The organisers of Aurat March Islamabad have decided to hold their rally in the capital on Saturday despite not receiving the federal government’s permission.
Aurat March Islamabad 2025
The participants started their rally from the National Press Club while they plan to conclude the event by marching towards D-Chowk.
Rights activist Dr Farzana Bari remarked: “We will have our show outside the National Press Club as per previous years and will try to march towards D-Chowk to mark the occasion.”
It should be noted that the Aurat March organisers submitted a request for no-objection certificate (NOC) for the planned event few months ago. According to Dr Bari, despite submitting the request through official channels they had not received a NOC for the Aurat March Islamabad.
Earlier, the Aurat March Islamabad wrote an open letter to the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, urging him to issue a NOC for the march in the capital city today.
“In the past, our organisers have faced brutalisation in the hands of religious fundamentalist groups, police and Islamabad Administration, sending a very negative message to the international community regarding [the] status of women’s rights in Pakistan,” stated the post by Aurat March Islamabad.
It also revealed that despite their best attempts for the past six years, Aurat March Islamabad have been “denied the safety and right to protest.”
Dr Farzana further remarked that instead of allowing the organisation to hold their event, the administration had been asking them to postpone the march due to Ramadan.
She clarified that the participants and organisers of the Aurat March Islamabad had already decided to mark the event without any music or fanfare in respect of the holy month of Ramadan.
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