I should be revising, because I have an exam tomorrow, but I really wanted to write about something I’ve seen going round on social media- the Justice For Zainab hashtag. This 7 year old girl was raped and then killed in Kasur (in North-West Pakistan). She was on her way to a Qur’an recital/class when she was abducted by a man, who has not been found yet- police are looking. Photos of this girl have been going round (to spread awareness of what happened), and also some photos of her body as well- which I really don’t agree with. Firstly, we don’t even know if thats her body anyway, and secondly we have literally just encountered this issue with the whole Logan Paul situation- don’t take photos of or film peoples dead bodies- that is one of the most disrespectful things you can do to a person, and their family. But again, some people don’t have any tact.
Aside from that, Zainab’s story has gone viral, due to lots of Pakistani celebrities tweeting about it and sharing it with people, talking about how disgusting it is that this has happened AGAIN, and that the man hasn’t even been caught by the police yet. Also yes, I said again, because apparently, this has happened multiple times before in Kasur, some in the past few months as well (in some of these cases, the victims have been able to escape). In addition to this, anger has been projected towards the police, after the family said that the police weren’t fast with following anything up after they were notified of her being missing. What’s sad is that when this whole incident occurred, her parents were away in Saudi doing Hajj. They were coming back the day it happened, and its awful that after doing such an amazing act they returned back to a catastrophic situation.
There have been protests going on for days now- many people in Pakistan are speaking up saying that sexual abuse should be spoken up about more. I’ve said this in a previous post but in a lot of cultures there is a tendency to sweep problems under the carpet, so peoples images/ the family name is not tainted. As a result, a lot of sexual abuse/ harassment that girls may endure as they grow up is not spoken about. Also, I know sexual abuse can happen to boys, but in some cultures boys are like princes, and girls… are not. What happens in some extreme cases (in some villages in rural areas) if the boy was to do something wrong, like have an inappropriate relationship with someone, guess who gets punished? A girl in his family. Revenge rape, or honour killing etc. This isn’t just a problem in Pakistan, it occurs in lots of countries around the globe (European countries, North and South America, North Africa). The media may make it look like these problems only occur in Middle Eastern/Asian countries, to amplify this already negative image that has been created, but that’s completely wrong.
Like I said, this whole “sweeping under the rug” doesn’t in any way apply to the majority, but it is definitely a problem. As of right now, there does seem to be some action to change this though, it’s just sad that its occurred as a result of such a sad situation. I hope you also write about this sad situation and raise awareness, and I really hope her family get the justice they deserve.
Stay fresh,
Minty x
January 11, 2018 at 6:56 pm
The news was heart wrenching! I feel so sad for her family. And hope to see the Govt taking action against all the those who target our Zainabs! I condo
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January 11, 2018 at 7:15 pm
I agree- I hope the govt. listens to all the protests, and puts in some stricter laws 😦
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January 11, 2018 at 7:33 pm
Yes. Such a depressing situation in country but anyways we must unite and hope for the best. InshaAllah!
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January 11, 2018 at 7:11 pm
I’m so depressed because of all this. I literally can’t stop thinking about that little girl. I think I’m gonna reblog your post
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January 11, 2018 at 7:20 pm
It’s such an awful situation, and I feel so sorry for her family to have to live in an a place where the situation wasn’t even dealt with well. I know it’s so hard to think positively, but I’m hoping because there are so many protests going on in Pakistan, the govt will input some stricter laws as a result. (feel free to reblog)
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January 11, 2018 at 7:22 pm
Actually i did.
And yes I don;t even have words for her family, we can only pray for them!
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January 11, 2018 at 7:24 pm
yes! praying is a great thing and I’m hoping her family will get peace and justice like they deserve
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January 11, 2018 at 7:26 pm
Aameen
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January 11, 2018 at 8:16 pm
That’s horrible & atrocious. May God punish the guilty.
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January 11, 2018 at 8:46 pm
And yet it seems Pakistan may be going a few steps backwards yet AGAIN. If one particularly concerning candidate for PM wins Pakistan in ‘18, our ancestral land is doomed. I’ll be making a post on it later…
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January 11, 2018 at 9:19 pm
looking forward to it! but yeah, it’s a sad situation
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January 11, 2018 at 9:19 pm
IKR
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January 11, 2018 at 9:20 pm
The post is actually already up on my political blog
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January 11, 2018 at 10:45 pm
I saw this on instagram yesterday and couldn’t stop thinking about it. How can someone be so sick in the head to do this?? A 7 year old girl! What kind of human would be so cruel? My heart aches for her and her family. 💔💔
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January 11, 2018 at 11:10 pm
I know it’s honestly so disgusting, I have no idea why people do this kind of stuff 😦
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January 12, 2018 at 8:47 am
This news was horrible to hear. I was aware that it happened but I was not aware of the photos released of the girls body. I just can’t comprehend all that is going on and why? What is it worth?
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January 12, 2018 at 2:07 pm
I’m not sure if they were her body because they could be fake/someone else’s body,but its so disrespectful. No idea why someone would do it- it’s scary that it’s happened before and some of the incidents have been linked to the same person 😦
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January 13, 2018 at 8:33 pm
Yes, this case seems to have happened over the the past year 7 times. The person must be caught before destroying more families and communities.
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January 13, 2018 at 8:52 pm
7!! I hadn’t even realised it was that much- I had read about only 2 or 3 more cases. I complexly agree- I hope this ends soon 😦
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January 13, 2018 at 8:56 pm
And the confusing part for me was all the victims came from the same area. Just a few KM away from one another.
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January 15, 2018 at 3:34 am
It’s a disgusting and terrible thing that needs to be talked about. I hope Islamic scholars speak up on this and not just mention it briefly and then move on. If they spoke up about it more then perhaps they could reach Eastern families and prevent them from sweeping it under the rug. I’m so glad Pakistani artists are raising awareness. Let’s hope, In Shaa Allah, that things get better.
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January 15, 2018 at 12:26 pm
I hope they do talk about it, because it’s important to educate people and use your platform to raise awareness, and I’m sure that if they did it would help solve some of these problems, and improve the situation. Thank you for commenting!
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