Adil Najam
This is a VERY DISTURBING video. Please view at your own discretion.
It is important, however, that we speak about and shout out about this video.
It shows a 17-year old girl being flogged by a Taliban leader of some sort in a perverted form of justice. Reportedly the incident happened in Kalakalay, Swat around 3 months ago (before the supposed peace deal with the government). The girl is being ‘punished’ for going somewhere without a male relative. Supposedly, the male companion was also flogged.
This video is also be discussed vigorously at Pakistaniat’s new Facebook page. Some of that disussion does not carry over here, although we hope it ultimately will.
In more recent developments, supposedly Sufi Mohammad in Swat has condemned the act and said this was not Baitullah’s Taliban. More importantly, the recent reinstated Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry has taken su moto notice of this incident. According to The News
Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry Friday took a suo motu notice of the media footage in which a 17 year old girl is being whipped out in the broad daylight in Swat. Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhdy ordered the matter to be presented before a larger bench on April 6. He also summoned Secretary Interior, IG and Chief Secretary on April 6. He ordered formation of 8-member larger bench to be headed by himself.
This is a story that all Pakistanis and all Muslims must speak about and speak against. There are those who will try to make this a story about what Pakistan or Islam is. Such bigoted approaches are to be resisted. This is not a story about what Pakistan is. This is clearly not about what Islam is. This is a story about what the enemies of Islam and enemies of Pakistan are doing. This is a story about what Pakistan must not allowed to become. The bad news is obvious in the video itself. The bad news is about the criminality being conducted in the name of religion. The good news is that the media, the judiciary and ordinary Pakistanis ARE speaking up and speaking out. We must do more so. For if we do not speak out against this criminality, who will?
today i am ashamed to call myself a pakistani for the first time ever not even in 65 0r after the fall of dacca have i felt like this i am so despondent that i cannot even expect any help from the recently restored CJ or the brave men of the pak forces or the democratically elected president of pakistan or our friends outside pakistan
SOME QUESTIONS FROM SAMAR MINULLAH, AND OUR MEDIA WHO EXPOSED THIS VIDEO
Q1
DR AFFIA SIDDIQUE KIDNAPPED BY OUR INTELLIGENCE AGNECIES, HANDED OVER TO AMERCIA, ACCORDING TO MUZZAM BAIG
If we dont do anything these bully mullah will terrorize all our sisters and daughters.
After Police acedemy attack and this we should wake up. I am already seeing “wind of change” in Paki media.
We should dump Taliban defenders like Imran Khan, Qazi, Hamid Mir and Hamid gul. Lahoris should write letter to Nawaz to adopt a harder stance on Taliban rather a soft stance.
It is time to wakeup otherwise all our sisters, daughters, wifes will share this fate.
It is shameful, yes, but deplorably not shocking if you have been paying attention. I mean what else do we expect after ceding control of swat and legitimizing taliban’s pseudo-judicial system?
The funny touch to the story is provided by “cheef justice sahib” who is summoning the usual bureaucratic critters to gain cheap publicity and but neither the “ameer” a.k.a Fazlullah nor his sufi FIL, where the actual responsibility lies. Summoning them would have been made a lot of sense if the intent was deliverance of justice but I guess accountability was not mentioned in the current “peace agreement”, and besides it would have made the cheef sahib unpopular among mulanas…..not a very wise thing to do.
If we have any common sense at any level in the Pak govt, this image of bearded mullahs flogging a teenage girl must be utilized to awaken/invoke the public against the dangers of talibans. This should be shown every hour on the tv and in every newspaper until it is associated in every viewer’s mind with talibans’s justice system. But I think I am assuming too much competence from the govt.
Thank you Dr. Najam for posting this video. It is disgusting but this is what we are all fighting against. This is not only the attack on one girl, it is an attack on all women, all of Pakistan and in fact an attack on Islam.
These are disgusting criminals who should be treated like disgusting criminals.
I am glad the CJ is taking action. The media is also full of this story and with people like you and Pakistaniat also joining their civil society voices at least we are all speaking up on this. That is what is needed. No one can remain silent on this.