Day: May 4, 2008

ISLAMABAD: Minister for Information and Broadcasting Sherry Rehman on Saturday said the new democratic set-up believes in freedom of the media and every possible effort was being made to ensure free flow of information.

Addressing a function, organised here by the South Asian Free Media Association (Safma) in connection with the World Press Freedom Day, she said the present coalition government gave respect to the media and fully recognised the role it was playing in strengthening the democracy. Sherry Rehman said the commitment of the present government towards free media was manifested by the fact that the first legislation it made was the repealing of the black Pemra laws. “We just want to see the role of the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting as facilitator not regulator,” she said. She regretted efforts made by the previous government to gag the media over the past few years, but “on the part of the present set-up, I assure complete support to journalists so that they can perform their professional assignments in a befitting manner.”
Source: The News
Date:5/4/2008

SUKKUR May 3: The tradition of karo-kari is still prevalent in Sindh with no let up in such incidences despite the effort of various NGOs, said Sindh Minister for Women Development Tauqeer Fatima Bhutto.

Addressing a press conference at a local hotel in Sukkur on Saturday, she said the government was taking steps for the development of women and to route out the black custom of karo kari and practice of torture against women.

She said the government took notice of women prisoners complaining non-production in courts and for providing them facilities according to Jail Manual.

She said our government did not believe in the politics of revenge but would probe thoroughly the funds given to NGOS during 11 years and warned that anyone found involved in corruption will be dealt according to law.

She said the government was conducting a survey of the NGOS and according to a report about two per cent were bogus but added it would be ascertained after the survey. She urged the government and non-government NGOS to work at grassroots level for the welfare of people.

Tauqeer Fatima said the government had chalked out a programme of open katchehries on district level to resolve problems of people, especially of women.

She said the first open katchehry will be held in Naudero and later such katchehries would be held in all districts of Sindh, including Sukkur,

Shikarpur, Shahdad Kot, Jacobabad, Khairpur, and Ghotki. She said special attention was being focused on the welfare of women prisoners and those residing in Dar-Ul-Aman.

Earlier, she paid a visit to Central Jail-II Sukkur to meet women prisoners and enquire about their health and welfare. She also took rounds of the Juvenile Ward of the jail.
Source: Dawn
Date:5/4/2008

KARACHI: Scores of couples have been killed over karo kari and many people who marry for love are compelled to hide in fear, unable to live their lives properly. Out of the many karo kari cases, one couple has been in hiding for the past five year.

The couple, with two children, has been living in hiding since they got married five years ago because they fear they might lose their lives and their children to their families.

Mohammad Riaz, son of Ghulam Sarwar, and his wife Husn Banu got married without their families’ permission in 2002.

“The family could indeed be a threat, but there’s nothing that can be done right now,” said Clifton Town SP Azad Khan, adding that the case will be investigated first.

“It is all about peopleÂ’s egos. They make lame excuses to protect it. And that’s what has happened with us. Her father even showed that she had her nikka done in 2003, even though we got married in 2002,” said Riaz, via phone from Europe.

Riaz said that Banu’s family was making it an issue and had gotten his family to trust them as well. “They also created a Shia-Sunni issue because Banu is a Sunni and I am a Shia,” added Riaz.

“If they have children and have a nikkah nama, they are legal,” said Allama Abbas Kumaili, a Shia cleric. “It is not a case of rape because five years have passed and they still want to live with each other. Their families just want to harass them.”

Riaz and his wife said that they got married because they loved each other and wanted to spend the rest of their lives in happiness. They thought that their parents would get over their marriage with the passage of time, but that did not happen. “If we live in Karachi, we have to face court trials with protection from the police, because we know that our parents will kill us or hire someone to do the job,” said Riaz.

Recently, Banu’s father Ashiq Hussain held a press conference at the Karachi Press Club. Hussain claimed that Riaz kidnapped Banu to rape her. But there were contradictions in Hussain’s statements, as he first claimed that Riaz kidnapped Banu and then he said they both went against the rules of the families and now had two illegal children.

“How is it possible that I kidnapped Banu to rape her? If that were true why would we have two children and still be living together?” questioned Riaz.

In 2003, Banu’s father registered an FIR of kidnapping with the intention of rape. “How their case should be dealt with should depend on Islamic law, but unfortunately, ‘black law’ is implemented in our society,” said Qari Mohammad Iqbal. “But people do not follow it, they just want to kill couples here in the name of honor or karo kari.”

“Our families and the police are all searching for us. It is very difficult to live in Karachi or Pakistan because we know that our families will kill us and the police will help them. We did not fear the loss of our lives before. But now that we have children they will also be killed and we don’t want that,” said Riaz.

In the press conference, Hussain also said that his accomplices and community members once tried to catch Riaz but he managed to escape. The couple’s families declared that Riaz and Husn had gone against their communities and the Sharia, therefore, they should be killed.
Source: Daily Times
Date:5/4/2008

A furious man gunned down a man and wounded his wife after seeing them in objectionable condition in his house in Wah Cantt, Monday evening, police said.

The assailant, however, managed to escape with his two minors leaving his wife in the pool of blood. The locals shifted the body of the man and wounded woman to hospital with the help of area police.

The police have taken up the case and started hunt for the assailant, police said. Zarif Ahmad, a government servant, was suspicious about the character of his wife, Shazia Zarif, 27, and the situation was causing dispute between the husband and wife, the police said, quoting neighbouring people. They said that they have seen a young man, identified as Abid, occasionally visiting the house in the absence of Zarif. They have informed Zarif regarding suspicious activities of his wife.

On Monday morning, he decided to eliminate both of them after catching them red-handed. He asked his wife that he was going out station and would come back on Tuesday. He left the house in the afternoon and started waiting for the man (Abid) in a hideout, the police said.

After a few minutes of Abid’s arrival, Zarif stormed into the house and started firing at both of them after finding them in objectionable condition, the police said, adding that Abid was killed on the spot while Shazia was shifted to hospital in critical condition. She was not out of danger till the filing of this report and surgeons were trying to save her life.
Source: The News
Date:5/4/2008