FOUNDED 1983
ASR Herstory
OVERVIEW
Impact through scholarship & action
ASR Resource Centre was founded in 1983 as a multidisciplinary, non-governmental resource centre working towards social transformation through research, training, publication, film, theatre and activism.
270+
Training courses & programmes conducted
500+
Grassroots training sessions, 1983–2009
55+
Published titles (books, research, journals)
400+
CSOs partnered nationally & internationally
50
Research projects undertaken, 1983–2009
INTRODUCTION
A resource centre like no other
ASR is perhaps the oldest organisation of its kind in Pakistan — a catalyst, a network and a resource centre built on feminist underpinnings and a holistic view of development.
ASR is a non-profit, non-governmental resource centre set up in 1983 as a multidisciplinary, multidimensional group working towards social transformation. ASR’s ideological stance has been to re-examine development alternatives based on the empowerment of the majority of the people, so that the people themselves can identify and be involved not only in satisfying the urgent needs of the present, but in anticipating and creating their own future.
Although ASR is not a women’s centre, its ideological underpinnings are feminist. This bias, as well as its holistic view of development, has led ASR to experiment with a range of activities — in some cases with a view to redefining development and politics, and in others to explore and create the space necessary for such experiment.
Hence the name ASR — which means IMPACT in Urdu.
"ASR's activities are interlinked and interconnected and since the rationale for each invariably lies in another, there is an internal logic in its diversity. The emphasis on any particular activity depends on the need at that moment — to define a new space, to experiment with an idea, to respond to a need, to make a political statement."
CORE WORK
Decades of interconnected work
ASR’s programmes have always been interlocking — training, research, publishing, film, theatre and activism each feeding into the others.
Research & Writing
Women in industry, handicrafts, agriculture; poverty and the peasantry; identity, ideology and religion; violence against women; women's movement studies. Over 50 projects from 1983–2009.
Training & Teaching
Over 270 training programmes at grassroots, national and international levels. Women & development workshops; Women's Studies courses; peace and conflict studies; media and theatre skills.
Audio-Visual & Film
A film library of over 2,000 titles. Intensive video production and training workshops. Films on the women's movement, girl child empowerment. Winner of the British Council WID Video Award (1993).
Publishing
Over 55 published titles in Urdu and English — training materials, research findings, fiction, poetry, academic and non-fiction. A series on Multidisciplinary Women's Studies in Pakistan.
Networking & Activism
Closely associated with women's groups, social action groups, trade unions, peasant organisations and networks at national, sub-regional, regional and international levels.
Theatre & Creativity
First in Pakistan to run theatre skills training and festivals. Organised India–Pakistan theatre festivals (1989) and South Asian theatre festivals (1992), leading to a South Asian theatre activist network.
STRATEGIC EVOLUTION
How ASR changed over four decades
Each phase of ASR’s work was a conscious response to what the movement needed most at that moment.
1983– 1986
Laying the foundations
Research on development issues; building a database; evaluations; assisting other NGOs’ programming; translating and simplifying academic research; developing ASR as a resource centre and intermediary NGO to encourage alternative development concepts.
1987-1989
Training & creative expression
ASR concentrated on training at grassroots, national and international levels. First in Pakistan to run video production training, theatre skill workshops and theatre festivals. Strengthened links across South Asia, with training courses in Women in Development drawing NGO leadership, journalists, legal and medical professionals, and political movement leaders.
1990-1992
Policy-level engagement & publishing
Feedback showed senior policy makers also needed in-depth training. ASR linked micro with macro to enable long-term policy decisions. Publications expanded to academic, fiction, poetry and non-fiction general titles. A multimedia identity emerged — publications, film and theatre converging in one organisation. Organised the South Asian Theatre Festival in Lahore (1992), creating a regional theatre activist network.
1993-1997
Establishing the Women's Studies Institute
A decisive refocus: ASR decided to build on its deepest experience and establish the Institute of Women’s Studies Lahore (IWSL). While building and running the Institute, ASR conducted 46 workshops on the 12 issues identified by the WCW (1995) and held two large national conferences. Over 10,000 activists, academics, writers, media professionals, NGO workers, trade unionists and political figures participated.
1997-2009
Field programmes & district-level work
Networking, campaigns, advocacy and activism — at grassroots, national and international levels simultaneously. Field coordinators in 7 districts of Pakistan and AJK/FANA, covering women’s land rights, violence against women, minority rights, and peace and conflict. Facilitated 140 participants at the World Social Forum (Mumbai, 2004) — 50% women, 50% religious minorities.
GLOBAL ADVOCACY
Shaping the global feminist agenda
ASR played a key role in every major UN world conference from Nairobi (1985) to Beijing+5 (2000). At the Nairobi World Conference on Women, ASR not only wrote the alternative country position but was a key organiser of the panel on Asian Feminism.
