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    Tahafuz: Making the World Assault-Free, One Workshop at a Time

    Tahafuz: Making a World Free of Sexual Violence and Assault

    Written by: Momina Mindeel
    Posted on: November 30, 2016 | | 中文

    The first self-defense class of Project Tahafuz

    Tahafuz (‘Protection’) is a social enterprise incubated at the Social Innovation Lab in the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), which aims to create a world free of sexual violence and assault. The Tahafuz team recently launched their first self-defense seminar for women in Lahore, so we sat down with the founder, Omer Imran Malik to talk about Tahafuz, sexual violence in Pakistan and more.

    “I perceived the idea of Tahafuz in 2015, during a Young Leaders’ Conference (YLC) in Islamabad. I was with a group of Islamabadi teenagers, and we decided to do a project on sexual violence and harassment. Some of my friends narrated a horrific incident where a girl was abducted and sexually assaulted by a perpetrator. They were trembling with fear when they narrated this story. It was then that I decided that an institutionalized system of self-defense classes was needed for women, as well as minorities who are often exposed to such situations. I brought the idea to LUMS, and presented it at the Social Innovation Lab with the consent of my team members at YLC. We got incubated, made a new team and started working towards the implementation of these classes,” told Omer.

    Tahafuz: Making a World Free of Sexual Violence and Assault

    An awareness campaign was held at LUMS ahead of the first self-defense workshop

    The journey was immensely difficult for team Tahafuz, but they refused to give up. Omer and his young team spent their entire three-month long summer break working on their self-defense classes, and were finally able to execute them last weekend. In the past, only a few sporadic self-defense classes have been organized for women in Pakistan. Tahafuz is the first organization in the country to launch self-defense courses at an institutional level. “Since sexual violence is a taboo subject, most people shy away from discussing it, thereby making the entire process of addressing it extremely difficult. We began working on our classes by examining the curricula of international self-defense courses for women, and figured out how to bring about similar classes in Pakistan,” explains Omer.

    In an effort to keep their project sustainable, team Tahafuz initially conducted surveys in order to gauge the level of demand for their classes, and prepared effective financing strategies accordingly. The team has come up with a two-tier financial strategy where women from the upper middle class will initially be charged for the self-defense classes. The money generated from these will be redirected towards organizing the same classes for women who cannot afford to pay.

    Tahafuz: Making a World Free of Sexual Violence and Assault

    Founder Omer Imran Malik with the participants of the first self-defense class

    Elaborating on the problems faced in the journey towards Tahafuz, Omer says, “The biggest struggle that I had to go through was the formulation of a team. Although many people want to fight sexual violence, it still is a very difficult area to play in. You have to be extremely careful with your product. Since this is happening for the first time in Pakistan, we had very little research to rely on. All the available models were foreign, and we had to figure out if they were even applicable to Pakistan. Another major challenge was finding a suitable instructor with whom all women would be comfortable.”

    Tahafuz: Making a World Free of Sexual Violence and Assault

    Sarah Tareen, the self-defense instructor

    The first workshop series launched by Tahafuz, titled ‘Fight Back’, began last weekend. So far it is open only to LUMS students, but it will soon be available for the public as well. The purpose is not to train women to join fight clubs or choose violence as a way of life, but rather to teach them basic self-defense techniques that would prove useful in a situation that could otherwise lead to sexual violence. A two-tier training session has been prepared that consists of mind training and physical self-defense. The former is to help women be assertive, while the latter can be used as the last resort. The workshops will take place on weekends, allowing working women to participate as well.

    “Although Pakistan is a conservative society, we have a colossal number of women who go out and work every day. Research has shown that sexual predators tend to stay clear of the areas where self-defense classes are held, as they are scared of assertive women,” Omer adds. “However, it will take 5 to 10 years to see a tangible change in this regard.”  

    Team Tahafuz is thankful to the Social Innovation Lab at LUMS for its continued support, mentorship and advice. Despite a small team and currently limited resources, Tahafuz has big plans of making the world assault-free, one workshop at a time.


    As the new year begins, let us also start anew. I’m delighted to extend, on behalf of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and in my own name, new year’s greeting and sincere wishes to YOULIN magazine’s staff and readers.

    Only in hard times can courage and perseverance be manifested. Only with courage can we live to the fullest. 2020 was an extraordinary year. Confronted by the COVID-19 pandemic, China and Pakistan supported each other and took on the challenge in solidarity. The ironclad China-Pakistan friendship grew stronger as time went by. The China Pakistan Economic Corridor projects advanced steadily in difficult times, become a standard-bearer project of the Belt and Road Initiative in balancing pandemic prevention and project achievement. The handling capacity of the Gwadar Port has continued to rise and Afghanistan transit trade through the port has officially been launched. The Karakoram Highway Phase II upgrade project is fully open to traffic. The Lahore Orange Line project has been put into operation. The construction of Matiari-Lahore HVDC project was fully completed. A batch of green and clean energy projects, such as the Kohala and Azad Pattan hydropower plants have been substantially promoted. Development agreement for the Rashakai SEZ has been signed. The China-Pakistan Community of Shared Future has become closer and closer.

    Reviewing the past and looking to the future, we are confident to write a brilliant new chapter. The year 2021 is the 100th birthday of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan. The 100-year journey of CPC surges forward with great momentum and China-Pakistan relationship has flourished in the past 70 years. Standing at a new historic point, China is willing to work together with Pakistan to further implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, connect the CPEC cooperation with the vision of the “Naya Pakistan”, promote the long-term development of the China-Pakistan All-weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership with love, dedication and commitment. Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founding father of Pakistan said, “We are going through fire. The sunshine has yet to come.” Yes, Pakistan’s best days are ahead, China will stand with Pakistan firmly all the way.

    YOULIN magazine is dedicated to promoting cultural exchanges between China and Pakistan and is a window for Pakistani friends to learn about China, especially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It is hoped that with the joint efforts of China and Pakistan, YOULIN can listen more to the voices of readers in China and Pakistan, better play its role as a bridge to promote more effectively people-to-people bond.

    Last but not least, I would like to wish all the staff and readers of YOULIN a warm and prosper year in 2021.

    Nong Rong Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of
    The People’s Republic of China to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
    January 2021