On the occassion of Women’s Day last month, Youth Incorporated conducted a survey on gender equality to figure out where we stand in the path towards equal rights for all, among the young population residing in major parts of the country. Ayub Dawood interprets the results
Safety measures
As much as we wanted more positive news, the fact remained that, in spite of the thinking of the youth seemingly improving, there still is a lack of awareness on the part of people regarding the measures and resources available for support and prevention as far as crimes against women are concerned.
Lifestyle choices
But there is a pleasant shift in the mentality of the young population, evident from their rather progressive and mature ideas regarding social behavior of women, which includes staying out late at night and more liberty in their way of dressing, with a lot of misconceptions and stereotypes seemingly done away with.
Public space facilities
There is a revived sense of optimism and faith in the society on the part of the youth when it comes to efforts and intention for promoting gender equality and women’s security. There still is dissatisfaction as long as facilities and privileges for women in public services such as transportation are concerned, a need for more reserved seats for women in trains and buses along with increased security seem to be a crucial requirement in day to day life.
School environment
While it is agreed upon that school and colleges are actively creating an environment where gender equality can flourish, there is also a slight majority that feels that in work places women are not paid as much as men even though the number of women in the professional and skilled work force has increased. This is attributed to the prevailing male centric attitude of the conservative society and stereotypes attached with the female identity rubbing off in the work place to a certain extent.
Finances
Surprisingly there is a feeling among a high majority that it is all right for the woman in a relationship to earn more; this defies the previous obsession with ego issues mostly attributed to men and shows a good improvement in this generation.
Intervention programs
While gender extermination is an issue that has long been a point of concern in our society, the youth believes that both promotion of gender equality and protection of the girl child deserve equal attention in order to take a more holistic approach towards gender equality.
Government policies
But at the end of the day the response is very negative when it comes to the sufficiency of the financial incentives and schemes for women put forth by the government concerned. The feeling is simply a product of the failure on the part of the government in effectively implementing the plans that have been announced in the previous few years. So as much as the youth is positive and happy about the society and sees the mentality of the society as the game changer in the way of gender equality, there is still a lot of discontent towards the efforts and ability of the government to assist in this process.
Volume 4 Issue 10
