Protest the ‘house arrest’ and ban on travel of Mukhtaran Mai
This is in response to news in a section of the media about the
alleged ‘house arrest’ and ban on travel of Mukhtaran Mai imposed by the Punjab
government, Pakistan. It is learnt that the government has also added her name
on the ‘Exit Control List’, which prohibits her from travelling abroad. In fact,
due to this restriction she could not go to London last Saturday (June 11, 2005)
where she had been invited by Amnesty International to participate in a meeting.
The government of Pakistan feared that her travel abroad would tarnish its
image. Close on the heels of the judicial reversals in her gang rape case, these
latest developments have added insult to injury. Human rights groups in Pakistan
are correct in their assessment that ‘judicial administration has messed up her
case’ and it symbolises the agony of the rape victims themselves where they are
continuously victimised in Pakistan.
The saga of struggle of Mai is worth underlining. Mukhtaran Mai,
basically an illiterate woman from Meerwala, Multan, was gang-raped on the
‘orders’ of the tribal council of the Mastois supposedly to restore ‘honour’
(2002). Mukhtaran Mai did not lie low despite threats to her life from the
Mastois and went ahead to lodge a complaint with the police. The whole incident
gave rise to national uproar and was reported in the international media as
well. Due to tremendous public pressure and the interest the case had generated
worldwide, the police was also forced to act and it arrested 13 of the culprits.
In August 2002, six suspects were sentenced to death and the other eight were
acquitted. But in March the Lahore high court overturned the convictions of the
five men and reduced the death sentence of the sixth to life imprisonment. A
court in eastern Pakistan ordered the release of these dozen men, which has
added a new legal twist to the nation’s highest profile case involving violence
against women.
It is noteworthy that Mukhtaran Mai has started a school in her
own village with the donations which she received from different sources after
the incident, where more than 270 students are enrolled today. She has preferred
to live in her own village despite tremendous threats to her life and despite
the government providing her a flat in the capital. It is really commendable
that this 33-year-old illiterate woman from Multan today has become a symbol of
courage and bravery to fight for her rights. And despite the recent reverses she
is determined to carry on her struggle.
Looking at the improved bilateral relations is it not then time
that people of the subcontinent raise their voice in unison so that Pakistan’s
very own ‘Bhanwari Devi’, Mukhtaran Mai receives justice? Is it not time to
pointedly ask President Musharraf: is this your policy of ‘enlightened
moderation’: that a victim of rape is further being victimised and her rapists
are allowed to move freely?