August 8, 2016 – Pakistan Gender News

August 8, 2016

Protecting women from crimes of ‘honour’

The recent high-profile murder of Qandeel Baloch, allegedly killed by her brothers to vindicate their ‘ghairat’ or ‘honour’, has led to the approval of a government-sponsored bill.
The proposed draft bill aims at dealing with crimes of ‘honour’. This draft is different from an earlier bill which was introduced by former PPP Senator Sughra Imam and passed by the Senate of Pakistan in March 2015. Both suffer from inadequacies.

A similar effort was initiated in 2004 by the then opposition led by the PPP. The initiative led to the passing of the Criminal Law Amendment 2005 (Act no 1). The 2005 Amendment Act was said to be a watered down version of the bill introduced by the opposition.

In similar fashion, the current government sponsored bill weakens in some critical respects the Senator Sughra Imam bill, while offering slight improvement in other respects.

The main criticism of the 2005 Amendment Act was that it left the possibility of waiver and compounding of the offence of crimes of ‘honour’ (compromise between the private parties) open to the extent that it could be read to give the court the discretion to accept or reject such a compromise and acquit the offender.

This was either due to ambiguity in how it was drafted, especially the amendment to section 311 when read with section 338 E of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), or otherwise where it clearly left the crimes of honour including murder in the name of ‘honour’ compoundable under section 345 read with the second schedule of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).

In both conditions, private parties – legal heirs of the victim in case of murder or the victim herself in case of attempted murder or hurt – could reach an out of court settlement/compromise.

However, it could be argued that in the case where section 311 of the PPC (post-2005 amendment) became applicable ‘honour’ killing must be awarded a minimum sentence of ten years of imprisonment. This has happened in some cases decided by superior courts.

Another criticism of the 2005 Amendment Act included, but was not limited to, that the 2005 Amendment Act did not offer a clearer and broader definition of crimes of ‘honour’ and that the definition of ‘fasad-fil-arz’ included the offence of murder in the name of ‘honour’ only.

The Sughra Imam bill focused on removing the possibility of compromise between private parties and turning the crime of ‘honour’ killing, and not all crimes of honour, a crime in which the state would not allow compromise of any kind – neither secular nor Islamic. The bill did not touch the questions of broadening the scope of fasad-fil-arz to all crimes of honour; and the definition of the offence committed in the name of ‘honour’ (section 299 PPC) was left untouched.

The current amended form of the bill sponsored by the government does two or three important things.

It defines fasad-fil-arz to include all crimes of ‘honour’ but it does so without providing a clearer and broader definition compared to the circular definition of the crime committed in the name of ‘honour’ as is currently provided in the penal code.

Further, it changes section 311 of the PPC which prescribes consequences when parties reach a compromise in cases where qisas becomes applicable, to the effect that it raises the punishment for ‘honour’ killing from minimum imprisonment of ten years to imprisonment for life as taazir (secular punishment).

And while it seems to make the enhanced punishment mandatory when this amendment is read with proposed changes to sections 345 of the CrPC, a related amendment to column 6 of the second schedule for section 311 of the PPC is not proposed. This is ambiguous and may lead to conflicting decisions by the courts.

The punishment of imprisonment for murder in the name of ‘honour’ is raised to imprisonment for life in all circumstances. The death penalty remains a possibility, though. However, it is questionable whether prescribing imprisonment for life as the only option in the category of imprisonment (for murder in the name of ‘honour’) without an alternate lesser imprisonment for cases where there may be compelling mitigating circumstances, including non-availability of direct evidence, is the right approach.

The bill keeps other forms of crimes of ‘honour’ such as all hurts and attempted ‘honour’ killing compoundable. This is a dimension which seems to have escaped serious consideration.

There is another issue that is very likely to crop up at some point. In the current framework for proof of crimes committed in the name of ‘honour’ the motive of ‘honour’ must be proved; this is an extraordinary condition as proof of motive is not necessary in ordinary cases.

