When rape victims resort to self-immolation



 A girl, only in her late teens, self-immolated this week in Muzaffargarh after police refused to act on her claim she was gang-raped by police. She was rushed to a nearby hospital, but died of her injuries.

In April this year, Amna Bibi, another 18-year-old girl from Muzaffargarh district died after setting herself ablaze in protest against a police report that led to the release of her rapist.

Last year, a woman from Dera Gazi Khan set herself on fire as a protest against the attitude of the Punjab police for setting her rapists free.

During the last couple of years, the crime rate in Pakistan, specifically women, has increased to a great extent. This can be seen in various categories, such as rape, sexual abuse and murder. A report released by War Against Rape (WAR) group highlights that of 60 reported cases of rape, 20% involved police officers. According to Women's Action Forum, up to seventy-two percent of women in custody in Pakistan are physically or sexually abused. 
               
In a country like Pakistan where there are only a few laws protecting women; and bodies like Council of Islamic Ideology that seem obsessed with limiting women’s capacities as house-bound objects and refuse to put any focus on laws that govern child marriage and rape –  enjoy so much influence in the society.

It is high time that the state fulfils its primary responsibility of protecting the lives of women of Pakistan as equal citizens as per constitutional mandate. The whole system of the police in Pakistan needs to be revamped and reformed based on new laws involving women in line with the international standards.

Bushra
2145 hours
Monday 26 October 2015