At the 4th World Conference on Women in Beijing (1995), Nighat Said Khan was invited by the UN NGO Forum Secretariat as a keynote speaker. ASR organised 4 workshops at the NGO Forum — all very well attended — and held full responsibility as a member of the Asia-Pacific Working Group.
| Year | Conference / Event | Location | ASR's Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | World Conference for Women | Mexico City | Nighat Khan part of the international preparatory process |
| 1985 | UN World Conference on Women | Nairobi | Wrote alternative country position; organised Asian Feminism panel; Nighat Khan presented on 6 panels; funded 4 other women's participation |
| 1992 | World Conference on Environment | Rio de Janeiro | Participated and maintained international engagement |
| 1993 | Asian & Pacific NGO Women in Development Symposium | Manila | Organised workshop on Women and Political Empowerment — most heavily attended workshop at the Symposium |
| 1993 | World Conference on Human Rights (Asian prep) | Regional | Actively involved in Asian preparations |
| 1994 | 2nd Ministerial Meeting on Women in Development | Jakarta | Lobbied on Asia-Pacific draft Plan of Action forwarded to Beijing |
| 1994 | International Conference on Population and Development | Cairo | Participated and contributed to feminist positioning |
| 1995 | The Social Summit | Copenhagen | Active participation |
| 1995 | 4th World Conference on Women — Beijing | Beijing | Keynote speaker (Nighat Khan) at UN NGO Forum; organised 4 workshops; full Asia-Pacific Working Group responsibilities; held 46 national workshops; 2 large pre/post-Beijing conferences with thousands of activists; 9 publications including Manila document in Urdu and Sindhi |
| 1996 | Habitat Conference | Istanbul | Participated via local government and city planning capacity |
| 1999 | Beijing+5 South Asian process | Nepal | National, provincial and South Asian level engagement |
| 1999 | Beijing+5 Asia-Pacific meeting | Thailand | Contributed to regional platform |
| 2000 | UN Beijing+5 | New York | Full participation; focus on UN Security Council Resolution on Women, Peace and Security (October 2000) |
| 2003 | Asian Social Forum | India | Mobilised and facilitated participation from marginalised communities across Pakistan |
| 2004 | World Social Forum | Mumbai, India | Coordinated "Process to the WSF and Beyond, Pakistan and Beyond"; facilitated 140 participants — 50% women, 50% religious minorities |
SOUTH ASIA
Working with a South Asian identity
From its inception, ASR recognised that the region is so geographically, historically, politically, economically and culturally linked that issues in one country cannot be resolved without addressing others.
3,000 participants
Facilitated over 3,000 participants to attend programmes in other parts of South Asia over 27 years.
Peace & solidarity
Pak-India People's Forum for Peace and Democracy; Women's Initiative for Peace in South Asia (WIPSA); South Asian Women for Peace; assisted over 1,000 visiting Indians.
Theatre & culture
India–Pakistan theatre festival (1989); South Asian theatre festival, Lahore (1992) — leading to establishment of the South Asian theatre activists' network.
"The most important aspect has been to inculcate the idea of peace in the region and to mobilise activists on issues of peace."
FOCUS AREAS
Four crosscutting district programmes
From 2003–2008 ASR concentrated on four interlinked focus areas at the district level, implemented across 7 districts of Pakistan and in AJK and FANA, with field coordinators drawn from local activists.
These programmes were implemented in Punjab (Bahawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan, Muzaffargarh), Sindh (Tharparkar, Hyderabad, Badin, Dadu) and Muzaffarabad, Gilgit, Skardu and Hunza.
FOCUS AREA 01
Women's Land & Inheritance Rights
Women’s land rights (ownership and access to land) and women’s rights to inheritance — addressing structural inequality at its most fundamental level.
FOCUS AREA 02
Violence Against Women
Particular focus on violence against single women by family members and relational communities (e.g. Biradaris). Combining legal and medical recourse with community-level activism.
FOCUS AREA 03
Religious Minorities & Women
Documenting and defending the rights of religious minorities, with particular attention to women belonging to minority faiths — especially Hindu, Christian and other communities.
FOCUS AREA 04
Peace, Conflict & Women
Inter and intra-state peace and conflict as they impact women. Working towards inclusion of women in peace resolutions — connecting provincial rights, Kashmir, and ethnic and sectarian conflicts.