Proving motive is not easy in all cases. Proof of the commission of an offence, murder or others, and the intention, per se, to do so is considered to be enough.

In ‘honour’ related crimes intention would be proved through the proof that the offence is committed in the name of ‘honour’. In complex cases, where the reason/motive is not easy to establish, the offenders may raise a motive different from ‘honour’.

This problem will persist unless the provisions relating to qisas and diyat are completely eliminated and the state restores to itself the space ceded on the pretext of Islamisation of criminal law.

The issue of amending the law to provide protection to women from crimes of honour is a complex one. It may not be done in one stroke, and it may require many minds to wriggle out of the complexity. Some of the recommendations which may be made in light of the foregoing analysis may include.

If the current broader framework of qisas and diyat must stay for the time being, any proposal to amend the law must provide a clearer and broader definition of ‘honour’ crimes to include a range of offences against women. The definition may be phrased in such a way that it is considered by courts to be inclusive rather than exhaustive.

Ideally, all offences against women – especially all bodily hurts, attempted murder, and murders by close relatives – should not be allowed to be ‘waived’ and/or ‘compounded’ by close relatives/survivors. The Islamic concept of fasad-fil-arz may be applied to all such crimes which give courts the power to disregard waiver and compounding on behalf of close relatives or the victim herself.

Further, compounding of offences punishable under taazir (secular punishment) should not be an option and no discretion should be vested with the courts in this respect.

The state must prosecute all such crimes, and such prosecution must necessarily result in conviction and sentencing instead of compromise between private parties.

The framework of punishments needs to be such that in the absence of compelling evidence where maximum punishment cannot be awarded, courts have the discretion to award lesser punishments. But such discretion should be narrowly and strictly prescribed so that it may not be used to the disadvantage of the victims – who are mostly women.

The current bill is being kept under wraps by the government for fear of backlash from retrogressive elements within and outside the ruling party, including the Council of Islamic Ideology.

But if the government is serious about liberating the women of this country from the fear that afflicts their lives, it must allow a fearless debate to take place. Appropriate changes in the legislative framework to provide protection to the women of Pakistan will be just one of the many small steps that need to be taken.

The News

Related News:

Dawn: ‘Honour’ killings

The Nation: Girl killed for ‘honour;’ man, woman commit suicide

August 8, 2016August 8, 2016

Woman ‘burnt to death’ by brother-in-law over ‘property’

LAHORE: A pregnant woman was torched to death allegedly by her brother-in-law over a family dispute in Shadbagh on Saturday.

Police claimed Sidra, 23, belonging to Shakargarh tehsil in Narowal district, was married to her cousin Waqas Ali of Bhagatpura, Shadbagh, two years ago.

On Saturday afternoon, Sidra was sleeping and the other family members were away when her husband’s elder brother, Waris Ali, came with a container of petrol. He went to the room where Sidra was sleeping, sprinkled petrol there, set it on fire and fled after locking it from outside.

Police said his sister’s six-year-old daughter, who was playing in the street, raised hue and cry after seeing fire in the house. Neighbours tried to extinguish the fire and also alerted police and Rescue 1122.

Firefighters reached the spot and put off the blaze in 30 minutes and recovered the woman’s body. Police shifted the body to morgue for autopsy.

Shadbagh police registered a murder case against Waris and his other family members on the complaint of victim’s father Liaquat Ali.

Station House Officer Mudassirullah Khan said they were alerted by neighbours about a fire but it was revealed that a woman had been torched to death by her brother-in-law over a property dispute. He said raids were being conducted to arrest the suspect.

City Division Superintendent of Police (SP) Operations Muhammad Naveed told Dawn Sidra was burnt to death by her brother-in-law over a property dispute. She was previously engaged to Waris, but when he went abroad his family married her off to his younger brother.

He said Waris worked in Saudi Arabia and learnt about the marriage only when he returned. The suspect had developed a grudge against his brother and his former fiancée over the marriage as well as a property dispute and according to locals they often quarrelled over the issue.

