Justice Ayesha A. Malik
After serving at the Lahore High Court for ten years, Justice Ayesha A. Malik made history in 2022 as the first woman to be appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. Her appointment marked a significant milestone, as Pakistan became the last country in South Asia to include a woman on its highest court.
As Justice Malik sits alongside with predominately male colleagues on the country's highest court, she recognizes the importance of integrating the gender perspective in the judicial arena. For Justice Malik, the gender perspective in judgments is not only a matter of justice and fairness but also essential for promoting equality and social justice as mandated by the constitution. She has actively highlighted this in the trainings she had conducted for judges from around the world as well as in the conferences for women judges in Punjab and Pakistan. Through such initiatives, she strives to bring the issue to the forefront and promote a more inclusive judicial system.
Justice Malik's judgments in matters pertaining to women have been lauded nationally and internationally and have bought the impact of the gender perspective to light. These include: i) declaring the virginity test and hymen examination of rape victims as unconstitutional and violative of human dignity, ii) expanding the definition of sexual harassment under the workplace harassment law, iii) recognizing rights of Pardanashin women with reference to property rights, iv) recognizing custody rights of children in the case of second marriage of women, v) declaring that the Khula as the basic right of the women, vi) ruling on inclusion of women in the citizens committee established under the disaster management plan, vii) declaring that merit, and not 50% reserved seats for each gender, should be the sole criterion for admissions in medical colleges, viii) declaring that policies promoting and facilitating women's employment in Punjab were affirmative action which was not discriminatory, ix) as well as assuring employment to women who came on the merit in the Counter Terrorism Department as opposed to employment against a quota, x) settling the issue of, and allowing double pension in a case where a daughter was denied the pension of one parent on the argument that she was already receiving pension of the other parent.
In recognition of her work, Justice Malik was included in the BBC 100 Women 2022 list, which recognizes 100 inspiring and influential women from around the world. Additionally, Forbes honored her as one of the Women Who Made Global History in 2022, and she was featured in Forbes' 50 Over 50: Asia 2023 list which showcased 50 women over the age of 50 from the Asia-Pacific region that are achieving remarkable success in their respective fields and serving as a source of inspiration for the next generation. Equality Now for its 30th Anniversary also celebrated Justice Malik in 30 For 30 women and changemakers that helped make equality reality.