□As leaders from fifty-seven Muslim nations gather in Islamabad, the real question is not what they will say—but what they will dare to change.□

It was a bright Sunday morning. “foxy” —my mustard-coloured Volkswagen—and I were returning from our customary walk through the quiet streets of Islamabad. Foxy was not driving; it was gliding, as though an elegant princess were crossing a carpet of emerald grass. As I turned towards the F-10 Markaz, my eyes fell upon a familiar figure standing beside the roadside.

It was BaBaTal—the Bell-man.

Time had silvered his beard but not his wisdom. His weathered face carried the serenity of a man who had spent a lifetime awakening others long before sunrise. Around his simple robe hung little brass bells that stirred gently with every movement, as though even the morning breeze wished to announce his presence. Whenever he spoke, it was almost in a whisper, for he believed that truth never needed to raise its voice.

As foxy slowed beside him, he smiled and said quietly,

“A nation that silences its women silences half its wisdom. A bell that cannot be heard beyond its first sound has failed its purpose.”

Before I could reply, he lifted his hand in farewell, leaving me with a silence far louder than words.

As Foxy moved forward beneath the clear summer sky, my thoughts travelled back more than fourteen centuries, to a time when a great moral revolution transformed the place of women in society. In an age when many daughters were denied even the right to live, faith restored dignity where there had been despair, justice where there had been neglect, and hope where there had been none.

Today, as Islamabad welcomes delegates from fifty-seven Muslim nations to the Ninth Ministerial Conference on Women, BaBaTal’s quiet words deserve to travel with every delegate who enters the conference hall. For the true measure of this gathering will not be found in its speeches, ceremonies, or official photographs. It will be found in whether those who arrive with promises depart with purpose.

And that journey begins not with politics, but with principles that were proclaimed centuries ago.

The foundation for that journey was laid more than fourteen centuries ago. At a time when much of the world measured a woman’s worth by custom rather than conscience, the Holy Qur’an spoke with remarkable clarity. It restored rights that many societies had denied and affirmed that dignity belongs equally to every human being.

“Women shall have rights similar to the rights against them, according to what is just.” (The Holy Qur’an 2:228)

It also declared:

“Men shall have the share of what they earn, and women shall have the share of what they earn.” (The Holy Qur’an 4:32)

These were not merely verses to be recited. They were principles meant to shape families, communities, and nations.

The Prophet Muhammad (Peace and blessings be upon him) transformed those principles into daily practice. He said,

“The best of you are those who are best to their women.” (Jami’ al-Tirmidhi)

He also proclaimed,

“Seeking knowledge is an obligation upon every Muslim.” (Sunan Ibn Majah)

History records how those teachings produced women whose achievements illuminated the early centuries of Islamic civilization.

Khadijah bint Khuwaylid demonstrated that integrity and commercial success could walk hand in hand. Aisha bint Abu Bakr became one of history’s most respected scholars, whose knowledge guided generations. Nusaybah bint Ka’ab displayed extraordinary courage in defending the Prophet during the Battle of Uhud. Fatima al-Fihri founded the University of Al-Qarawiyyin, recognised as one of the world’s oldest continuously operating centres of higher learning.

These women were not remarkable because they broke barriers. They were remarkable because they lived within a faith that had already recognised their intellect, courage, enterprise, and moral worth.

Somewhere along the passage of history, however, culture began to borrow the language of faith while quietly replacing its spirit. Customs gradually overshadowed principles, traditions often prevailed over justice, and opportunities that should have flourished became confined by misunderstanding.

Perhaps that is why BaBaTal’s whisper continued to echo in my thoughts. A bell is not made to admire its own sound. It is made to awaken those who have forgotten what they already know.

And perhaps that is precisely why this gathering in Islamabad carries significance far beyond conference halls and official ceremonies. It offers the Muslim world an opportunity not to discover a new path, but to rediscover an old one.

That opportunity begins this evening in Islamabad, where delegates from fifty-seven Muslim nations assemble for the Ninth Ministerial Conference on Women. Tomorrow, Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif will formally inaugurate the proceedings, while Pakistan assumes the honour of providing the Chairperson of the Women’s Forum for the next two years.

This is more than diplomatic protocol. It is a moment of pride for Pakistan and, in particular, for the women of Pakistan.

They deserve heartfelt congratulations. From classrooms and laboratories to courtrooms, hospitals, universities, newsrooms, businesses, and public service, Pakistani women have demonstrated that talent flourishes wherever opportunity is allowed to grow. Their achievements have earned respect far beyond our borders. The confidence placed in Pakistan to guide this important forum is, therefore, a tribute not only to the host nation but also to the ability, resilience, and leadership of its women.

Yet every honour carries a responsibility.

The success of this conference will not be measured by the elegance of its declarations or the warmth of its applause. It will be measured by what follows after the delegates return home. Let Islamabad become remembered not simply as the city where ministers gathered, but as the place where practical commitments were born.

The participating nations should agree upon measurable goals: expanding girls’ education, increasing women’s participation in science and technology, improving access to finance for women entrepreneurs, strengthening legal protection against discrimination, promoting professional training, and creating practical partnerships through which successful programmes can be shared among member states. Progress deserves to be measured not by promises recorded in official documents, but by lives transformed in villages, towns, and cities across the Muslim world.

Pakistan also has an opportunity to offer a larger vision.

If the Muslim world believes that its women possess the wisdom, experience, and statesmanship to help guide international affairs, then the time has come to support the nomination of a distinguished Pakistani woman for the office of Secretary-General of the United Nations. Pakistan has already presented the world with diplomats of exceptional calibre. Dr. Maleeha Lodhi, Senator Sherry Rehman, and Hina Rabbani Khar each represent a tradition of diplomatic excellence that has brought honour to the nation. Mentioning their names is not to favour one over another, but to remind the world that Pakistan has daughters fully capable of serving humanity at the highest international level.

