Whither justice?
Every crime is condemnable and must be punished. More so when the victim is a woman, an oppressed being whose lot in life in a patriarchal society like ours is not enviable. Fakhra Yunus, a victim of an acid attack and someone to whom justice could not be delivered for more than 12 years, committed suicide the other day, bringing to light what is wrong with our society. Twelve years is a long time to wait for justice, and that too for such a heinous crime that not merely scarred the victim’s face but her soul.
This issue was highlighted by the documentary that recently won an Oscar and many accused it of highlighting a ‘negative’ aspect of Pakistan. This case will only reiterate how justice eludes the victims of this pervasive crime and much more needs to be done. But being sentimental, raising slogans and vociferously chattering on the social networking space is not going to change anything (though it is still better than showing no support at all for such a cause). Who denied Fakhra justice and why are the questions that need to be addressed at once. Has the state forsaken its constitutional obligation to dispense fair justice or did the matter just get brushed aside because some other issues had to be given priority? Do political intrigues carry more weight than consoling an aggrieved heart and providing justice to a wronged party? Fakhra’s wasn’t a lone case and this is but one of the many crimes most women of our society have to face. Where processes of justice can be impeded, or justice be outright denied, such oppressive tendencies are bound to persist. Another woman, Sapna Khan, wife of former chief minister Punjab Dost Muhammad Khosa, was kidnapped and murdered, allegedly, by her husband. Her husband, against whom a case can now only be registered on the orders of LHC, levels the same allegations against her family though. Whatever the truth is, it is up to the courts to decide, but denying access to justice by not letting the aggrieved family launch an FIR against Mr Khosa is a direct attack on the judicial system and fundamental human rights.
Legislating on certain crimes does not make them vanish miraculously, particularly the crimes whose motive is bias and prejudice and the belief that women are inferior to men. Only when these laws are implemented and prompt justice is dispensed will these crimes against women abate.