Aurat March Issues Charter Of Demands Centred On Healthcare

Aurat March Issues Charter Of Demands Centred On Healthcare
Aurat March has disclosed its Charter of Demands for the event which is to be held on March, 2021. Titled 'Patriarchy Ka Pandemic', this year's Aurat March is focusing on healthcare issues faced by women.

https://twitter.com/auratmarch/status/1366078413489008640?s=21

The charter demands health budget to be increased to 5% of the GDP in the 2021-22 fiscal budget with information on allocated for women’s and transgender community’s reproductive, mental and rehabilitative health. It calls on the provincial governments to release information regarding health budgets dedicated to reproductive health by March 8, 2021, and make public a plan for addressing COVID-19 specific challenges faced by women and gender minorities.

Further, it calls for the recognition of gender-based violence as a healthcare issue as it “disproportionately harms the physical and mental capacities of survivors and the community at large.”

The Charter of Demands also calls for consent-based, Life Skills Based Education (LSBE) to be part of the primary and secondary school curriculum for children to assert bodily autonomy and prevent rampant child abuse.

Every year, Aurat March is held in all major cities of Pakistan where women demand freedom from violence, discrimination and inequality. While there is immense support for this cause, many in Pakistan have also called the Aurat March a western idea and have nit picked at the slogans used at the March.

Even against such vile opposition every year, Aurat March continues to take place every year and to raise voice for women rights and patriarchal norms.