Wednesday, September 29, 2004

Woman Sentenced To Gang Rape

In Iran, in august, a woman gets sentenced to death for "engaging in acts incompatible with chastity." In Pakistan, a village council sentences a woman to be raped.

The New York Times reports on a two year old story from Meerwala, Pakistan, that 28 year-old Mukhtaran Bibi was sentenced by a tribal council to be gang raped. The order was carried out. "As members of the high-status tribe danced in joy, four men stripped her naked and took turns raping her. Then they forced her to walk home naked in front of 300 villagers."

Muslim custom then expected Ms. Mukhtaran to kill herself in shame. Instead, she tried to fight back in Pakistani courts. She won her case, and the government provided her with police bodyguards. But... the Times article goes on to report that "[The] villagers say that relatives of the rapists are waiting for the police to leave and then will put Ms. Mukhtaran in her place by slaughtering her and her entire family.

Other, more detailed (accurate?) reports here and here.

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