‘Large factories, other workplaces should set up day care centres’

Speakers at a meeting of Shura Hamdard’s Karachi chapter has urged the government to make it mandatory for the workplaces and factories having 250 or more employees to establish “Day Care Centres for Children” for women employees and empower the women that they can take decision for the education of their children.

The meeting, which was held on Monday on the theme of mothers’ role in the reconstruction of society, was presided over by Justice (retd) Haziqul Khairi at a club, according to a press release.

Speaking on the occasion, the guest speaker and seasoned journalist, Zubeida Mustafa, said that without giving the right place to woman in society, the reconstruction of society could not be done adequately. “Both mother and father are responsible for the fostering of children and the burden of children’s bringing up and training cannot be put on the mother alone,” she asserted.

She stated that the holy Prophet (peace be upon him) has said that “the paradise is beneath the feet of mother”, and there was a mention of mother’s greatness in every literature of the world.

“The gene of children consists of the parents’ genes and the role of the father in building the personality of a child is obvious, which needs to be identified, and the word ‘parent’ be used in place of mother with regard to the fostering of children as the mother is not sole responsible for that.”

She said that in Western countries, father or mother anyone could take maternity leave of one or two years, because the rearing of the child was the responsibility of both. A man should take care of his wife keeping in mind that she was not only his wife but also the mother of his children and enjoyed some basic human rights bestowed upon her by our religion and constitution, she added.

“A woman cannot carry out her responsibilities of home and job without the support of her husband and in-laws. Although everything of a person is decided by his/her gene and even diseases are transferred through genes, if prior precautionary measures are taken it can be avoided.”

Justice (retd) Haziqul said that mother was the most beloved person in a person’s life and renowned American psychologist RW Emerson had said: “When you choose your wife, you choose the mother of your children.” Because it was the mother who gave values of life to her children, he added.

Zafar Iqbal, president, Defence Residents Society, said that home was the first school and mother was the first teacher of a child. So, he said, the role of mother was most important in the character-building of the child, as Napoleon Bonaparte said that “give me good mothers and I will give you a good nation”.

Anwarul Haq Siddiqi said that family was the first block of society and mother solidified the foundation of family and society, and that was why mother’s role was very important in the reconstruction of a society.

Commodore (retd) Sadeed Anwar Malik said that the well-known former prime minister of Great Britain, Margaret Thatcher, used to spend good enough time in her constituency to teach parents how to rear their children to make them good and useful citizens.

Shamim Kazmi was of the views that the role of a mother had been made a romance, setting aside the harsh realities of our society where women were a powerless entity and didn’t have the power to educate and train their children according to their will. Before expecting mothers to train their children as good citizens, we should have to change the mindset of our society, Kazmi said.

Sirajuddin Zafar, a renowned banker, said that the role of a father was more crucial in bringing up the children and those children who were fostered by their fathers would seem more confident as Sydney Harris, a writer, said: “The best combination of parents is where the mother beneath her apparent gentleness is extremely firm, and a father who is extremely gentle beneath his apparent firmness.”

Pervez Sadiq was of the opinion that working women had become an integral part of our society and in this age of price hikes it became necessary for women too to do a job to make both ends meet.

The government, husbands and in-laws should extend their support and cooperation to the working women in performing their responsibilities at both home and at workplaces, he asserted. Hakim Mohammed Usman, Sheikh Usman Damohi, Anwar Aziz Jakartawalla, Justice (retd) Pervez Zia and Brig (retd) Riazul Haq Also spoke.