Pakistan: Tribal Councils Source of Abuse

(New York, July 12, 2002) - The gang rape case of Mukhtaran Bibi highlights the urgent need to investigate the role of tribal councils in Pakistan, Human Rights Watch said today. Human Rights Watch sent a letter this week to President Musharraf urging scrutiny of the role of such councils in abuses against women in Pakistan.

These tribal councils must not be used as vehicles to deny women their rights and physically assault them. Pakistani officials must ensure that tribal councils operate in ways that respect the rule of law and women's equality. LaShawn R. Jefferson   Executive Director of the Women's Rights Division of Human Rights Watch

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On June 22, during a Mastoi tribal council meeting in the village of Meerwala, in southern Punjab, four men, including one of the tribal council members, allegedly raped Mukhtaran Bibi, a thirty-year-old member of the Gujjar tribe. The rape, which occurred in the presence of a large number of villagers, was intended as "punishment" for the conduct of her brother, Abdul Shaqoor, who had been seen with an unchaparoned woman from the Mastoi Tribe. The woman, Salma Bibi, is now reportedly in police custody with her mother. Mukhtaran Bibi was forced to return home naked after the rape before a crowd of Mastoi villagers. The victim is reported to have said that members of the Mastoi also raped her brother, and that police allegedly asked for a bribe of 11,000 rupees (U.S.$180) for his release from police custody.  
 
"These tribal councils must not be used as vehicles to deny women their rights and physically assault them," said LaShawn R. Jefferson, Executive Director of the Women's Rights Division of Human Rights Watch. "Pakistani officials must ensure that tribal councils operate in ways that respect the rule of law and women's equality."  
 
In its letter, Human Rights Watch said that although a number of individuals identified as perpetrators in the assaults against Mukhtaran Bibi have been arrested, the Pakistan government authorities need to ensure that investigations proceed with respect for due process and accountability for the offenses committed, and provide for the full protection of the victims and their families.  
 
Human Rights Watch also requested clarification on the role of the police in the case, particularly the allegations of bribery by the police and the reported detentions of Abdul Shaqoor, Salma Bibi, and her mother.  
 
In a 1999 report, Crime or Custom: Violence against Women in Pakistan, Human Rights Watch documented the high level of violence against women in Pakistan and the often insurmountable institutional and legal discrimination that impedes and discourages women from seeking justice, and, in the worst cases, traumatizes them further.