Closing the Gap: Women, Development, and Security in Pakistan

Although women are the “repository of honor” in their communities, they remain sidelined politically and socially, according to panelists at an April 25, 2017 event at the Harvard Kennedy School’s annual ‘South Asia Week’ series, sponsored by the India and South Asia Program.  

Ambassador Cameron Munter, former US Ambassador to Pakistan and Beena Sarwar, Pakistani journalist and filmmaker, discussed the relationship between women’s empowerment, peacebuilding, and development in defining an inclusive security agenda for Pakistan, moderated by the Program’s Executive Director, Cathryn Cluver. 

Cluver opened the seminar by providing context on the issues confronting women in Pakistan,  which has the second-largest gender gap in the world according to the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report from 2015. Gender roles and norms are further complicated by religion, cultural traditions, and women’s critical role in local communities. Additional challenges such as access to education, literacy rates, and domestic violence prevent progress in women’s empowerment. Munter and Sarwar sought to address how the Pakistani government, the regional community, and international actors can participate in closing the gender gap.  

Beena Sarwar framed the conversation in a regional context, stating that “a woman’s identity doesn’t end with Pakistan’s borders and our identity is very much connected to the community.” She believes the problem of women’s empowerment arises when women “transgress society,” posing a direct threat to traditional rules and norms of Pakistan’s patriarchal system. Sarwar discussed the complexity of violence towards women in Pakistan, as more women are no longer quietly accepting traditional roles. She advocated for a more democratic political process, and one that begins with legislation but offers more support for implementation in rural areas.     

Ambassador Cameron Munter offered a different perspective, drawing on his experience as Ambassador to Pakistan from 2010-2012. Like Sarwar, he said that women’s issues cannot be dealt with in isolation from the greater social context. He called on outside organizations and governments to provide ways for women to organize and participate. He believes the US can be helpful in areas of public health and education, he said, but emphasized a more “holistic approach” to women’s empowerment. He encouraged organizations to study best practices from the private sector in providing development assistance.  

Both panelists discussed the implications of cuts to USAID and State Department budgets. When contemplating its impact on the US relationship with Pakistan, Ambassador Munter argued that cutting investment in the long-term future of Pakistan will have drastic consequences. Beena Sarwar admitted she was not a fan of all international aid but emphasized that aid combined with “process and long-term vision” could have a positive impact.  

In closing, Ms. Sarwar and Ambassador Munter shifted the conversation to the difference between the public and private life of women in Pakistan. She called for a more democratic political process and greater checks to challenge what she sees as fascist tendencies in Pakistani society. Ambassador Munter believes the US can support women’s empowerment but needed to be more sensitive and creative in accommodating the differences in rural versus urban life, women’s access to education, and the influence of religion and ethnicity.