Dowry: A Social Curse
By Yumnah Aijaz
We say that we live in 21st century. The ‘digital age’ was supposed to be an age of wisdom, cooperation, human progress, prosperity and advances beyond the limits of our solar system. Well, at least that the was dream we were being told.
Are we really moving towards such an era? Is our country moving forward? Has our society civilized?
My friends, if you ask me, I would say, NO! Let every thing aside. Forget technological advances. Don’t even bother thinking about going beyond the ‘final frontier’. Look at the basics. For once, we still continue to be trapped in the claws of the devil known as dowry. Our society remains dominated by marital relationships which are based on how much the bride’s family can pay the groom!
Yesterday, I was reading about Taskeen Bibi, a woman who was made to swallow poison just because she wasn’t able to satiate the greed of her “sasural walay” (in-laws); she couldn’t fulfill their demands for dowry.
Jehez, also pronounced by some as Dahaij, has become an ugly stigma in our society, destroying families. It has become an everyday problem in countries like Pakistan, India and Bangladesh, as well as some Central Asian countries, where relationships are bought and sold, and brides are dehumanized and treated like goods.
Girls are seceding; parents are made to abort their baby girls. Why? Because their parents are not able to satisfy the want of some gluttonous minds. We as a whole play a role in making the girl feel like a burden on her parents. Ask yourself, how many times have you wished to be born as a boy or how many of us never wanted to be born as a girl?
A daughter is now judged by the amount a girl’s father has in his pocket. A girl’s happiness is measured by the quantum of dowry she can afford to give to the other family.
Inscription concerning it makes me gloomy regarding the reality of the society. It makes me want to end all of this at once however I can’t do anything alone. I can put my bit in making the humanity better similarly I want you to all consider if we want be the victim of it or fancy doing something in order to change it! THINK!