Districts worked in (1997–2009)
Field Coordinator Model
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Selection | Field Coordinators selected from local activists who completed training at ASR Lahore |
| Composition | Equal representation of women and men; equal representation of majority and minority religions |
| Training cycle | Workshops every three months — sharing activities, reviewing reports, discussing emerging issues, preparing plans and budgets for the next quarter |
| Community methods | Meetings; seminars; discussions; activism; fact-finding investigations; legal and medical recourse for specific cases |
| Policy engagement | Increasingly approaching policymakers, union council members, Members of Parliament, other NGOs and CSOs on priority issues |
Associated networks & alliances
| Network/Alliance |
|---|
| ISIS International |
| ACFOD Bangkok |
| Asia Pacific Forum on Women Law |
| Asia Women's Human Rights Council |
| South Asian Women's Forum |
| Pak-India People's Forum |
| WIPSA |
IWSL - ASR's Flagship Initiative
Institute of Women's Studies Lahore
In 1993 ASR moved towards establishing its most ambitious project — a Women’s Studies and Women in Development Training Centre. South Asia’s first institute of its kind.
6
Certificate course editions
31+
Short workshops held
33
Seminar lectures
80+
Global academic links
IWSL Certificate Course Modules
01 History — Herstory
03 Identity / Ideology / Law / Religion
05 Women’s Movement & People’s Struggles
06 Feminist Theory
WOMEN'S STUDIES
What is Women's Studies?
Women’s Studies as a field evolved out of the Second Wave of Feminism in the nineteen sixties. It is acknowledged as a product of and related to the women’s movement. For over 40 years, Women’s Studies courses have pushed the narrow parameters of traditional knowledge and challenged the rigid and false barriers between disciplines. Simultaneously, Women’s Studies developed alternative perspectives and methodologies firmly grounded in women’s own experiences.
"Women's Studies has the potential to enable an awareness and consciousness not only of patriarchy, but also of class, race and other factors underlying oppression."
Core characteristics of Women's Studies
Areas of Involvement
Deep engagement across every level
ASR’s work has always connected the grassroots with national and international processes — deliberately and continuously.
Research & writing (1983–2009)
ASR’s research covers women in industry, handicrafts, agriculture and other development issues of citizenship, identity, ideology and religion. Projects include: poverty, the peasantry and women in rural Punjab; the Partition of India (1947) from women’s perspectives; the women’s movement; women and media; indigenous literary and creative expressions; violence against women; citizenship and women; peace, conflict and women; divisions, borders and partition; marginalized communities. From 1983–2009 approximately 50 research projects were undertaken.
Training programmes
From 1983–2009, over 270 training and teaching programmes at grassroots, national and international levels. Over 500 grassroots trainings. Worked with over 400 CSOs nationally and internationally. Training areas included: Women in Development workshops with development workers and women’s rights activists; theatre workshops and festivals; video production workshops; Women’s Studies and theory courses; peace and conflict studies; multidimensional Women’s Studies conferences and festivals of feminist creativity.
Publications
ASR’s publication unit began with training materials, research findings and translations — then expanded to fiction, poetry, academic and non-fiction titles, including a series on Multidisciplinary Women’s Studies in Pakistan. Over 55 published titles, with a further 100 posters, cards and calendars. At least half are full-length books distributed through mainstream book trade and informal networks. Published in both Urdu and English.
Film unit & audio-visual
ASR runs a film unit and has conducted intensive video production and training workshops. Films include one on the Women’s Movement in Pakistan and its resistance to Islamization (made for Channel 4, England). The film on the girl child (“Mayee Nai Maenoon Shoak Avalray”) won the British Council Worldwide WID Video Award (1993). ASR also maintains a film library of over 2,000 films used extensively by other groups in their awareness and training programmes. 4 documentaries produced to date.
Networking, activism & advocacy
ASR has consistently maintained that there should be a constant interplay of theory/conceptual understanding and action. All ASR workers are active members of several other organisations. ASR has initiated activist groups and forums at grassroots, national and international levels and as part of networks, alliances and collaboratives. It is closely linked with women’s groups, social action groups, theatre and communication groups, trade unions and peasant organisations at national, sub-regional, regional and international levels.
Initiating new organisations
ASR frequently initiates or helps set up new groups and disengages itself as soon as they become viable. Initiatives include: a sub-office in Toba Tek Singh (rural district, later made self-sustaining); an office in Hyderabad, Sindh; and responsibility for initiating and/or setting up several large independent NGOs, forums and networks. From 1983–2009 ASR participated in and facilitated the participation of approximately 2,000 in national-level trainings and approximately 1,000 in international ones.
Conferences held by ASR
10 national and international conferences held to date. Multidimensional Women’s Studies Conferences and Festivals of feminist creativity — bringing together academics, activists, writers, artists, media, trade unionists, political activists and Members of Government. The 1994 Women’s Studies Conference mobilized 8,000–10,000 participants. Two large national conferences were held pre and post Beijing (1995) with several thousand activists.