By: Mohammad Nafay
It’s a fine Sunday afternoon and the sun is out, everyone is either sleeping late or finding it difficult to move out of their relaxed state of mind. As I try to wrestle my way out of the blanket, I hear a hoarse voice from the window; “Tumhari himmat kesi hui meri chai bhoolne ki?” Finding it difficult to open my eyes, I gasped for a moment. What could it be? Neighbors’ wife had forgotten his afternoon tea, what a shameful sin! It is her job being a housewife to run a Michelin kitchen in the house.
According to the census conducted in 2017, women make up 48.76% of the Pakistan’s’ population. Out of this, 79.4% are labeled as ‘House wives’. These women are not employed; however they are being provided necessities (food, shelter and clothing) by their husbands or households. The 2017 census shows that the number of women that contribute to the workforce is just above 22%. This means out of 101 million, only 22 million are ready to work. Question is, do these women choose not to work? Or are they somehow restricted from working? These questions require careful consideration.
It was difficult for me to not ponder on the idea of what exactly a ‘Housewife’ is. Do women really want and choose to be a house wife? Is it a full time job? If so then what are the qualifications? Or is it rather a hobby? It is high time that some thought was put into this, somewhat of a taboo topic, as well.
Women have always found it difficult to receive higher education in Pakistan. However, the dream of equal percentage of boys and girls enrolled in degree programs has become a reality. Then why is it not helping Pakistan’s growth rate? The female labor force still stays to be puny. A major reason for this is women getting married early and not being able to work. Some would argue that being a housewife is not less than any other job. While the ‘man of the house’ goes out to earn and bring home something to eat, the women at home is tasked with taking care of the house and all the people in it. The job description of a housewife includes; being able to clean every inch of the house, cooking meals, doing the laundry, doing the dishes, grocery shopping and she is also responsible for the health of everyone in the house. It is very important to have a CV related to the job description. If a woman wants to become a housewife, she must have certain amount of cooking and cleaning skills in her arsenal. The ability to take the blame for everything that goes south in the house adds as a bonus.
It is very clear that some specific roles have been defined based on genders, but who decided on these roles? Why are they so rigid? Why doesn’t the word ‘Househusband’ exist? A man is perfectly capable of doing all the chores that housewives are designated for. There is a majority of people in Pakistan who like to live their lives based on the teachings of Islam. The Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is the perfect role model for Muslims and most men out of the populace try to follow him. However, some end up forgetting that it was Muhammad (PBUH) who encouraged his first wife Hazrat Khadija to continue trade, as she was better at it than him, while he stayed at home and looked after the house. Then why do men in Pakistan are keen on women staying at home regardless of the skills they possesses to make it big in the world outside the house? Perhaps, she could do better than the man himself and bring more to the house than he could ever. It can be said, to some extent housewives in Pakistan are robbed off their human rights as well as they are not allowed the same number of opportunities that are given to men.
It is however true that some women prefer to be housewives themselves. It is their choice to stay at home and look after the house instead of going out to earn the bread and butter for the family. One absolute necessity is for everyone to acknowledge and respect the effort a housewife makes. The chores at home should not be considered any less than the income earning activities outside, harsh treatment of housewives is undoubtedly unacceptable. Since the stressors at home can affect stressors at work, it can be said that the one at home is indirectly controlling the income of the house, hence housewives deserve more credit than they have are given. This also calls for better treatment of the women at home, since most of these women are giving up their dreams or aspirations for the sake of the family.
Pakistan is a country drowned in the sea of patriarchy and misogyny, which has hurt not just the livelihood of its inhabitants but also the image of the country around the globe. This indirectly affects the economy as lesser people are employed. With the growing awareness and more women empowerment campaigns coming into the play, we can start to hope for a better future for all residents of Pakistan, where one can look beyond the artificial limitations of gender, religion, ethnicity etc.
