Daily Times

The last few days have seen a television channel become the talk of social media for all the wrong reasons. First, a sensational twist in the plot that gave a whiff of marital rape sent shockwaves across the country. People jumped with a wide variety of reactions as to how the entertainment industry could choose to be so careless in its portrayal of a highly prevalent societal evil. Although the outrage resulted in a last-minute tweaking of the script, it did not manage to fly past the radar of the media watchdog. Though an official warning has been sent out, the production team remains determined in defending the controversial development as not happening for the first time and demanded by the story. Considering how a large majority in our patriarchal society believes marital rape does not exist, such views become all the more troubling. Whether Pakistani society likes it or not, marital rape is just as rape as any other form of rape. No ifs and no buts. Instead of reforming the mindset about the importance of consent, these bewildering statements that centre on toxic masculinity and make light of the victims’ sufferings should be treated as misleading propaganda by the state. Ours is a country where a sitting chief of police does not bat an eyelid before questioning why a rape victim was driving a car on a motorway late at night. The men who are supposed to represent us in the international community have been known for throwing in apologist comments or slanderous accusations against women who have been raped. Thus, the responsibility on mainstream media becomes manifold in this regard. By putting their best, well-informed foot forward, they can help awaken the public’s conscience. Otherwise, tens of thousands of women would keep suffering in silence as always because their wrongdoers cannot be tried as per law and society refuses to see them as what they truly are: rapists. *