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Barriers to Justice
Discriminatory Laws
Abusive Tribal Councils
- Wielding extra-legal authority, tribal councils have come under heightened criticism locally and internationally for women’s human rights abuses. Such councils, which exist in much of rural Pakistan, have violated human rights standards and domestic law by handing down death sentences against women and men as punishment for seeking to marry someone against their family’s wishes and forcing women and girls into marriage as compensation in crimes of “honor.”
- A highly publicized June 2002 gang rape of a Pakistani woman ordered by a tribal council in southern Punjab province is one example of a tribal council’s abusive authority. In September 2003 the government of Pakistan sentenced six tribal elders to death - this is now being appealed.
For more information about this case, see Tribal Councils Source of Abuse, HRW press release from July 12, 2002.
Abusive Police
Abusive and incompetent police accuse victims of lying and fail to register complaints of domestic and sexual violence. Women are frequently subject to illegal detention and custodial abuse, including sexual harassment, rape, and verbal abuse by police.
For more information, see the Role of Police section from Crime or Custom? and HRW’s 1992 report Double Jeopardy:
Police Abuse of Women in Pakistan.
Medicolegal Incompetence
Untrained and biased medicolegal doctors often lack forensic competence and mishandle evidence needed for rape prosecutions. Instead the focus is on the virginity status and sexual history of the victim.
For more information, see the Medicolegal section from Crime or Custom?
Shortage of Victim Services
Women victims of violence in Pakistan often have nowhere to turn. As of October 2002, there were only thirteen state-run women’s shelters in the country, and six shelters run by women’s groups. State-run shelters have prison-like conditions and once a woman enters she must obtain a court order in order to leave. Religious conservatives often condemn privately-run shelters as being against Islam and misguiding women. There is an urgent need for increased provision of victim services, such as shelters, crisis hotlines, and burn units. A recent study estimated that 74 percent of burn victims die because hospitals are not adequately equipped to treat burns. Despite promises by the Pakistani government to open ten crisis centers, it has yet to materialize and there are concerns that services will be costly and unaffordable to victims.
To write a letter asking the Pakistani government to improve victim services, click here.
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