I’ve lived in 9 countries and have rented apartments in all of them, including in Pakistan. But nothing prepared me for what I would experience when I moved from my apartment at One Constitution Avenue in Islamabad to Emaar in Karachi. It was ROUGH!
The patriarchy didn’t touch my life in Islamabad. My Pakistani friends are global citizens, most having lived in at least one or two other countries. My business partner is a gem who is well-travelled, an expert in what he does, and one of the most standup guys on the planet. And since I work remotely online, I didn’t engage face-to-face with anyone but friends or folks in shops.
So learning that as a WOMAN I was irrelevant to my relocation process as I apartment-hunted in Karachi came as a shock. The process had been so easy in Islamabad, with reasonable move-in requirements, and agents on both sides (owner & tenant) that were easy to work with.
But things are different in Karachi!
A “male body part” seemed required to rent an apartment there, which I will never understand. I thought they had 1 use … so how a penis was helpful in the art of negotiating my tenancy agreement is a mystery. One agent wouldn’t work with me ‘til he met my brother in Karachi. Another wouldn’t speak to me at all, only to ANY OTHER MAN (didn’t even have to be my agent, just a man).
THE WORST PART
It was so bad that I had to engage a lawyer to speak on my behalf to simply stand up for my rights, otherwise I would have been ignored and taken advantage of.
I uploaded the FULL DRAMA ON YOUTUBE. No names / I’m not outing anyone … but I detail the full saga and how people can also use the legal system in Pakistan to protect one’s rights.
THIS IS FUN! Pakistani women started DMing kind words & their own experiences when I was sharing updates on Instagram Story: Until now, I’d never been negatively impacted by patriarchy in Pakistan, which I understand now is a privilege. IN SOLIDARITY WITH YOU, please know I am glad to have experienced this very tiny, small thing to understand for even a moment what many of you deal with daily 🤗
FINAL THOUGHT
Everyone I talk to about this says undoubtedly that Karachi is “that way” … making me less than excited to ever move back there 🙁
The apartment I fell in love at first sight (seen here: Emaar Karachi on the seafront) eventually felt like home. But that was the most stressful rental experience of my life.
Discover more from Angela Carson | Oversharing & Nomad Life in Asia
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
