Download Pakistan is the first country in South Asia with a landmark bill to protect women against sexual harassment in the workplace.
Yet women are harassed on the streets and on public transport every day.
But now, a new pink bus service is offering hassle free travel.
Launched in the city of Lahore, it’s the first women’s only bus service in the country.
Naeem Sahoutara takes a ride with a difference.
A bus arrives to pick up female passengers at the bus stop outside Punjab University.
It’s pink and offers safe and hassle-free travel for women.
Men are prohibited from the women’s only vehicle unless they’re travelling with a female family member. If not, they’ll be arrested.
University student Madiha Shah is one of the passengers.
“I think it’s very good. It’s a great idea that women should travel separately from men. It’s very comfortable for us. Well, you know what happens when men and women travel together in the same bus.”
Despite having a bigger section on public buses, men often push into the women’s compartment during peak hours.
Empty seats for women are rare and harassment is commonplace.
There are 40 passengers here inside the pink bus, and there are still a few empty seats.
Some women are busy chatting while others are reading books or listening to music.
It’s an unimaginable scene for women riding on an ordinary public bus in Pakistan.
Hina Fatima Kaneez says she hates the regular buses.
“Public buses are always packed with passengers who crush each other’s feet. You have to search for your bag in the crowd and male conductors enters the ladies’ section to give tickets. Men get a larger section and we only get smaller one. Standing for a long time holding on the handles is difficult.”
With the new pink bus, the only male inside is the driver - even the conductor is a woman.
Standing at the gate, Yasmin Ahmed shouts the name of each destination as she sells tickets.
Her uniform is a pink traditional dress.
“It’s a wonderful experience. People respect me and they feel more comfortable with me. Here women are already working in different fields from pilot to other professions, but not this one. This is another proof that women are honest and as hardworking as men (laughing).”
“I think every woman likes pink. So if it’s a bus for women, we go for pink.”
Huma Daha is the brains behind the project. She’s the manager of the private Lahore Transport Company.
“Basically we have done some surveys to get an idea of how operations are done on the road and what issues are faced by the operators, or vice versa, what passengers go through. So in those operations we encountered that lots of issues are related to females travelling on public transport. Of course, less area is allocated for them compared to the male compartment. So the idea behind the pink bus service was just to give them more space to travel and more convenience on the buses. The Chief Minister of Punjab initiated the idea in January and we started the pink bus service on three routes initially.”
Lahore is Pakistan’s second-largest city and half of its population of 12 million are women.
Legislator Hamza Shahbaz Sharif inaugurated the pink bus service.
“Women are disgraced by travelling in over-crowded buses with the men. So, the Punjab government has launched this bus service on an experimental basis, and their number will be increased once 500 more buses are inducted to the fleet.”
The project also aims to train women as drivers.
Now, there are three buses that travel 12 hours a day to accommodate women that work and study.
The expansion of the project depends on the users, say Huma Daha from the bus company.
“It’s a pilot project. Currently we’re looking at the drawbacks and hurdles the pink bus goes through and trying to cater the needs and requirements. The rest of everything is upon the passengers’ demand. More people would travel, there will be more buses. Less people community, less fare, then most probably this is going to be the same: three buses!”
Most women have welcomed the exclusive transport service but women’s rights activist Mumtaz Mughal thinks differently.
“This is gender discrimination. It started when a separate area was declared as a ladies compartment in buses because of our conservative society, posing themselves as religious, thinking that the mix between men and women inside the bus is a bad thing. And instead of doing something to change the conservative mindset, why is the government pushing further by isolating women with this women-only bus? The main thing is that the mindset must be changed.”
But for now, school teacher Fouzia Jamil says she feels blessed she can travel to work each day in peace.
“This bus is very good because boys disturb us in public buses. They board before we get in and inside we are being teased. Now I can travel safely and comfortably, while gossiping with friends inside the bus. Regular buses would run so fast to catch on passengers, but this is much safer for us.”
LEARN ENGLISH:
1) harrassed: dilecehkan
2) hassle free: bebas dari kerumitan
3) compartment: kompartemen, tempat duduk
4) commonplace: biasa
5) unimaginable: tidak terbayangkan
6) convenience: kenyamanan
7) crush: menginjak
8) hardworking : pekerja keras
9) drawbacks: kelemahan
10) teased: mengejek
Questions:
1) What is the pink bus and who is it for?
2) Where was it launched and how did some of the passengers respond to it?
3) What do most women experience when they ride on a regular busses?
4) Who is behind this project and what do they hope to accomplish?
5) What did women’s rights activist Mumtaz Mughal say about the pink busses?
