Protecting women: an examination of the deficiencies in the Protection of Women Act and other qualitative barriers

President Musharraf enacted the Protection of Women Act, which came into effect for all of Pakistan on December 1, 2006. Its purpose is to protect women from violence and from the misuse of the Hudood Ordinances. However, there is no evidence, which suggests that the Act has been accepted or implemented across the country. Therefore, this paper identifies the qualitative barriers against the Act. Specifically, this paper examines the debates and protests surrounding the passage of the Act to discern broader conflicts that serve as barriers (e.g. the conflict over the basis of moral right). The text of the Act is also examined to identify deficiencies that prevent it from being effective. Ultimately, the analysis confirms the presence of qualitative barriers, such as the struggle over cultural change. Moreover, it indicates that the Act itself contains many deficiencies and cannot protect women as it is currently formulated.