Should this conference inspire such confidence and unity, Islamabad will have achieved something far greater than hosting another international gathering. It will have helped shape a future in which leadership is judged not by gender, but by vision, wisdom, and service.

This evening, Islamabad opens its heart to the Muslim world.

Delegations from fifty-seven nations are arriving in Pakistan’s capital for the Ninth Ministerial Conference on Women. Tomorrow, Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif will formally inaugurate the conference, while Pakistan assumes the responsibility of leading the Women’s Forum for the next two years through its newly elected Chairperson.

The occasion deserves sincere congratulations.

Congratulations to the Government of Pakistan for earning the confidence of the member states. Congratulations to the women of Pakistan, whose achievements in education, diplomacy, medicine, science, journalism, business, public administration, and public service have helped make this moment possible. Every Pakistani girl should see in this conference not merely an international event, but a reminder that ability knows no boundary when opportunity is allowed to flourish.

Yet honours are meaningful only when they become responsibilities.

The delegates gathering in Islamabad should resist the temptation to produce another carefully worded declaration destined for library shelves and forgotten archives. History rarely remembers conferences for their closing speeches. It remembers them for the doors they opened after the delegates returned home.

Let Islamabad become the city where measurable commitments replaced comfortable promises.

Let every participating nation pledge greater access to education, wider opportunities for employment, stronger protection under the law, easier access to finance for women entrepreneurs, expanded scientific and technological education, and practical cooperation through which successful national programmes can be shared across the Muslim world. The progress of nations should be measured not by the number of conferences they host, but by the number of lives they improve.

Pakistan also stands before another historic opportunity.

If the Muslim world truly believes that leadership belongs to merit, wisdom, and experience, then it should not hesitate to support a distinguished Pakistani woman for the office of Secretary-General of the United Nations. Our nation has already produced diplomats whose achievements command international respect. Dr. Maleeha Lodhi, Senator Sherry Rehman, and Hina Rabbani Khar each represent the intellectual strength and diplomatic excellence that Pakistan has contributed to the international community. Their names remind us that our country does not lack capable women; it merely awaits the collective will to place one of them before the world.

Should such a vision emerge from Islamabad, this conference will be remembered not simply because fifty-seven nations assembled here, but because they departed carrying a shared purpose that reached far beyond the conference hall.

There is, however, another measure by which this conference will be judged.

It will not appear in the official record, nor in the closing declaration. It will be written quietly in the daily lives of the people of Islamabad.

Welcoming distinguished guests is both an honour and a tradition deeply rooted in our national character. Every citizen wishes the visiting delegates a pleasant stay and every success in their deliberations. Their presence enhances Pakistan’s standing among nations and reflects the confidence the Muslim world has placed in this country.

At the same time, one hopes that the administration will demonstrate that efficient organisation and public convenience can walk together. Security is essential, but so is the uninterrupted rhythm of ordinary life. The student travelling to school, the office worker hurrying to work, the shopkeeper opening a small business, the ambulance carrying a patient, and the elderly citizen keeping a medical appointment should not become unintended casualties of traffic restrictions.

The finest hospitality is that which serves both the guest and the host with equal care.

If Islamabad succeeds in protecting its visitors while allowing its citizens to move about their daily lives with dignity and minimum inconvenience, it will offer the delegates another valuable lesson—that good governance is measured not only by impressive ceremonies, but also by thoughtful administration.

As these thoughts settled in my mind, I found myself remembering BaBaTal once again.

His bell never rang merely to announce the dawn. It rang to awaken those who still had the power to make the day worthwhile.

Perhaps that is the quiet message waiting outside every conference hall. Leadership is not fulfilled when the speeches end. It begins when the listeners return home determined to transform fine words into better lives.

By the time Foxy carried me back through the familiar streets of Islamabad, the afternoon sun had climbed high above the Margalla Hills. Yet my thoughts remained beside that quiet roadside encounter.

BaBaTal had long disappeared from sight.

His bell, however, had not.

Some sounds travel farther than their echoes. Some whispers outlive the voices that utter them. His simple words had become the measure by which I viewed the gathering now beginning in Islamabad. A nation does not become stronger by asking whether its women deserve opportunity. It becomes stronger by asking why any opportunity should ever be denied.

More than a century ago, the philosopher-poet Allama Muhammad Iqbal expressed the same truth with unforgettable beauty:

“From woman comes the colour and beauty of the universe; from her springs the melody that gives life its deepest music.”

Those words remain as relevant today as when they were first written.

The future of the Muslim world will not be secured by resolutions alone. It will be secured in classrooms where girls are encouraged to dream, in laboratories where discovery is welcomed, in courtrooms where justice is equally applied, in businesses where enterprise is rewarded, and in homes where daughters are raised with the same confidence as sons.

As the delegates begin their work in Islamabad, they carry more than official documents. They carry the hopes of millions of women whose voices may never be heard inside a conference hall but whose futures will be shaped by the decisions made there.

May those delegates return to their countries carrying more than conference folders and commemorative photographs. May they return with the resolve to build societies where talent is recognised before tradition, where character is valued above prejudice, and where every woman is free to fulfil the promise that the Creator placed within her.

For then, and only then, will BaBaTal’s bell have fulfilled its purpose.

POETEARS[coined by T. Hejazi — Where poetry becomes tears, and tears become poetry.]

When justice gives forgotten voices wings,

The silent bell becomes the song it sings;

Let Islamabad send more than words unfurled-

Empower one woman… and you awaken a world.

Also Read: THE POWER WHISPERS SOFTLY — “SO, LET IT BE.”