–Shireen Mazari says full support offered to Nazo Shinwari but she is reluctant to take it
–Nazo admits ministry’s assistance, says can’t get out of her hiding place due to serious life threats
ISLAMABAD: Running for her life amid fear and distress, Nazo Shinwari – a young journalist in her early 20s – is desperately seeking government’s protection as her stepbrothers and other relatives continue to hound her and her brother over a property dispute.
While the corrupt and obsolete justice system has failed to provide even the most basic protection to the victim, Nazo and her brother Shershah have gone into hiding fearing for their lives in the aftermath of their parents being shot dead by their stepbrothers and uncles.
Urging the state apparatus to take the culprits to task, Nazo alleges that her father Mobin Shinwari was shot dead outside his residence in Rawalpindi for legitimately transferring his property to his wife. It is pertinent to mention here that the property belonged to Mobin who had transferred it to his second wife and Nazo’s mother, Sumera Safdar, at the time of their nikah over 30 years ago.
Nazo said that after approaching a court against the transfer and continuing to threaten her family over the years, on March 28, 2019, her stepbrothers and her uncles killed her father so that they could force the family into surrendering the property.
However, Nazo said that her courageous mother stood up against her in-laws and started pursuing both the property and her husband’s murder cases. She alleges that this step led the accused to murder her mother as well.
Narrating the circumstances leading to her mother’s murder, Nazo said that her mother Sumera was forced to leave Rawalpindi and travel to Peshawar for the hearing of a bogus case registered against all family members.
“Since Peshawar is my uncles’ city, they easily murdered my mother on her way back on August 17, in a drive-by shooting that also claimed her driver’s life,” she said, adding that despite the fact that her mother had written appeals to the chief justice, prime minister, Punjab and KP chief ministers as well as top cops among other police officials concerned, she was easily killed in cold blood.
After the murder of both her parents, the siblings were forced into hiding because the killers need them out of the way to bag the property.
“They also tried to poison my brother at a police station. They have sought pre-arrest bails and authorities are reluctant to act because the culprits are influential,” alleges the young journalist, adding that the police also was “reluctant” to pursue the case in court on the pretext of a pending investigation.
Further, she also held the management of Lady Reading Hospital in Peshawar responsible for “deliberately delaying” the issuance of her mother’s death certificate.
In response to the allegations, Peshawar Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Operations Zahoor Babar Afridi refuted the allegations, saying that the police are working hard and the culprits will soon be brought to justice.
He added that the vehicle used in Nazo’s mother Sumera’s killing had been traced back to the nominated accused.
Further, Rawalpindi Potohar Division SP Syed Ali also that Nazo has become the plaintiff in her parents’ murder cases and all the accused are being pursued by the police. “We are trying our best to arrest the killers,” he added.
Speaking to Pakistan Today, Minister for Human Rights Dr Shireen Mazari said that she had been in touch with the victim girl for the past week and had offered her a room in the Human Rights Ministry’s shelter home which she claimed, is very safe.
“All those women who face threats are looked after in our shelter. But she refused to benefit from this facility. We also contacted KP Police but Nazo again refused to register her statement there, saying Peshawar was not safe for her. Then we directed KP Police to visit Rawalpindi and register her statement. The police officials have committed to visit Islamabad to record her statement,” she said.
Mazari claimed that she had also contacted Nazo another time, asking her to visit the shelter and assured that proper security would be provided for recording her statement. “We also offered to shift her under security if she doesn’t want to stay at a shelter,” added the minister.
The minister told that she had offered the provision of a lawyer for the siblings however, the pair already have their own lawyer about whom they refused to provide details. Later, she added, activist Nighat Dad informed the minister that Shinwari’s lawyer was on holiday.
Mazari said that Nazo had made another request for facilitation in acquiring her mother’s death certificate so the ministry sent that request to KP Police which they promised to expedite.
Moreover, Nazo had requested for her statement to be recorded at Chaklala Garrison but was told by the ministry officials that the government had no authority there as Garrison comes under the military’s domain. “But we informed her that she will be provided adequate security if she trusts the government and comes to the ministry’s shelter or any other place of her choice in Islamabad so that her statement is recorded”.
However, Mazari said that Shinwari doesn’t trust the police at all. “We even offered for Islamabad Police to accompany the KP Police during the recording of the statement but she refused. Then she started going live on TV channels. In fact, our ministry officials contacted her on Monday and reiterated our offer of facilitation and protection,” she asserted.
“We were then informed that her lawyer was on leave. Moreover, she rejected all our offers and demanded the formation of a commission which should then record her statement. We have suggested her to ask her lawyer to move court as the ministry of human rights cannot form a commission. We have offered maximum possible help to her but, maybe she feels so insecure that she doesn’t take our offer. So beyond this, it is humanly impossible for me or my ministry to help her,” she said and added that Shinwari must record her statement for any progress to happen.
Responding to the claims made by Mazari, Nazo did not refute any of the claims and admitted that she had contacted the human rights minister through social media through activist Osama Khilji.
“Madam Mazari had offered me shelter but I can’t get out of my place of hiding, as I know that I will be killed if I get out. I have also contacted some known activists and it does not take much to concluded that shelter homes are not safe. So, I can’t trust these shelters,” she said.
She asserted that she had not been able to get her mother’s death certificate despite the passing of three weeks. “The concerned officials have been making excuses rather than issuing the certificate,” she said.
About recording her statement, Nazo says that initially they had asked to send it through courier but later changed their stance and said that her presence was mandatory for the statement.
Shinwari asserted that actor Ali Zafar had advised her to get her in touch with DIG Yasin who advised her remain in hiding as her and her brother’s safety is at stake.
“DIG Yasin has asked me to send him my statement through courier and has promised that it will be added to the record. So, this matter is resolved and my statement would be added. As of now, the update is that my lawyer is back from vacations and we are also trying to get the interim bail of the accused persons cancelled,” she concluded.
