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July 12, 2002
Deal With an Iron Hand
From the land of the mystic Baba Buhley Shah who preached love and tolerance, from the entrancing rural setting of Sacchal Sarmast whose message was hardly any different, from the idyllic Frontier haunts where Khushhal Khan Khattak recounted traits of valor, honor and freedom, and from the middle class urbane segment of Pakistan society which assiduously nurtured feminine talent to produce Vice-Chancellor Dr Kaniz Yusuf, Ambassador Maleeha Lodhi, Major General Dr Shahida Malik, and Karachi Nuclear Power Plant Heavywater In-charge Mrs. Shakira Raza Ali, comes the sad and tragic news of Mukhtaran Bibi, an eighteen-year maiden of Meerwala who was gang-raped in the presence of countless loutish characters following the award of a verdict against her by the panchayat of the village in Southern Punjab.
The gory incident took place in a country where ‘begums’ - a respectable title for housewives - rule the roost not because the male members of the family are weaklings or diffident individuals but because young boys in wholesome social surroundings learn to show respect to the fair sex from early age. Their advances, if advances they could be called, against a maiden are no more than an innocent urging, “Narawa kahiyae na sazaa kahiyae, Kahiyae kahiyae mujhay bura kahiyae.” The emotional stirring is uniformly shared across the length and breadth of the country. The fair sex is adored in Pakistan. The Mukhtaran Bibi episode thus has jarring implications for the nation.
Our head hangs in shame at the despicable event. The incident has made screaming headlines in leading newspapers of the world. Pakistan’s image has been smeared immeasurably. Can we allow such fellow Pakistanis to tarnish our image as Muslims and as Pakistanis?
The gang-rape incident is a vivid pointer to the social divide in the Pakistan society. Not all classes, not all people, not all ethnic groups making up the nation, seem to live in the same time period or share the same set of values. While the majority of Pakistanis is progressive and forward-looking, there are isolated groups which steadfastly cling to age-old traditions and values, that lamentably are in direct conflict with Islamic teachings. The Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) in his last sermon spoke against the class system while forcefully stressing that an Ajami was in no way superior to an Arab and vice versa. Indeed, class distinction is a hallmark of caste-ridden India where the late Phoolan Devi came to symbolize low-caste suffering and high-caste oppression. Surely, such loathsome incidents in the supposedly caste-free Pakistan is an insult to Islam’s many injunctions against social and economic discrimination .
Fathoming the root cause of the savagery it is not difficult to discern that a few immoderate segments of society continue to practice Islam not as an abiding faith but as a mere ritual. They have little to pride upon or look forward to, save fanciful reminiscences of the past. It is imperative to usher such obscurantist groups into the present age and to acquaint them with the true face of Islam.
The first step in this effort would require banishing the misguided Meerwala panchayat and the perpetrators of the heinous crime. The four culprits who were involved in the horrific act must be dealt with an iron hand so that the punishment meted out to them serves as an example for others. Members of the panchayat should also be duly punished for their role in the despicable orgy.
It is time to act - with promptitude and firmness. The government has to rise to the occasion and ensure that the law is above all - class, biradari, social standing, and tribal affiliations.
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