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http://www.ahrchk.net/ua/mainfile.php/2007/2721/ -
See Link for full Appeal Details.
ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION –
URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME
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PAKISTAN:
Rape Victim Held Against Her Will for Months Must
be Freed
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Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-009-2008
23 January
2008 ISSUES:
Police assault; rape; violence against women; women's rights Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a female was severely beaten by the police and, raped by her cousin in open view in August 2007 in Punjab province, Pakistan. She miscarried due to police's beatings and later underwent a forced abortion when she became pregnant after having been raped repeatedly by her cousin. Her husband and two brother-in-laws have been charged with abduction. She has been continuously held in chains against her will in the cousin's house for marrying with a person of her own choice. CASE DETAILS: Ms. Shahnaz Akhtar is a master's degree holder from Multan's Bahauddin Zakariya University. She was also teaching in Sahiwal District, Punjab province. According to the information received, when she was teaching in a school, she came to know about her father's plan to have her marry her cousin, Tanvir whom she didn't like. On 11 September 2006, Shahnaz decided to marry her husband Ghulam Mustafa on her own initiative and entered into marriage at a district court in Okara, Punjab province without her parent's knowledge. After getting married to Ghulam, Shahnaz went back to her home town and started living with her parents. Her parents, however, were not aware that she is already married to Ghulam as she was not prepared to tell them. Few months later, she decided to properly inform her father and stepmother that she had already married Ghulam Mustafa. After her parents learned of this fact, they were shocked and immediately thereafter announced that she should be forced to marry her cousin, Mr. Tanvir. On 18 July 2007, the night before the planned forced marriage with her cousin, Shahnaz ran away and went to Ghulam's place in Ghar Morr in Jhang district. She started living with him as his wife. Because Shahnaz's family is wealthy, her relatives used their influence and money by co-opting policemen in finding them. The police raided Ghulam's house in search for her. They, however, arrested two of her brother-in-laws who were present there when they came in and subsequently falsely charged them of abducting Shahnaz. In order to resolve the situation with her parents and the police, she applied to a court for intervention into this matter. She sent an application to the then Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry who then referred the case bearing number 2857/2007(HR) to the District and Sessions Judge in Lahore. However, unfortunately she could unable to appear in court before the judge hearing her application to explain her side of the story as she feared for her life. Her failure to appear in court was later reported by Judge to the Chief Justice on 9 June 2007. In August 2007, Shahnaz and her husband, Ghulam, were arrested in Ghar Morr, Jhang district. The police officer, Muhammad Iqbal, Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) of the Jhang police, started beating her soon after her arrest continuously all over her body in open view of her father and uncle from Jhang where they were arrested until they reached Sahiwal--which is about 70 kilometers away. Neither her father nor her uncle intervened to prevent the police from beating her. The police inspector hit and punched her all over her body. Due to this assault, her ears were injured and she bled following a miscarriage. She was at that time pregnant with her husband Ghulam. Ghulam and his two brothers were charged of abducting Shahnaz and detained. Shahnaz, on the other hand, was sent to the house of her parent's aunt where Mr. Tanvir is staying. Tanvir repeatedly raped her in front of many people. Her uncle Mr. Bashir and cousins Mr. Sikander, Mr. Arshad and Mr. Khawar including Tanvir physically assaulted her. They were reportedly watching her being raped without doing anything to either stop or prevent Tanvir from raping her. As a consequence of the repeated rape, she was impregnated and later forced to have an abortion. It is reported that she has been held at Tanivir's house and prevented from escaping. Villagers have confirmed that Tanivir hit her every time she tried to go outside. According to Mr. Saeed and Mr. Arshad, legal counsel of Ghulam, ASI Muhammad Iqbal could have hidden or deliberately burnt all the record of the case they filed against his clients and the latter's brothers because he has since not been able to produce them in court. The police' failure to produce the records has resulted to delay in the process of their hearing for bail application. SUGGESTED
ACTION: The AHRC writes letters to the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women calling for an intervention in this matter. To support
this appeal, please click here: |
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