Homes are not safe for women in Pakistan because of the violence (emotional & physical) inflicted on them by spouses and families. This diminishes their ability to contribute to the economy and also presents a challenge in raising children in the best of environment. The latter directly affects the cognitive ability of future generations to partake in society and the country’s economy. It has therefore become mandatory to provide safety to women by creating awareness around the issue, providing resources to them; and simultaneously educate families about the long-term consequences of violence against women in families.

The hub collaborated with Adal Aur Sehat to design a digital campaign around shedding light on the forms of domestic violence, the law and its enforcement. This campaign is for people to start talking about not only physical violence but also emotional assault on mental health. It includes webinars, social media reels, posts, videos and collaborations.

Hub Activities:

• With the help of AAS’s initiative ‘Legal Aid Bureau’, the hub is providing free legal aid to women in need of immediate rescue and safety from their husbands/families. The hub has instituted a public interest litigation before the Sindh High Court in Karachi to direct the government to create protection committees and appoint protection officers as mandated by the law.


• The hub aims to produce research papers to bring clarity on the procedure of dealing with survivors of domestic violence; and for the sensitization of judges and police in dealing with cases.


• The hub aims to collaborate with educational institutions especially law schools to educate them on the law subsequently supporting them to initiate clinics to help impart knowledge on forms of violence on their campus.


• The hub is looking to bring psychologists on board to discuss the mental health impact on families and the best ways to address violent behavior of perpetrators in families.

Short & Long Term Goals:

• Short Term:
  
  
  • Ensuring safety of women by providing legal assistance and counselling
  
  
  • Conducting awareness sessions on forms of domestic violence with women in the communities based in Karachi
  
  
  • Initiating dialogue with members of the law enforcement, judiciary and lawyers for proper implementation of the law to protection women at homes
  
  
  
  


• Long Term:
  
  
  • Strengthening the institution of a family – one which provides a nurturing environment for children to be raised
  
  
  • Increasing the capacity of women to contribute to economy and in the society with their talent and skillset
  
  
  • Ensuring stronger law enforcement and judicial institutions
  
  
  • A collective digital audience of Adal Aur Sehat, Global Shapers Karachi, and Shaper Khushbakht Shah, Mehfooz Social Media Pages is: 11,000+ followers. If the group is able to push the law and the government, then an entire province of Sindh with a population 47.9 million would be covered in the impact.