Benazir Bhutto, former prime minister of Pakistan and first woman ever elected to head an Islamic state, once said, "The ethos of Islam is equality, equality between the sexes. There is no religion on earth that, in its writings and teachings, is more respectful of the role of women in society than Islam."

Evidence of fair treatment of women in Muslim countries, however, is rarely seen in the West. Instead, Americans see reports of repression of women at the hands of religious fanatics such as the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Y-Press spoke by phone with a group of girls in Lahore, Pakistan, and a Kashmiri woman living in Plainfield about Bhutto's statements and the treatment of women in Pakistan.

"Islam teaches a lot of things that we are not following, and equal rights being given to both sexes is one of them," said Amal Khan, 17.

"(A woman in Islam) can take any job she wants to," agreed Rafia Syeed, who started Bridging the Gap, a local organization that works to create further dialogue between Muslims and members of different religions. Her husband is Sayyid Muhammad Syeed, secretary general of the Islamic Society of North America.

"Pakistan's president was a woman. . . . So she can get an education as high as she wants to," she said.

In Pakistan, the constitution also guarantees equal rights to both sexes. Discrimination against women, however, is common.

Shazreh Khalid, 18, says even freedom of speech and choice are sometimes limited.

"In many sections of our country, even that much is not allowed to a woman," she said. "To think differently than a man is wrong, which shouldn't be."

"In the lower class and the less-educated class, it does seem to be like that just because of old traditions," said Shahbano Tirmizi, also 18. "The men of the family are superior, and they do have the feeling that it's more important to educate the males than to educate the females because they feel that the female's place is in the home."

Shahbano said such treatment is not condoned by Islam. "This is not a religious thing. This is a cultural thing," she said.

All of those interviewed, however, stressed that in the middle and upper classes to which they belong, this is not the case.

"The men in our society do not seem to have a problem with our women getting education or working," Amal said.

Shahbano, who lives in Ontario most of the year, thinks her life and those of her peers do not differ greatly from their counterparts' in Europe and North America. "We're not clad in burkas," she stated. "We go out with our friends. We see TV. We see movies. We go to parties."

Despite this, some fundamental differences exist between a teen's life in Pakistan and in the West. Religion and family exert much control on these girls' lives and outlook. As Shazreh observed, "Religion is a big part of us, and everything revolves around that."

Shahbano emphasized the importance of family in Pakistani life. She added that dating and premarital sex, which is forbidden by the Quran, are not common in Pakistan.

Arranged marriage is widely practiced in Pakistan, though women are permitted by the Quran to choose their own husbands and cannot be married without their consent.

Attitudes towards the custom differ from those of most Americans, however. "I perceive an arranged marriage as a marriage in which there is a high level of family involvement," Shahbano said.

"You can never really guarantee that any marriage is going to work out, be it a love marriage or be it an arranged marriage," Amal added. "It's OK for me to fall in love with this amazing man, who is everything I want, but if his family background clashes with my family background, then first of all it probably won't work out since everything is so family-oriented."

Similarly, a woman's conduct is a point of honor for families. "(Men) do feel that every woman in their family is a possession," Shahbano said.

Explained Amal: "Basically a woman represents the honor in the family. . . . And if a woman from a particular family is caught rebelling, it's pretty bad for the family because people talk."

"And for that girl, it gets hard for her to get married later on because of all the gossip that is going around," Shazreh added.

This concept of family honor sometimes is taken to an extreme. Pakistan has been criticized for the high number of honor killings there. According to the private Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, 461 women were killed in 2002, up 25 percent from 2001.

Honor killings take place when a woman is killed by members of her family after she has been raped, accused of adultery or has committed another "shameful" act. Despite this, the girls do not feel threatened. "We do not fear it," said Shahbano, "because virtually the only time I've heard of one of the killings (was) on the TV."

Despite the differences, the girls have dreams similar to those of their counterparts in the West. Shazreh would like to become an artist or architect; Amal is planning to pursue a career in politics. Shahbano hasn't decided yet.

Amal looks to the future with restrained hope. "Years down the road I'd like to see every woman being given equal status with a man."

But Shahbano expressed her faith in her own ability to achieve.

"At the end of the day, it is our life that is in our hands, and whatever we make out of it, we have to make it ourselves."

ASSISTANT EDITOR : Brian Reissaus, 16.