Rozan Babar Bashir. Maria Rasheed from Rozan was the moderator of the seminar.
The objective of the seminar was to encourage debate within practitioners, researchers and students of gender on men and masculinities and discuss the challenges, limitations and anxieties around work emerging in this area.
The guest speakers discussed that for many years people have been advocating male involvement in the process of ending violence against women. However, when studies were done to explore men’s lives, the world came to know about the differences and disparities that existed among men themselves.
It was discussed during the seminar that working with boys and men has established its niche in global discourse of gender-based violence. Though work on roles of men and boys, and exploration of masculinity was already under-discussion but global forums like International Conference on Population and Development 1994 and “United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (the 48th session in March 2004) helped set in motion global awareness of the need to involve men and boys in formation of a gender-just society.
They said that men are influenced by their upbringing and social environment. These factors play an important role in determining the view of masculinity and manhood. Masculinity refers to the socially produced but embodied ways of being male. Its manifestation include manners of speech, behavior, gestures, social interaction, a division of tasks ‘proper’ to men and women (men work in offices and women do housework) and an overall narrative that positions it as superior to its perceived antithesis: femininity.
The experts highlighted the need for education and training for young boys and girls about gender roles, expectations and women’s autonomy — especially from an early age. They stressed the need to educate communities about gender equality and elimination of gender stereotypes as well as some persisting discriminatory social norms.