According to a survey conducted in 2018, Pakistan ranks as the sixth most dangerous country in the world for women, with cases of sexual crimes and domestic violence recording a rapid rise. Violence against women is endemic in Pakistan, which ranks 130 on the UN’s Gender Equality Ranking and 143 on the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index.
This month, the country witnessed many heinous acts in which the mother of a 14-months-od month child was raped and later killed along with her kid. A 27-year-old woman was killed in a brutal manner as her head was beheaded. In another incident, a beautiful young mother of four young children was killed by her husband after being subjected to physical assault for hours. There might be many more cases that we as a society could not see or hear of.
From a 3-year-old minor girl being raped in Dadu to a woman being raped by two men on a motorway in front of her three children; if we say ‘women are not safe in Pakistan’, then it will not be incorrect.
Unfortunately, a certain mentality is deeply implanted in strictly patriarchal societies like Pakistan. The amount of absurdness Pakistani women victims have to go through in misogynist society is whether they speak up about physical or sexual abuse, these women are seen as having lost their dignity. No one knows because of such toxic practice, many rapes go unreported as the victim fears she will become worthless in Pakistani society.
There will be no single teenage girl or grown-up woman who does not witness harassment in her everyday life. Here are five horrible incidents that happened in Pakistan and these are the shameful men who committed such heinous acts that every Pakistani must remember and never forget about what these culprits did.
Imran Ali
Imran Ali is the man who brutally raped 7-year-old Zainab, before strangling her to death. The incident took place in Punjab’s Kasur in January 2018.
She was on her way to Quran recitation classes when that predator targeted her. Zainab’s body was found four days later.
A 24-year-old Imran Ali was hanged to death for raping Zainab later the year in October. The case of Zainab triggered the public in the most unexpected way.
Mufti Azizur Rehman
Another predator Mufti Azizur Rehman is a 70-year-old religious cleric who is also the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam’s vice ameer in Lahore.
He was caught on a hidden camera sexually assaulting one of his teenage seminary students this year. His leaked viral video caused outrage on social media where he can be clearly seen assaulting a teenage boy.
This is not the first case where a religious cleric has subjected his students and blackmailed them later. He, however, denied all the allegations against him and called it a ‘conspiracy’. He is currently booked as per law.
Zahir Jaffer
The case of Zahir Jaffer is the most recent example of brutality against women. His prey ‘Noor Mukadam’ may not have been subjected to sexual assault but she was physically assaulted. She was first shot and later her head was mercilessly beheaded.
The brutal murder of Noor has become one of the high-profile cases in Pakistan which raised concern for women’s safety in the country. Culprit Zahir Jaffer, a well-known businessman has been charged with Mukadam’s murder.
Motorway incident
Last year apparently covid was not only a thing that shook Pakistanis to the core. The gang-rape of a mother of three children on the Lahore motorway horrified the entire nation.
The rape of the woman on a motorway took place in September 2020 which occurred in the wee hours of the night after her car broke down on the side of the road. She was raped by three two men in front of her children. This terrible incident sparked countrywide protests.
Wajid Ali
In another tragic incident, a mother named Naseem Bibi was brutally raped and later killed along with her 14-month-old baby in Rawalpindi.
The accused named Wajid Ali was arrested two days later after the incident. The predator took Naseem and her minor son to a jungle where he allegedly raped her. He later attacked Naseem Bibi with a dagger wounding her critically.
She sustained a deep wound on her neck. Wajid Ali later allegedly wounded the minor also who sustained a serious wound on his neck causing his death on the spot. Injured Naseem could not survive either and succumbed to death the next day. The horrific incident sparked outrage on social media.
