Mahinoor Akbar
THE Motorway incident has left each and every one of us in shock and grief and is being discussed in every nook and corner of the country. The barbarity which the mother of three kids has meted out, I ask the nation, why is silence the preferred option when your daughter tells you about her rape or sexual harassment? Who will have the courage to talk about the fact that this exploitation does not just go unnoticed but is rarely condemned because apparently it is more important for this nation to scrutinize women participating in Aurat March who chant “Mera Jism Meri Marzi” which is merely reclaiming the autonomy of their own bodies, demanding protection from the abuse and violation done to their bodies on a daily basis in this country.
Is our society ready to go to lengths to have these uncomfortable discussions where it has to be revealed that rape culture is a product of patriarchy, sexual objectification, chosen or unchosen silence surrounding these issues, disregarding the women’s struggle for equal economic place, the insecure needs to dominate women just to feel a sense of superiority and satisfying fragile masculinities. Are our walls ready to be dammed with the truth that feigned support from progressive men despite these arising cases that have already touched the sky has just resulted in no protection for a girl walking on this ground?
The demand of public hanging has gone trending after this Motorway incident which shows clearly our country’s response to quickly attain an instant solution but is the nation aware that public hanging by research, has never proved to be effective in reducing the crime rate. There is no statistical evidence that such hangings reduce or even prevent criminals from doing their filthy work. Short-term solutions only aid the public anger and considerably reduce the reporting of sexual assault cases which is already very less in our country ie 1.7%.
Public hanging will reduce the chances of these cases getting reported because majority of cases involve family members and acquaintances. Public hanging takes away the attention from the ineffective justice system, misogynic thought processes, the stigmas and superstitions surrounding issues pertinent to women’s safety and well being, the development of our already loophole-filled laws of women protection and the institutions responsible for ensuring adequate implementation of pro-women policies. The perpetrator of 7 year old Zainab was also hanged to death but has that sentence and response been effectual in reducing the crime rate of children’s sexual exploitation? The answer is obviously no. Rapists like Imran Ali believe that their salvation lies in atonement by doing social work and upright deeds that would take the burden of their atrocious crimes. Rapists like him and the group of boys passing rape jokes affect the society in same way, only the intensity varies.
The significance and the memory of this incident will fade as soon as another heart-wrenching incident takes place. It will be a long time after when this society actually sits down to address these issues properly. The real truth is that we are the ones responsible for the condition of this victim and her three children. We are responsible for Zainab, Marwah, Faizan, Kainat and uncountable other victims of sexual exploitation and abuse. Because we are primed to publicly hang the rapist to appease our perception of justice but we are not ready to work hard and challenge this systematic rape culture governed by patriarchy.
Should women have no expectation of safety in public spaces and expect only to scrutinized and blamed for the abuse done to them? The sexual harassment or rape happening in every corner, home, lane or office is a direct product of our incompetence as a state, avoidance to address these issues as nation, societal attitude towards women and irresponsibility of every entity on this ground. Are we ready to take this responsibility or more necessarily, are we prepared to face this real truth?
—The writer is a freelancer and contributes for national dailies occasionally.
