Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Shireen Mazari Saturday (today) protested against JUI-F leader Hafiz Hamdullah for verbally abusing human rights activist Marvi Sirmed on a TV talk show.
Raising the issue during a National Assembly session, Mazari urged lawmakers to take notice of incidents of abuse against women.
“Raised Marvi Sirmed issue and condemned JUI-F Senator in NA this morning! But PML-N women MNAs shamefully continuing to belittle abuse of women,” Mazari tweeted.
Raised @marvisirmed issue & condemned JUIF Senator in NA this morning! But PMLN women MNAs shamefully continuing to belittle abuse of women
— Shireen Mazari (@ShireenMazari1) June 11, 2016
Earlier she tweeted:
Shameful & condemnable attack on @marvisirmed by JUIF Senator on TV show but not surprising as women being abused & violated ad nauseum here
— Shireen Mazari (@ShireenMazari1) June 10, 2016
Human rights activist Marvi Sirmed was allegedly assaulted by a Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) leader during the recording of a TV show at a private news channel on Friday.
Soon after the incident, Sirmed tweeted about it. “I have just undergone a very traumatic experience at a News One programme [Nadia Mirza Show] when Hafiz Hamdullah of JUI-F got angry,” the woman activist said.
Describing the incident, Sirmed said: “On a comment by Barrister Masroor. On my turn, I started by saying ‘I agree with Masroor sahib to the extent that’ and here Hamdullah went on and on with his rudeness.”
Meanwhile, veteran journalist and South Asian Free Media Association (SAFMA) secretary general Imtiaz Alam file a petition to the stakeholders on Saturday, regarding criminal assault and harassment case of renowned activist Marvi Sirmed on a TV show.
In the petition, it is submitted and as evident from the recording of the show that before Marvi Sirmed could respond to earlier discussant’s remarks Senator Hamadullah of JUI interrupted her and increasingly became aggressive and abusive. He used extremely foul language against the honourable rights activist and columnist. He even tried to physically attack her. But the abuses he hurled are below any ethnicity and civility. Blaming her for responding to his misbehaviour adds salt to the injury and represent a patriarchal approach that women should submit to men’s beating (light or otherwise).
SAFMA requested the chairman Senate to form an inquiry committee to look into the conduct of Senator and take appropriate action to keep the prestige of upper house of Parliament.
They appealed to JUI chief Maulana Fazalur Rehman to take a serious notice of the conduct of its member and forcefully discourage his followers and leaders from granting religious sanction to the widespread violence against women. It’s a matter of concern that JUI is now been seen as prompter of violence against women, even if you treat your women at home with great respect; and requested Pemra Chief to issue a notice to News One Management regarding the violation of Pemra ethics code and give appropriate punishment to the television that preferred not to seek break law when a notable lady was being humiliated and then aired it without fully editing the objectionable content and ugly scenes.
A request has been made to IG Police Islamabad to register an FIR against Hamadullah for harassing and physically threatening a woman in the petition.
They asked to call upon the parliament to take serious notice of increasing crime against and humiliation of women now on the rise across the country and immediately pass the pending law passed by Senate against violence against women and call upon people, media and civil society to join hands against violence against women and to bring an end to gender/based discrimination against women.