Smartphones: A Silver lining for Women!

Smartphones: A Silver lining for Women!

Pakistan’s democratic government has enacted a series of legislative measures to protect and advance socio-economic rights of women as the participation of half of the country’s population in national life is imperative to help the country grapple with current challenges and march forward as a strong nation.

Smartphones have grown more powerful than the PCs we used just a decade ago. It has also contributed in giving empowerment to women. Woman of today is the future of tomorrow. Undoubtedly, females are the backbone of a nation.

Smartphone has now turn out to be the best way to minimize chances of becoming a victim of violent crime (robbery, sexual assault, rape, domestic violence) is to identify and call on resources to help you out of dangerous situations.

In the meantime, mobile technology with all the ‘bells and whistles’ that come with the new feature-rich apps, for example;
There are many safety apps and websites has rushed for the protection of women rights.

[info]Bsafe App:[/info] A personal safety alarm that sends an emergency message to your chosen contacts with the push of a single button, bSafe’s slogan is “Never walk alone.”
[info]Hollaback App:[/info] It gives you the power to end street harassment” is the tag line for this app which tackles the crime one perpetrator at a time. Users can choose to take and upload a photo of their harasser “caught in the act” and submit their story to be recorded and mapped on ihollaback.org.
[info]GetTaxi App:[/info] Its a free app that lets users order a taxi directly from a smartphone, now requires its drivers to wait until female customers safely enter their destination — and shut the door — before leaving.

[info]Circle of 6:[/info] When in a dangerous situation, it can be hard to whip out your smartphone, dial, wait for someone to pick up, and tell them what’s wrong. With Circle of 6, you can alert your friends, family, and emergency services that you need help. The anti-violence app has you choose six people to add to your circle, and when you need help, it pings all six an alert message and gives them your GPS location.
[info]Social Networks:[/info] Social Networks like Facebook and Tweeter has facilitated women by creating awareness. Females are now Tweeting to end sexual harassment on tweeter.

Apart from everything, technology clearly has its limits: it cannot fulfill the need for decent law enforcement, or change attitudes towards women. The problem is that most of the safety apps require GPS facilities that standard mobile phones do not have, although some developers offer emergency texting services.

Pakistani smartphone market is rising swiftly – expected to soon become one of the world’s biggest mobile markets.

The creators of Stipator, Ratnesh Desai and three fellow Microsoft employees in Hyderabad city, are also working on a “lipstick-sized” safety device for women without phones. Techies and activists hope that if their tools catch on, they might one day act as a deterrent to abuse.