Aurat March Lahore launches manifesto

LAHORE, February 18, 2022 – Aurat March Lahore launched its manifesto on February 18, through its digital channels. The manifesto launch marks the fifth year of the march in Pakistan and the theme for this year is “Reimagining Justice” or “Asal Insaaf”.

The manifesto was drafted after extensive research and meetings with relevant communities including families of enforced disappearances, domestic workers, victims/survivors of sexual violence and religious minorities.

The manifesto explores the experience of women and gender minorities within the court, pointing out how the current system is inadequate for survivors of violence. Cases such as the acquittal of Qandeel Baloch’s murderer show how deeply flawed the criminal justice system is. Aurat March Lahore thus demands more holistic reform which seeks to transform society, provide psycho-social support to survivors of violence as well as rehabilitation for perpetrators.

The March advocates for structural reforms that prevent patriarchal violence rather than short-term solutions such as capital punishment and chemical castration.

The Aurat March Lahore demands a radical shift in preventative policies: education, community building and social welfare should drive the solutions. They stress on creating a “culture of care”, where communities support rather than victim-blame each other.

The Aurat March Lahore also seek to include economic and environmental justice in our understanding of justice or insaaf, advocating against austerity measures, inflation and demands better air quality and safe drinking water.

The manifesto was launched online at 8:00 PM on February 18, through all of Aurat March Lahore’s social media handles followed by a Twitter space through the Aurat March Lahore Twitter handle (@auratmarch)

The Manifesto will be available on all our social media channels and we will be using the hashtag #AsalInsaaf.