Mother of Pakistan

Bilquis Bano Edhi was no ordinary woman. Wife to the late Abdul Sattar Edhi, seen almost always by his side, the unassuming Bilquis Edhi had well-earned the right to be called the ‘Mother of Pakistan’. On Friday, after decades of serving this country, she passed away in Karachi at the age of 74 after a brief hospitalization. Quiet, but determined and very clear on her and her husband’s mission, Bilquis Edhi became a symbol of hope for thousands of abandoned children. A professional nurse, she had first as partner to Edhi and then after his death in 2016, ably run Edhi Foundation – with Edhi once fondly attributing 70 percent of the work that went into the foundation to her hard work. Bilquis Edhi’s charitable work did not go unnoticed by the world. She was awarded the Hilal-e-Imtiaz by Pakistan, the Lenin Peace Prize by Russia, as well as the Mother Teresa Memorial International Award for Social Justice. In 2021, she was declared the ‘Person of the Decade’, along with UN rapporteur on human rights Prof Yanghee Lee and the US ethicist Stephen Soldz by an international organisation.

Apart from the Edhi Foundation’s main rescue and ambulance services, the foundation also runs soup kitchens, nursing homes, family planning centres, and adoption and childcare services. The non-governmental organization is also known for its welfare services outside of Pakistan – having offered rescue services every time there has been a disaster anywhere in the world. While she contributed equally to all of the Edhi foundation’s work, the ‘jhoola’ project is probably what Bilquis Edhi will be remembered for the most – the ‘jhoola’ becoming almost a second identity marker for Bilquis. The project is said to have helped save more than 42,000 children – by just placing jhoolas outside Edhi homes and centres so that people wouldn’t kill unwanted children but anonymously and safely leave them to the foundation. This the Edhis managed despite severe criticism by the conservative majority in the country decrying their efforts as going against religious teachings, some even resorting to issuing fatwas.

As condolences pour in from across Pakistan, one hopes those in power and in places of influence try to support the legacy left behind by the Edhis, whose work is now continued by their children. In Bilquis Edhi’s passing, the country has lost not just a philanthropist but a ray of hope for millions of abandoned children who found home, shelter and nurture with her. As the country reels from increasing political turmoil, with petty politics and egos taking over humanity, may our people remember the legacy of grace, humility and perseverance left by Bilquis and Abdul Sattar Edhi.