A 40-year-old housewife, Badam Zari, has become the first woman in Pakistan’s Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) to run for parliament. The Bajaur district is a former stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban and is dominated by Pashtun tribesmen with conservative views regarding women’s rights. Zari says she is set to change the role of women in the tribal regions if she is elected. She was one of more than 10,000 candidates to file registration papers for general elections scheduled on May 11. (RFE/RL’s Radio Mashaal)
