ISLAMABAD: Hundreds of women rallied across Pakistan on Friday for International Women’s Day, a movement that often draws criticism from right-wing religious groups for its alleged western influence.
Known as Aurat March, women turned out in major cities to highlight issues such as street harassment, bonded labor and the lack of representation in parliament.
“We face all sorts of violence: physical, sexual, cultural violence where women are exchanged to settle disputes, child marriages, rape, harassment in the workplace, on the streets,” said Farzana Bari, the lead organizer of Aurat March in Islamabad, where hundreds of women gathered to dance, chant and listen to speeches.
“People in Pakistan don’t get punished, there’s a culture of impunity.”
In Pakistan, just 21 percent of women are in the workforce and less than 20 percent of girls in rural areas are enrolled in secondary school, according to the United Nations.
Only 12 women were directly elected into parliament out of 266 seats in last month’s election.
Much of Pakistani society operates under a strict code of “honor,” with women beholden to their male relatives over choices around education, employment and who they can marry.
Hundreds of women are killed by men in Pakistan every year for allegedly breaching this code.
The Aurat March dates back to 2018, when it was launched in Karachi but has since spread across most of the country.
The head of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said it “commends the resilience of working women in the face of harmful misogynistic attitudes and unprecedented economic instability.”
“However, it is gravely concerning that Pakistan continues to lag behind global economies in addressing chronic gender disparities,” added Asad Iqbal Butt.
Women supporters from right-wing religious parties also staged small counter-protests, known as modesty rallies, in Lahore and Karachi, holding banners calling for the protection of Islamic values.
The Aurat March is seen by critics as supporting elitist and Western values in the Muslim country, with organizers accused of disrespecting religious and cultural sensitivities.
In previous years, Aurat March organizers have had to battle in the courts for permission to hold demonstrations, while doctored images of banners held up by women have circulated online leading to harassment and death threats.
In 2020, groups of hard-line Islamist men turned up in vans and hurled stones at women participating in the Aurat March in Islamabad.
Hundreds attend women’s day marches, counter-protests in Pakistan
https://arab.news/wm8vz
Hundreds attend women’s day marches, counter-protests in Pakistan
- Working women in Pakistan face harmful misogynistic attitudes amid chronic gender disparities
- Right-wing religious groups also staged small counter-protests, calling for protection of Islamic values
Pakistan fines beverage maker Rs150 million for imitating PepsiCo. product packaging
- The case dates back to 2018, when PepsiCo. filed a complaint that Mezan Beverages’ ‘Storm’ energy drink was designed to imitate its ‘Sting’
- Such rulings are a rarity in Pakistan, where prolonged litigation, frequent stay orders and jurisdictional challenges often delay enforcement
KARACHI: The Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) has imposed a penalty of Rs150 million ($535,283) on Mezan Beverages (Private) Limited for “deceptive marketing” in a case brought against it by PepsiCo, the CCP said on Friday.
The case dates back to 2018, when the American multinational food and beverage corporation filed a complaint alleging that Mezan Beverages’ ‘Storm’ energy drink was designed to imitate its ‘Sting’ and benefit from PepsiCo’s goodwill.
Instead of responding on merits, Mezan Beverages repeatedly challenged the CCP’s jurisdiction and initiated prolonged litigation, delaying the inquiry for several years by obtaining stay orders from the Lahore High Court in 2018 and 2021, according to the CCP.
In June 2024, the court dismissed Mezan Beverages’ petition, upheld the CCP’s authority, and ruled that early challenges to show-cause notices were not maintainable. The court observed that the Pakistani beverage maker had used litigation to delay regulatory proceedings.
“The company (Mezan Beverages) was found to have imitated the packaging and trade dress of PepsiCo’s Sting energy drink, thereby engaging in deceptive marketing practices in violation of Section 10 of the Competition Act, 2010,” the CCP said in a statement.
“Such conduct amounted to parasitic copying and constituted deceptive marketing prohibited under Pakistan’s competition law.”
Such rulings remain uncommon in Pakistan, where prolonged litigation, frequent stay orders and jurisdictional challenges often delay or dilute enforcement of competition and consumer protection laws. Regulatory actions are frequently stalled for years in courts, allowing companies accused of unfair practices to continue operating while cases remain unresolved.
In its verdict, the CCP said Mezan Beverages’ energy drink adopted a red-dominant color scheme, identical to Sting; bold, slanted white lettering with aggressive visual motifs; near-identical bottle shape and presentation; and branding elements likely to mislead an ordinary consumer with imperfect recollection.
It emphasized that deception is assessed based on the overall commercial impression, not minute differences examined side by side.
“Even though Mezan Beverages held a registered trademark for ‘Storm’... copycat branding and misleading packaging will not be tolerated, regardless of the size or local status of the company,” the commission added.
