International Women’s Day (IWD) is celebrated on 8 March around the world, after the Socialist Party of America organized a Women’s Day in New York City on February 28, 1909. On 1910, German delegation proposed at the International Socialist Woman’s Conference that “a special Women’s Day” be organized annually. Major participants were Clara Zetkin, Käte Duncker and Paula Thiede. The day was then predominantly celebrated by the socialist movement and communist countries. Feminist movement adopted International Women Day (IWD) in about 1967. The United Nations began celebrating the day in 1977.
Pakistani women have continued to demonstrate that women are agents for change, after gaining more recognition in February, 1983, around 100 women marched on the Lahore High Court to protest against dictator General Ziaul Haq’s repressive and discriminatory Law of Evidence. Gender Concerns International is committed to women’s rights in Pakistan and established its office in Islamabad and monitored the May 2013 elections from a gender perspective, in partnership with Aurat Foundation.
Thousands of Pakistani women march against Violence against women, including rape, domestic abuse, harassment and also other major issue in Pakistan. “Mera jisn Meri marzi” (my body, my choice) has been a subject of heated debate on social media. Nida Kirmani, a professor of sociology at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), says that “my body, my choice” is being interpreted as a promiscuous demand, however, it is about women’s rights to have autonomy over their lives. The World Economic Forum ranked Pakistan 151 out of 153 countries in its 2020 Global Gender Gap Index Report.