The SP claimed the suspect was demanding his share in the family business and after failing to get it he killed his brother’s wife. He said two teams had been constituted to conduct raids to arrest the suspect, adding some family members were also taken into custody for interrogation.

Dawn

The News: Girl commits suicide in Chitral

The Nation: Woman burnt alive ‘for revenge’

August 8, 2016

Murder most foul: Woman, daughter shot dead in Upper Dir

WARI: A woman and her daughter were shot dead while a taxi driver was injured in Upper Dir on Sunday. This was confirmed by a senior official of Sahib Abad police station while speaking to The Express Tribune.

The woman was killed because she reportedly chose to marry of her own free well.

“Syed Badshah opened fire on the taxi near Kadi Khel Dara,” the officer said. “The three passengers were left critically injured and neither the mother nor her daughter received medical assistance on time. Both of them died at the hospital, while the taxi driver is still in critical condition.”

The police named a doctor and an ambulance driver in the FIR as both of them were absent from duty when the patients were brought to the hospital. An investigation is under way into the double murder. The woman reportedly tied the knot without her family’s consent to a man of her choice.

Separately, the body of a girl was dumped on the main road by assailants in Wari, Upper Dir on Sunday. “The woman was tortured to death by assailants,” an officer said. She was shifted to the hospital for an autopsy. The victim was identified as Rukhsana, who had just married a man in the area.

The Express Tribune

The News: Girl commits suicide in Chitral

August 8, 2016

Man stabs wife to death, injures teenage daughters

Karachi: As authorities continue to turn a blind eye to what remains a matter of national shame, yet another gruesome incident of gender-based violence was reported in the city with a man brutally stabbing his wife to death and injuring his two teenage daughters in the PIB Colony police limits on Sunday.

Officials identified the victims as 40-year-old Shamim Akhtar and her two daughters, 15-year-old Sajida and 13-year-old Maryam, and the attacker as Rafiq. It was said that the couple had an argument at their Naseerabad residence which culminated with Rafiq taking up a kitchen knife and brutally stabbing Shamim.

The couple’s two daughters tried to save their mother but the callous killer turned on his children too, leaving all three women critically injured. Rafiq tried to flee the area but was caught by neighbours who had rushed outside upon hearing screams from the house.

All three victims were rushed to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre but, tragically, Shamim’s stab wounds proved too severe and she passed away en route.

Police said the murderer, Rafiq, had been taken into custody and the murder weapon had also been found.

Murders, rape and sexual assaults remain widespread in Pakistan, as apathetic or incompetent officials have made it a norm for investigations into incidents of gender-based violence to be mired in controversy and largely without result.

There have been multiple – over 25 at the very minimum – incidents of gender-based violence in Karachi this year, but there has not been a single conviction despite several attackers, apparently, having been apprehended.

On August1, skewed notions of honour had claimed yet another woman’s life in the city as an 18-year-old girl was murdered by her father in North Karachi.

As per the Sir Syed Town SHO Iftikhar Ahmed, the killer, Akhtar Hussain, who remains at large, is a drug addict who murdered his daughter, Bakhtawar, over “suspicions regarding her character”.

Investigators said the duo had a heated argument yesterday which culminated with Hussain attacking his daughter with a knife. The victim suffered multiple stab wounds and was pronounced dead on arrival at the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital.

This was on the same day that the body of a nine-year-old girl, who doctors confirmed was raped before being murdered, was found dumped in the Docks police limits at least 15 days after she was reported missing and police did nothing for her recovery.

The victim was identified as nine-year-old Roma, a resident of Machhar Colony. According to her family, who staged a protest on Mauripur Road yesterday, Roma had been abducted from near her house on July 15. With police displaying customary apathy, the girl was never recovered and her body was found dumped along the Lyari River.

Once it was moved to the Civil Hospital, a MLO who conducted the autopsy confirmed that the minor had been subjected to sexual assault before her throat was slit. As per the MLO’s report, Roma had been murdered around 15 days ago, a timeframe corresponding with her abduction.

