Adil Najam
Sometimes you see a headline that just stops you in your tracks and makes you wonder. I saw such a headline in The Daily Times today: “At Least 100 Rapes in Karachi a Day.“
The story is reporting a statement by Dr. Zulfiqar Siyal, Additional Police Surgeon (APS), Karachi, where he claims that on average, 100 women are raped in Karachi every 24 hours. It takes a little careful reading to realize that he is not saying that this is the number of actual rapes per day, but that he thinks that it must at least be this much and possibly more. In fact, he himself points out that the number of reported rapes are much less, because of the social stigma of reporting such a crime.
I have no reason to is agree with the statement from the APS. Indeed, I have plenty of reason to believe that he is right and that the real number of rapes must be much more. But I did want to make sure that readers interpret the news report properly. Excerpts from the report.
On average, 100 women are raped every 24 hours in Karachi city alone, and a majority of them are working women, said Additional Police Surgeon (APS) Dr Zulfiqar Siyal. A majority of them are working class women or those working as domestic help and are mostly up to 20 years old, he said.
“I am saying with full authority that such a large number of rape cases happen in the city,†he told Daily Times on the sidelines of a discussion on sexual violence organised by the Aurat Foundation on Monday. “But very few rape survivors have the courage to come forward in search of justice.†They do not come forward because of the lengthy medical process and delayed justice system in Pakistan. Only 0.5 percent of cases are reported and the majority (99.5 percent) of survivors prefers to stay silent.
Part of the problem is that there are 11 medico-legal sections in three major public sector hospitals but there are only six women medico-legal officers (WMLOs) for the 18 million population of Karachi. “I am sure that there are more than 100 rape cases every day … but you can gauge how many are reported from the official data which says that during the last eight months (between January to August 2008) a total of 197 cases were reported,†Dr Siyal said. The WMLOs also face a lot of problems, he said. Karachi is also short on hospitals where rape survivors can go through the entire medical examination. “It isn’t just medical facilities but you won’t find a single women police officer (WPO) in any of the total 101 police stations of the city,†he said.
I think that even more important than the number he gives is the point he makes about the majority of rape victims in Karachi being working class women or those working as domestic help, 20 years old or younger. My own sense would be that the situation is not much different anywhere else in Pakistan, whether in terms of the numbers or in terms of who the victims are. I am very glad that the APS has spoken up. I wish more people would, including more victims. However, I can understand all the reasons why many victims do not. As in many societies, this crime persists because the social stigma is attached to the victim even more than the culprit. It is but one aspect of the deeper scars of violence against women.
As with so many other crimes against humanity, rape this a crime that thrives on silence. Not only the silence of the victim, but the silence of society. When, as in this case, the silence is broken, one feels empowered. One hopes that others will break the silence too.
Also see:
Silent Against Domestic Violence
Violence Against Women: Breaking Down Walls
Being Woman in Pakistan
Celebrating the Lives of Pakistani Women
Changing Rape Laws in Pakistan
@Zecchetti,
Do you know what BLAMING THE VICTIM is?
I would disagree with the comment that a hijab protects women from rape or harassment. In Egypt, the reverse is true.
What do you do when a government supports such violence, as in Egypt?
* See Eye candy for the Egyptian man (28 August 2008)
http://www.menassat.com/?q=en/news-articles/4510-e ye-candy-egyptian-man
“A recent study by an Egyptian women’s rights group claims that a whopping 83 percent of Egyptian women have been exposed to sexual harassment of some kind. Various groups have launched media campaigns to raise awareness, but some of them appear to be blaming the victims. ”
or What about in the case of Lebanon, where laws might be in place, yet are not enforced, or really even known in the general public?
See “Lebanese women still vulnerable to violence”
The Daily Star 9 June 2008
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id =1&categ_id=1&article_id=92895
“….As violence is deeply embedded in social (particularly familial) culture, many Lebanese women finding themselves without legal protection continue to suffer in silence.
Although there are no accurate, up-to-date statistics about domestic violence in Lebanon, a 2006 study entitled “Domestic Violence: The Lebanese Experience” reported that the rate of domestic violence is high among Lebanese women and is a significant health issue.
A cross-sectional survey of women presented to four primary healthcare centers between September and October 2002 revealed that out of 1,418 participants, 494 (35 percent) experienced domestic violence. Three hundred and seven women (22 percent) knew of family members who had been abused within the family.
However, some leading figures openly condemn violence against women and advocate the need for change.
Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah, a senior Shiite cleric, called for the elimination of violence against women in 2007. He issued a number of fatwas reaffirming women’s rights and he clearly stated that Islam forbids men from exercising any form of violence against women.
“Physical violence in which women are beaten proves that these men are weak,” he said, “for only the weak are in need of unjust violence.”
My comment: From my experience working with Palestinian and Lebanese women in Lebanon, cases of rape and sexual harassment in Lebanon are seen as targeting a woman’s honor, not her person. Restoring her honor, therefore, takes precedence over her well-being. This perception exists among both Muslims and Christians. And Lebanon is considered one of the more “progressive” Middle Eastern countries. Hmmmm….
@ Tina
“Both modest dress and severe punishment of offenders have been proven over time to be no deterrent to crimes against women.”
Are you sure about that? Then why would Allah enjoin the hijab on the women in the Qur’an? This measures certainly do work which is why if you were to compare rape rates of Karachi to Saudi you would see a stark difference.
I don’t completely agree to the treatment of women in Saudi, but you cannot deny that modest dress brings about the honour and dignity of a woman. It is because of the wanton display of beauty that women are being judged at first glance by men on how sexually appealing they are. In other words, women are being seen as no more than pleasure objects. If you ask me, THAT is women’s degredation. Islam came to give women their proper rights and the respect that they deserve.
Kabir Das:
to answer your question, how can anybody in Saudi report a rape, when they throw the victim in prison and sentence her to hundreds of lashes?
Of course it’s not possible in such a situation to have any idea how many rapes happen. We do know from foreign housemaids that many working women are forced to have sex with their employers or other men in the house.
I’m sure the rate is very high.
Zecchetti:
Three words for you:
Saudi, Iran, and Afghanistan.
If you think more covering of women and more public executions are the answer I suggest you move to one of these three Paradises on earth.
This is a problem of the women being defenceless once outside the protection of their families; in Pakistan you are only as safe as your family is rich and powerful. Until the basic inequity is addressed the problem will remain in society. It won’t matter how much women cover themselves or how many men are put on the scaffold. Both modest dress and severe punishment of offenders have been proven over time to be no deterrent to crimes against women.
The crime only decreases when there is less inequity in society as a whole and when there is justice for the poor as well as the rich. Although in this case women are the victims, this is not really a gender problem.