No once can stop Aurat March, Bilawal throws weight behind rally

LAHORE: The Aurat March 2020 will take place  on March 8 and no one can stop it from happening, said PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Thursday.

The PPP chair put his weight behind the march, saying those who think women will not march had medieval mindset. "In today’s Pakistan, women will march as well as take up professions such as doctors, lawyers, and prime minister," he said.

Bilawal said his own mother — two-time prime minister, late Benazir Bhutto — was a woman who fought valiantly against terrorist acts such as bomb blasts. The people of Pakistan had elected Benazir twice into power, despite fatwas (religious edicts) declared against her, he noted.

Bilawal further said the PPP launched the famous Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), which benefited some 1.5 million women in Sindh.

As the PPP chairperson put his weight behind the Aurat March, some other politicians also shared their views.

'Vulgarity and irreligiousness'

JUI-F Chief Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman said that the slogan "Mera jism, meri marzi [my body, my choice]" is promoting vulgarity and irreligiousness.

He said Pakistan’s "eastern values will not be allowed to convert into western civilisation".

Meanwhile, Science and Technology Minister Fawad Chaudhry asked the Punjab government to ensure measures safeguarding the participants of the Aurat March 2020.

SAPM on Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan said the incident on a recent talk show — where writer Khalil-ur-Rehman Qamar’s abusive comments led progressives and conservatives to clash on social media over the perceived objectives of the Aurat March 2020 — was unfortunate.

Insulting women on TV channels was unacceptable, she said, adding that the PTI government was determined for the social, legal, political, and constitutional rights of women.