Asma Nawab personifies one of the biggest miscarriages of justice that the Pakistani legal system has delivered. Back in 1998, the then 16-year-old was thrown into prison on charges of murdering her family. Her trial was swift. It took the jury just 12 days to sentence her to death. Yet never wavering when it came to proving her innocence, Asama appealed the verdict. Yet it was only in 2015 that her lawyers took the case to the Supreme Court. From there it took another three years to clear the now 36-year-old’s name. She was released from jail last month due to lack of evidence. To sum up, as her lawyer did: 12 days to hand down a verdict versus 19-and-half-years to dispose of appeals. It seems almost redundant to say that this is simply not good enough. The plight of women in Pakistan is well-known, if not entirely understood either in great depth or in terms of profound compassion and empathy. But it is recognised. Which is why both the provinces and the Centre, from time to time, come up with remedial measures to try and safeguard women’s rights across the board. Yet it is never smooth-sailing. As the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) notes in its 2017 annual report, a draft Bill tabled to raise the legal age for marriage for girls from 16 to 18 years — as is the case for boys — faced severe backlash from the religious right. Indeed, the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII), while overstepping its jurisdiction as an advisory body, shot down the Bill. The latter was then duly shelved by Pakistan’s parliamentarians. And while lawmakers need to commit to prioritising women’s rights as fundamental human rights — what of those women like Asma Nawab who get caught up in a criminal justice system that is unfairly disposed towards them? Especially a 16-year-old girl. Thus reform is the key; which is of course easier said than done given the slow pace of clearing vast backlogs of cases. According to HRCP, in 2017 alone there were an overwhelming 38,000 cases pending before the SC. That being said, those that involve minors (or very close to in age) as defendants in grave cases such as murder must be fast-tracked. They must also be provided with psychological counsel. What must not happen is the profiting of a 16-year-old’s fate by turning her story into a televised soap opera. Now that Asma is a ‘free’ woman she, and others like her, need the state’s support more than ever. And while there is talk of setting her up with her own NGO to help women who have similarly suffered — this should perhaps remain a long-term goal. For in the short-term, the immediate concern must be psychological assistance. This is to say nothing of compensation. For this woman has lost out on an education and so much more. And she needs help rebuilding a life that Pakistan’s criminal justice system so violently stole from her. * Published in Daily Times, May 22nd2018.