“Most men fear getting laughed at or humiliated by a romantic prospect while most women fear rape and death.” (Gavin de Becker). The horror of rape and rape victims is embodied in a spiral of silence. First comes denial and then victim is blamed. It’s easier to judge than to think, so easier job is opted by us. Rape is defined in PPC (12) as “a man forcing sex on any woman against her will, without or with her consent, when the consent has been obtained by putting her in fear of death or of hurt”. Although the reality bites as the rape cases are generally settled either outside court or the accused is acquitted by court on the pretext of lack of circumstantial witness.
Talking about rape and especially incest rape is considered a taboo in our country. Incest rape is when the accused is a blood relative of the victim. Such cases are most difficult, as the victim cannot run to home for shelter. Incest is a predatory offence, where one time commission is rare unless abuse is reported promptly and action is taken immediately. It continues from a very young age into adolescence unabated. In fact it starts at an early age where the child is unable to sense the situation, further leads to a continuous molestation and abuse. Mostly incest cases are not reported. The cases reported are just a tip of iceberg. Disclosure is mostly made to mother who reacts differently…mostly denial, silence and very rarely a legal action. But the legal course takes the victim to another hell. The law clearly gives accused the margin to question the character of victim, then the burden to provide the proof and witness devastates an already traumatised woman. In incest cases the mother is generally pleading the cases against father, paternal uncle or cousin of that child. In all such cases she is facing displacement from home, financial burden and social seclusion.
In one case of incest rape around 2004 where father was accused of molesting the minor daughter (mother had passed away) the witnesses of girl’s brother and maternal uncle was dismissed as the accused took the plea of family rivalry. He was acquitted on the pretext that such an immoral act cannot take place in an Islamic state! The medical report proved that minor was molested but father put the blame on someone else.
Kamran, son in law of a widow, Shafeeqan, took her four-year-old daughter with him at the time of her husband’s death. Kamran was apparently a religious and pious man, whom she thought had done the act as a good will gesture. She wanted to bring her daughter Marium back, but was bound due to ‘iddat’. Later, she came to know through a neighbour that Marium was seen in a hospital with Kamran; her arm fractured and bruised eye. She went to Kamran’s house and took her daughter to a nearby clinic and learnt that child’s uterus had been completely damaged as a result of abuse. She lodged a FIR against him under section (102). After his arrest Shafeeqan found out from her daughter Saira that her husband Kamran had been abusing her baby sister, pushed her down a hill and gouged her eyes with a pair of scissors in an attempt to kill her. Saira filed for divorce. Marium was a traumatised child who used to scream at the sight of a bearded man as she relates beard with her molester. At the time of trial Kamran appeared clean shaved in the identity parade. Marium, the four-year-old girl, who associated her abuser with a beard, was unable to identify.
The court passed the judgement that prosecution was unable to prove the accused guilty. Marium, the victimised child, now lives with her mother. WAR, a non-governmental organisation dedicated to societal ills of sexual crimes against woman, is supporting her education she is a fourth grade student, although she could not completely come out of the trauma. She is living her life with the prospect of never getting married, as she cannot bear children. ‘Where is the state’s role,’ one questions.
Hina, another girl, had filed a case against her brother-in-law on charges of rape. The trial took place under section 376 of the PPC. The accused pleaded not guilty. He neither produced any defence witness nor a testimony under oath.
The court acquitted the accused for two reasons. Firstly, unexplained delay of six hours in lodging fir with police and uncertainty over handed over her clothing to the police officer or the WMLO.
Although Hina claimed she gave it to police.
Regarding the first point, Hina claimed that police had turned her away twice and refused to register a FIR. Regarding second point, the court says, “There is a settled law that any slide of single doubt comes to record then benefit will go in favour of accused.”
Hina got the double burnt raped, as accused was acquitted and her family disowned her. They said she brought shame to family by seeking justice.
Sara Zaman, who worked as the longest serving director of WAR from 2006-2012, shared her experiences. She had been on the forefront while handling numerous rape cases. She is currently working for Shirkatgah, an NGO working for health, education and sanitation. She briefed how a victim faces further trauma after confronting the accused. Especially in case of incest rape, state is complacent and system remains cruel. Woman is not provided shelter, counselling and legal help. In such cases the sate should be the prosecutor. At police surgeon office in Karachi, a councillor is badly needed. The medical examination is another traumatising process where victim is again and again facing the consequences of poor medico-legal advisory and the absence of counselling. A shabby investigation is done, state prosecutor lawyer remains languid and resultantly accused is acquitted.
Sara told how the first door is first slammed on the victim’s face by her own family by denying and then blaming her. Rest slamming is done by the system. State remains complacent and police play the harassment role. In minor rape cases, police and society have the sympathy for the victim. But in an adult rape case the woman bears the stigma of being a loose character as the blame is put on her. She seems to be vulnerable to further abuse. But even in case of minor rape the child receives no psychological help.
In one case, first the eldest daughter was impregnated by father every year and then was the younger one. WAR got to know the family but later the family lost contact with WAR. Where is the state? Would there be any severe punishments ever?
The anti-honour killing and anti-rape bill unanimously approved in a joint session of parliament, moved by PPP senator Farhatullah Babar, is a ray of hope and justice for victims. Both these bill were initially tabled by former PPP senator Sughra Imam. Sughra Imam, who had been visiting the district jails, courts and meeting the victims, particularly in Jhang, tabled both these bills with detailed groundwork.
Sughra Imam briefed about the bill, saying that now the empirical scientific evidence will also be relied upon in the rape investigation process. Circumstantial evidence will not be the sole deciding factor. Due to this previous loophole, rape conviction rate was almost zero. One of the key points in the bill, 376A disclosure of identity of the victim, will be considered as a crime. The section says whoever prints or publishes the name or any matter that may make known the identity of the victim shall be punished with imprisonment or fine.
Sughra said that a legal framework will facilitate victim and accused could no longer target the reputation of victim. Police will be obliged to update victims on their rights. She said this law would be a deterrent to crime. Yet the implementation of law, efficiency level at the police, state prosecutor and further dynamics need to be managed by the official bodies. The law is there for legal aspect but officers sitting as public prosecution lawyer, police and medial officer need to be there to help victims, she narrated.
In the multiplexed framework of justice, law is the top hierarchy, rest of the pyramid needs to work in the same direction, if rest of the system is inefficient the law cannot bring the complete change, she mentioned.
This bill has finally brought changes and covered loopholes in an outdated and extensively criticised law. People sitting in the corridors of power had been insensitive towards the social injustice, inequality and cruelty of system. In such times the progressive and empathetic views of Sughra Imam brought some hope. After a year or so, lets hope the rape convict rate will be higher, the victim will be protected on identity disclosure and empirical evidence will be the victims’ strength.
It is high time when we start accepting rape, child abuse and incest rape as social ills. These problems are not born out of poverty as affluent class also suffers from them. Minor and women do not even know how to express the problem. We need to raise voice on such laws and rights, as this spiral of silence needs to be broken. Such issues need to come out of whispers and need to be voiced .A mother should educate her daughter about the sanity of her body and saying “No” loud and clear. Help should be available to a victim not the harassment. As in words of Sara Zaman, ” Justice should be served to the victim seeking it.”
(Special thanks to former senator Sughra Imam, WAR ex-director Sara Zaman and the people who provided all related information and views on a complex subject. Their support was commendable)