[Reader-list] sold in the name of honour

[Lehar ..]

a look at south asia's oldest mohalla. from action
aid's country director.
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Fwded message: asiapeace at yahoo...

AUTHOR: Fouzia Saeed: Is Taboo taboo?  Published in
Dawn, 16 February, 2003
Fouzia Saeed: _Taboo. The Hidden Culture of a Red
Light Area_. Oxford University Press, 2002.

By Shabnam Nasir 


 Labelled as the oldest profession in the world,
prostitution has had roots in South Asia since the
earliest times. The Mughal era provided ample support
for prostitution, as courtesans enjoyed a prominent
status amongst society due to their knowledge of
singing and dancing. Surrounded by an aura of being
unmentionable and forbidden amongst 'respectable'
people, the flesh market is however continuing to grow
at an alarming rate. 

Fouzia Saeed's work has shown that the boldness and
courage of one woman can alter the way we perceive
society. Although written on a highly controversial
issue, she deserves a lot of credit for going where no
woman from outside the Mohalla has gone before, and
with such sensitivity. It was, therefore, with an open
heart and mind that Fouzia Saeed approached the famous
Shahi Mohalla, the red light district of Lahore,
attempting to make sense of an area that has visitors
who publicly shun the very place they have created for
their own recreation. 

As we learn from the book Taboo, life inside the Shahi
Mohalla consists of an upside down world, where the
birth of a girl is celebrated with joy, while news of
a son brings unhappiness. It is a place where men take
a back seat in the running of the household, as it is
the woman who assumes the role of head of the family.
Created as a result of a self-serving patriarchal
society, the Mohalla has effectively provided the
country with numerous poets, singers and actresses. 

However, Taboo is not just a story of life in the red
light district of Lahore. It has been included in the
syllabi of the University of London and is also being
read in some American Universities as an anthropology
textbook. 

"The performing arts have always held an immense
personal interest for me," says Fouzia. "At the age of
17 I wanted to learn how to play the sitar, but I soon
came across the perception that it was not something
that a 'nice' woman should do. When I expressed my
interest in dance, I came across the same resistance,
and this sparked my curiosity as to why there was such
a stigma attached to both these arts." 

It was mainly this love of music and dance and her
work as a woman activist, that sent Fouzia looking for
answers directly where the problem sprouted. As she
holds a doctorate in Education from the University of
Minnesota, the researcher inside her, took over;
looking for answers directly amongst the culture of
pimps, prostitutes, and mirasis. 

Currently, Fouzia is the Country Director of Action
Aid, Pakistan - an NGO involved with eradicating
poverty and fighting social injustice. She has also
worked for the Lok Virsa, where she first encountered
performers who hailed from the Mohalla. While working
at the Lok Virsa, Fouzia wrote Women in folk theatre
which dealt with women's issues in our culture. She
has also written many articles about problems
concerning women's rights and violence against women. 

Born in Lahore, she also lived in Peshawar for
sometime. With two older sisters and a younger brother
who she is very close to, she belongs to a very
close-knit family. After initial schooling in
Peshawar, she went on to obtain her Bachelor's,
Master's and PhD degrees from America. 

When I went to interview her at her office in Action
Aid, Fouzia explained the reasons behind writing on
such a 'sensitive' topic, and the conclusions she had
drawn after completing the book. 

What kind of pressure did you come across while
gathering information for the book? 

Fouzia Saeed: It was not so much of any feelings of
intimidation from the residents of the Mohalla but in
fact it was the "nice" people who were making my life
hard. I encountered a lot of problems at the
bureaucratic level and the police definitely did not
want me any where around the mohalla either. I had the
tires of my car slashed by "unidentified people" but
this only made me resolute in pursuing the mission I
had set out for myself. As to the people who lived in
the Mohalla, I always felt comfortable amongst them. 

Were your family members comfortable with your
particular field of study? 

FS: Initially no. They were subconsciously retaining
the myth that girls who went near the mohalla were in
danger of being kidnapped and forced into
prostitution. When I discussed my reasons and
motivation for uncovering the myths associated with
the performing arts and prostitution, they began to
understand how much this research meant to me and how
resolved I was in pursuing it. I was very lucky in
having extremely supportive parents. My husband, Paul,
who is an American, gave me immense moral support in
viewing the book from the reader's perspective. 

How long did Taboo take to write? 

FS: The research part took about eight years, while
the actual writing took two years. When I wrote the
book I gathered all my information and went to the
Philippines with my husband. From there I was able to
reflect on everything I had learnt from society, and
the Mohalla. It was almost as if I had to distance my
self from Pakistan to be able to write with a clear
perspective. My husband contributed immensely to the
book, as he urged me to modify my style from purely a
research presentation, to an informal approach, so I
could identify with the readers at a much larger
scale.