This abhorrent rape and murder came just two weeks after the decomposing body of a young girl, who was said to be not more than 12 years old, was found packed in a bag dumped in Ghazi Goth, within the limits of Manghopir police station. The MLO who handled the case had confirmed that she had been raped then strangulated, and the body was at least a month old.

On June 7, a five-year-old girl was admitted to a hospital in critical condition after she was raped in Orangi Town’s Sector L. A case (34/376) was registered at the Iqbal Market police station by the girl’s father, Yousuf. Sexual offence was confirmed by a medico-legal officer at the CHK, Samia Saeed, in her medical examination of the young girl.

According to Iqbal Market SHO, Yousuf came to the police station and told the officials that his five-year-old daughter was found lying unconscious near his house in Orangi Town. He said the girl had been standing outside her house when a couple of unidentified men riding a motorcycle picked her up. The girl was found lying near her house after about six hours.

At a time when the country continues to see harrowing cases of violence against women but still remains embroiled in misguided debates over the need for protective legislation, five women were murdered in the city in a span of 10 days from the end of May till June this year.

The fifth murder was reported on June 2 when the body of a woman was found with her throat slit at an abandoned house in the Iqbal Market police limits.

Police had identified the victim as 40-year-old Nasreen, daughter of Muhammad Ali, and said her decomposing body had been recovered from a house in Tauheed Colony, Orangi Town after the neighbours reported a foul smell emanating from the premises.

It was shifted to the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital where a medico-legal officer confirmed that the body was at least five days old and that she had been murdered by slitting her throat.

The victim, according to police, was a mother of five who had separated from her husband after a divorce two years ago. All the children, investigators said, were living with the former husband, adding that they would be looking into all possible aspects over the course of the inquiry.

On May 30, two females were brutally murdered by their husbands in the city. The first murder was reported in Korangi police limits where 28-year-old Raeesa was strangled to death by her husband, Imran, at their Sector 33/F residence.

The couple’s three children, police said, raised alarm which led to the on-spot arrest of the murderer, Imran. Officials maintained that the murder was driven by a domestic dispute but further details would emerge as the interrogation progresses.

The other murder was reported in the Surjani police’s limits where 20-year-old Rukhsana was killed by her heartless husband, Sagheer, at their Sector 51/G residence.

In this case, the perpetrator also managed to flee and police were yet to track him down. Investigators said the couple had recently married and that the murder was related to an argument that had drastically escalated. On May 27, an eighteen-year-old girl was shot dead in the SITE police limits after she allegedly refused a cousin’s marriage proposal.

Fareeda, daughter of Ali Akber, was reported to have been gunned down by two of her cousins, Ghafoor and his younger brother Ghaffar, inside her Ayub Goth residence.

She was taken to the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital in a critical condition where she died during treatment, while both the men managed to flee.

According to police Ghafoor wanted to marry Fareeda and had come to the house with his brother to convince her to marry him; however, her refusal angered him to the point that he opened fire on her.

Three days before that, a man was reported to have strangled his wife to death, within the Quaidabad police limits.

Hameeda, 26, wife of Fazal-e-Wahid, was unable to survive when her husband in a deranged fit of anger assaulted her at their residence in Sherpao Colony, Swati Mohallah. After beating the woman, the killer strangled her to death and had fled.

The News

The Express Tribune: Criminal assault: Two boys arrested for ‘kidnapping’ girl

The Nation: Man kills minor sons over row with wife

August 8, 2016

When children go missing

By: Mina Malik Hussain

Six hundred children have gone missing in Punjab over the past year. According to the police, they’re all runaways—children who just decided they didn’t like it at home so they ran away. Because children, well-known for the rational thinking skills and ability to control adults, know what they’re doing and so must be left to their own errant devices to find their way home.

