What a coincidence, the day record number of women was taking oath as newly elected parliamentarians. The day top model cum actress Ateeqa Odho was busy interviewing the president Musharraf and the elite ladies of the capital city were relaxing after marking the International Women’s Day quite hectically and aggressively, she was dyeing in a local hospital and nobody was there to care for her.    

The tragic and painful death of young artiste Sana Kanwal in a hospital should be a matter of shame for women’s organisations and NGOs which chose not to lend a helping hand to a woman in distress.Sure death comes when it does and is saddening but it is all the more so when organisations that thrive in the name of women, opt to look the other way. This was a case prominently reported yet the Ministry of Women’s Development and the string of other bodies ‘striving’ for women’s rights conveniently ignored it.

Kanwal, a one-time employee of the Pakistan National Council of the Arts (PNCA), died at the Federal Government Services Hospital (FGSH) in the wee hours of the day of a diabetic foot that turned terribly bad. She was 34.

Her journey from the Edhi Home to the FGSH and back was brief. Brought to the hospital unconscious on Sunday, doctors tried their best to save her life but could not. Only seven people attended her funeral. She was buried at the H-11 Graveyard by the Edhi Trust staff.

A homeless woman, Kanwal did not go to the hospital in time for fear of amputation. There was no one to persuade her to go and she had no loved one to look after her. “Who would take care of a totally dependent woman,” she once said.

The infection in her foot spread to her body and she fell unconscious. A ward boy and two volunteers of Edhi Home stood by her side in hospital. They were the ones who arranged for blood and when she passed away, transported her back and arranged her funeral.

A classical dancer and theatre actress, Kanwal used to tell the hospital staff during an earlier stay there, about her son who was in the custody of his father. “Her in-laws accepted her as long as she was able to earn money but when she went down with her diabetic foot, they made her go away,” the staff said. Soon she sought divorce and later married another man who died a few years ago.

Her wound prevented her from moving on her own and at one point she survived by drinking only water for a full week because there was no one to take care of her. She was a Masters in English Literature, capable and independent — a woman who had faith she could see the bad times through.

Kanwal was not a glamorous star and might have longed for fame, however she symbolised many modern ideas. She represented the image of a woman vastly promoted by NGOs encouraging women to know their rights and fight for them. Sana did just that.

She took bold decisions and was determined to fight against all odds yet being all alone she needed to be protected and supported by those who promote independent women. Unfortunately, she was ignored by all organisations waving the women’s rights flags just when she needed help. Surely she could have survived if timely help and support had been forthcoming.

But whatever response came was from some individuals willing to help — a slap in the face of organisations that make only tall claims from five-star forums. Had this been a rape case, it certainly would have attracted attention of NGOs and others. That Kanwal’s case involved a woman who couldn’t walk, who was helpless and needy was perhaps not attractive for women’s organisations.