KARACHI: It is a scene you rarely see in Pakistan: women buying and selling cattle to sacrifice during Eid Al-Adha.
But at one market in Shadman Town, in the southern port city of Karachi, women can conduct their business with complete ease, and without the fear of a male gaze upon them.
With Eid just around the corner, Pakistanis are flocking to cattle markets to buy animals for slaughter in one of Islam’s most popular rituals of showing affection for Prophet Abraham’s devotion to God.
But in conservative Pakistan, cultural restraints mean that such places are typically full of men, inspecting animals and haggling for the best prices. Women are rarely seen. Until now.
“No market has ever been set up for women, where women are selling animals,” Ruqaiya Fareed, the market’s organizer, told Arab News.
“This is the first time in the world that a cattle market for women has been set up. It’s a platform for women who do not have a male counterpart, whose fathers (or) brothers are out of the country and they are deprived of the obligation of sacrifice.
“It is also for women who nourish the animals all year long in villages but someone else benefits from it. Their animals have also been brought here.”
Fareed said some of the vendors reared their animals on their rooftops or in their gardens, another was supporting her husband’s business.
The beasts come from Punjab and Karachi, and although the market has only 10 stalls, there are bargains to be had.
“Our rates are reasonable and women get a special discount,” said Fareed, who owns a cattle farm in Punjab, the country’s most populous province.
She said she had received “complete support” from government officials, police and the paramilitary Rangers in terms of providing security for the market.
Noor Jehan, one of the vendors, said she sold four goats in the first week after opening up her stall.
“I love animals. I nourish goats all year long and then sell them on Eid Al-Adha,” she told Arab News.
“Women are taking interest and coming here. I have given them a special discount.”
She also encouraged other women to try their hand at animal trading.
“For women who want to take this up as a business opportunity, there is a lot of profit,” she said.
Ashi Kanwal told Arab News she bought a cow for a “reasonable” price on her first visit to the market.
“I had heard of it. My son asked me to go with him as his father didn’t have the time. So I came, I saw, made a deal and purchased it.”
Kanwal said it was much easier to go to the market in Shadman than those held elsewhere.
“We can’t go alone when we go to Sohrab Goth or other cattle markets,” she said, referring to Karachi’s main cattle market. “It’s not convenient for us as women.
“But we are comfortable coming here. The atmosphere is good and the arrangements for food and drinks are also good. I might come next year, too.”