Of course it isn’t possible that even a runaway might want to go back home, or that some adult won’t prey on an unprotected child. The police Know Everything, and they’re telling you that six hundred kids in one year is really not such a big deal. It’s media hype throwing things out of whack. An entire school’s population just disappearing. Maybe it’s not even runaways, maybe the Pied Piper came and tooted them all away.

That’s probably it, because in our neck of the woods, fact is ever stranger than fiction, and certainly just as bleak. It’s like living in an original Hans Christian Andersen story, where the Little Mermaid goes through excruciating pain to acquire her legs from the sea witch and, thwarted by the latter and rejected by the prince, dies, turning into foam on a sea wave.

Here it’s the police, to whom we ordinarily look to for protection from the wolves and witches, who is the actual villain in disguise. The ones who should be out there scouring the streets for all the missing children are the ones telling us to stop making a mountain out of a molehill. It’s not a big deal that a child walking down a road with her mother was snatched by men in a car in broad daylight.

It’s exaggeration to say that the ten year old sent down the road to the parchoon-walla for a packet of tea never came home. He probably just got lost along the way, or decided that this was his moment for escape and did a runner.

With missing adults one still can rationalize National Security, Rogue Elements, Taliban and Shady Agencies. One can try to puzzle out why a journalist would be kidnapped or a politician’s son threatened. But who would have an agenda with a child? How on earth would a child get too close to state secrets, or become a thorn in an organization’s side? They can’t, because they’re just kids.

So who is taking them, and what for? Organ theft is the first reason on everyone’s mind, followed by human trafficking. Both are heart-stopping prospects, and how utterly vile and fiendish would you have to be to hurt children. When I was small our bogeyman was the anonymous Pathan who would kidnap you, steal a kidney and dump you somewhere near your home.

Now it seems that you’ll never go home, and they bogeyman isn’t an Afghan refugee, but some nameless, faceless fright.

The bogeyman isn’t an outsider any more, it’s someone from within—and that’s possibly the most terrifying thing of all. We can’t take a perverse refuge in pretending that evil is coming from outside of us, that we’re good and the Other People are the bad ones. The bad guys are amongst us.

The other question is how have so many kidnappings accrued? How many children does it take to reach a critical mass of concern? So far six hundred, which is closer to a thousand, doesn’t seem to be enough. Maybe an actual thousand will be? Maybe when someone who isn’t economically humble is kidnapped? When someone with Contacts loses a child? Then perhaps the Messrs Sharif will stop issuing edicts for inquiries from outside the country and actually put the stick about, because even one lost child is one child too much.

But of course it doesn’t matter, because we prefer to spend our time discussing how dreadful and licentious Doraemon is for our little kiddies, and must be banned forever because it’s spoiling their childhood. I’ll tell you what’s spoiling our children’s childhood: being afraid all the time, because their parents are perpetually in a tailspin of fright.

If you aren’t quaking sending your child to school, you’re nervous when they’re in the park with you lest a bomb go off, reluctant to leave them alone with anyone lest they touch your child inappropriately and now you can’t leave the house with them at all because someone could snatch them away in front of your eyes.

A child coming to harm is every parent’s nightmare, and it is our misfortune to be stuck in a country where even the police can’t make you feel safe. Nobody can make you feel safe, because we’ve been thrown to the wolves and there are no fairy godmothers or talking animal sidekicks who can help us defeat the sea witch.

Oh for one day, just one, where the police would say “don’t worry, we will hunt down these criminals and we will bring your child home”, or the Chief Minister say “this will never happen again, not on my watch”, and we could believe it.

They don’t even pretend to care about six hundred families that are shattered. For the six hundred mothers and six hundred fathers who watch their door every day, hoping their baby will come through it again.

Whether they ran away or were taken away, home is where children belong. There is precious little more important than that. If anyone truly cares about our children’s childhoods, then the Punjab Assembly should be up in arms about these kidnappings and keep at it until the kids start coming home. Until then, banning a ridiculous cartoon makes you wonder who and what the real cartoon really is.

The Nation