Blog 3; Freewill Mariages

In Pakistan, marriage is decided by the parents of the bride and groom. This is called an arranged marriage. The parents usually have this marriage set up early in their children's lives. The parents do this because they want the best for their children. It is expected of the children to marry and live together and having children together. If one of the partners in the marriage decides they want out of the marriage, this is considered of up most disrespect to the parents. The couple in this article not only disobeyed their parents about going into an arranged marriage, they ran away and eloped. As this couple took this action the parents of the wife, Nusrat Mochi, are convinced that the husband, Abbas Bhatti, kidnapped Ms. Mochi. They threatened Mr. Bhatti's parents. Not only are they threatening his parents, they keep sending people out to kill the couple because of their disobedience. Ms. Mochi's parents said they would stop if Mr. Bhatti could pay them off but he doesn't make enough money to do so right away. Until then the family must keep moving to keep themselves and their children safe.


As I finished reading this article it made me reflect not only on the culture of Pakistani women, but also of my own. As I understand the reasons for marriage around the world can be very different, I didn't think about the different troubles a couple might face. This was a great example for me. This couple who went against their cultures tradition now lives with a fear of whether or not someone will find them one day and kill them just for being different. In my own ethnocentric mind, I think to myself how this is not what a married couple should go through. In my own culture married people deal with cheating and communication problems, not what their parents think of the marriage. As it is socially unhealthy to think in this way, this article helped me realize that in the types of marriages that Ms. Mochi was put in, women normally have little to no say in the matter. Although this taboo family faces hardships and the consequences of going against family tradition, it is a great example of women increasingly asserting their rights in society.


http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/09/world/asia/some-pakistani-women-risk-all-to-marry-for-love.html?pagewanted=all