Awais & Maggetto

In South Asia, to be a woman is to fight not only for rights but for survival, respect, and recognition. Across nations rich in history, culture, and heritage, women are fighting a never-ending battle against a system designed to deprive them on every front. Their authority is challenged, restricted, or eliminated from courtrooms to classrooms, from kitchens to combat zones.

This region, often romanticised for its spiritual depth and cultural vibrancy, is steeped in patriarchal traditions and ceremonial rituals. Here, a woman’s worth is measured by her obedience, purity, and silence. Customs dictate that she is born to serve, first her father, then her husband, and lastly her sons. She is supposed to uphold family honour while sacrificing her dreams.

However, this cultural framework is far from benign. It has serious, often fatal consequences.    According to Pakistan’s human rights commission, in 2024, 405 women were murdered in Pakistan in the name of honor. In India, a woman is raped every 15 minutes, according to the National Crime Records Bureau. In Afghanistan, the Taliban has banned girls and women from public life, including schools and jobs. These figures are not isolated; they are indications of a larger problem, an entrenched patriarchy that is legitimised by social, religious, and political structures.

In many regions of the subcontinent, women are still viewed as property, married off in childhood, bartered through dowry, and confined to domestic roles. Men govern their bodies, and their choices are influenced by tradition. This is more than just outdated rituals; it is about ongoing brutality in the name of culture. According to UNICEF, over one-third of girls in South Asia marry before the age of 18. Child marriage is still common in Bangladesh and Nepal despite legislation to the contrary. In conservative families, girls are removed from schools around puberty and forced into adult roles for which they are emotionally and physically unprepared.

Education is the most powerful tool against patriarchy. However, girls in South Asia face enormous challenges, including distance, harassment, poverty, social stigma, and in some cases direct prohibition. In Afghanistan, millions of girls are out of school, particularly in rural areas. Where education exists, it is often not liberating. Schoolbooks still reinforce gender stereotypes, portraying women as caretakers and men as decision-makers. Without educational reforms that include gender-sensitive curricula and a safe environment, schools risk reinforcing rather than dismantling patriarchal norms.

In South Asia, cultural and religious traditions are often weaponised against women. Female bodies become a symbol of communal honour, resulting in restricted regulations about attire, mobility, sexuality, and expression. Virginity testing, forced veiling, and home confinement are still common.  

According to recent reports, female labour force participation remains exceptionally low in Pakistan, ranging from approximately 21% to 23%. In Afghanistan, women’s economic lives have been decimated. This is a loss for women and a national growth problem.

Women should be welcomed across all sectors, from tech and law to agriculture and diplomacy. In Srilanka, female-led businesses currently account for a quarter of all new startups. In Bangladesh, women working in microfinance and the textile industry have transformed entire communities. Empowering women economically means more than giving them jobs; it means giving them autonomy, visibility, and power. 

Despite the darkness, a quiet rebellion brews. The real revolution is digital. Young South Asian women are using social media to speak and organise. In Pakistan, platforms such as Girls at Dhabas, Pinjra Tod, and SheMeansBusiness are fostering new conversations, entrepreneurship, and resistance.

If South Asia is to evolve, it must go beyond symbolic reforms. We need structural transformations. 

1.     Ban Child Marriage and keep girls in school:

Governments must eliminate all legal exceptions that permit marriage under the age of 18 and strictly enforce these laws. Families that educate their daughters should receive conditional financial support and stipends to reduce the economic incentives for early marriage. Textbooks should be revised to remove gender bias and promote gender equality. Curriculum must incorporate teachings on consent, leadership, and digital literacy. 

2.     Ensure Reproductive rights and health access:  

Public health reproductive centers should be increased, particularly in rural and marginalized areas. Family planning and reproductive health education must be included in the national school curriculum to provide youth with information. 

3.     Reform law enforcement and the judicial system:  

Establish gender desks in police stations, recruit, and train more female police officers, and prioritize gender-based violence cases through fast-track courts.

4.     Promote Women's Economic Empowerment:

Recognize unpaid care work as a component of the national GDP to reflect its economic significance. Microloans, coaching, and capacity-building workshops for female entrepreneurs can help expand women's engagement in the formal sector.

5.     Strengthen women's safety and inclusion in digital spaces:

Introduce and enforce strict cyber-harassment legislation to safeguard women online. Increase digital access through rural internet infrastructure and inexpensive smartphone distribution, assuring women and girls’ digital inclusion.

6.     Transform societal narratives and challenge patriarchal norms:

Launch national media reforms and public initiatives to combat damaging gender stereotypes. Engage religious leaders, educators, and community influencers. Fund films, documentaries, and grassroots cultural projects that depict women's diverse realities and achievements. 

South Asia does not lack powerful women; it lacks a system that recognises them. However, change is starting, led by students, survivors, mothers, lawyers, and dreamers. Hope is no longer passive; it is strategic, organised and digital. Men must become participants, not bystanders. Institutions must maintain gender equity. Youth, the region's most significant asset, must have the tools to act. A more just and prosperous South Asia is impossible without women not behind the curtain but at the frontlines of politics, economies, and change. 

The battle may be on every front, but so is the resistance.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official stance of The Himalayan Research Institute Pakistan - (THRIP)

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Muhammad Awais is an International Relations graduate and independent researcher. His work explores great power politics, regional conflicts and the evolving global order with a focus on the Global South.

Sara Maggetto is a Master's student in EU Studies & International Affairs at the University of Padua, Italy. Her academic interest focus on human rights, civilian victims of conflict and global affairs.