<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<rss xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/" xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/" version="2.0"><channel>
                        <title>The Express Tribune</title>
                        <atom:link href="https://tribune.com.pk/feed/kohistanvideo" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"/>
                        <link>https://tribune.com.pk/feed/kohistanvideo</link>
                        <description>The Express Tribune keeps you up to date with all the latest happenings from Pakistan and across the world!</description>
                        <lastBuildDate>Thu, 11 Jun 26 22:39:00 +0500</lastBuildDate>
                        <language>en-US</language>
                        <sy:updatePeriod>hourly</sy:updatePeriod>
                        <sy:updateFrequency>1</sy:updateFrequency>
                        <generator>https://laravel.com/</generator><item>
			<title>Kohistan 'honour' killing: Four years on, no justice in sight</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/1034553/kohistan-honour-killing-four-years-on-no-justice-in-sight</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/1034553/kohistan-honour-killing-four-years-on-no-justice-in-sight#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Wed, 27 Jan 16 12:03:20 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[news.desk]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category><category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=1034553</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy's documents what ensued after video of men and women singing and dancing emerged in Kohistan]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[It has been almost four years since a case of ‘honour’ killing in Kohistan shook the nation – not only for the senseless murders but also for the mystery surrounding the case and the cover-ups that ensued.

It all started after shaky footage, seemingly shot on a mobile phone, showing a group of young women clapping and singing as two men danced during a wedding ceremony in 2012, became public.

Following this, a Jirga, comprising 12 elders, reportedly sentenced four women, a minor girl and the two boys in the video to death.

It was reported that the four women and the minor girl were killed on May 30, 2012 in accordance with the Jirga’s decree. However, their bodies were never recovered. The men in the video are said to have gone into hiding, but three of their elder brothers were tracked down and killed.

Another one of their brothers, Afzal Kohistani, is on the run and still seeking justice.

In Pakistan, ancient and modern justice collide

In a patriarchal society like Pakistan, where women bear the burden of a family’s ‘honour’ and cases of honour killing are rarely reported, Afzal’s story made headlines.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="625"] Afzal Kohistani, brother of the boys in the video.[/caption]

He recently appeared in a documentary produced by Academy Award- and Emmy Award-winning documentary film-maker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy. Recalling what aggravated the situation that ultimately resulted in the killing of his brothers along with the women in the video, Afzal said, “What made them really angry was that the boys were dancing while girls clapped, and above that, the video was made public. They felt that it brought shame upon them.”

Besides Jirga declaring that the boys’ family along with the girls should be killed, Afzal said residents of Kohistan added fuel to fire by instigating the girls’ family to take revenge. He added that the girls’ families wanted them dead. “They were tortured and kept locked up for almost a month before being killed,” he added.

Second fact-finding mission returns with more questions than answers

He also claimed that after killing his brothers, the perpetrators wanted to burn their bodies. “I’ve tried everything to avenge my brothers’ deaths. But I’m not in a position to do much. I just want them to get punished so that our future generations do not have to suffer like this.”

Behind the smoke screen

After the case made headlines, a fact-finding mission was sent to Kohistan to look for the girls. Two girls were presented before the mission, but a member, Dr Farzana Bari, believed that the girls were imposters.

The opinion was not an unpopular one as investigative journalist Haseeb Khawaja, also featured in the documentary, expressed his doubts as well and vowed to expose all the cover-ups.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="625"] Haseeb Khawaja, a journalist, investigating into the incident.[/caption]

Khawaja believes that this is not the first time such an incident has occurred in the area, and that the findings of the mission were also botched. “They (the mission members) didn’t know the local language and hired an interpreter who happened to be one of the alleged perpetrators,” he said. Further, he claimed that the girls whom the mission met and the ones in the video are not the same.

To support his argument, Khawaja sent a photo of the girl from the video and the one provided by the mission for facial recognition to a lab. The result showed that there is only a 14% resemblance between the two pictures, he claimed.

Khawaja also alleged that the head of the Jirga had called from his personal number and threatened him. “You’re an outsider, what do you have to do with this? Don’t try to challenge our centuries old traditions; it won’t be good for you,” he quoted him as saying.

Since receiving the threatening call, Khawaja claimed he has been attacked.

‘Allegations are baseless’

Maulana Javed, believed to be the head of the grand Kohistan Jirga, has refuted all allegations implying that he issued a decree calling for the killing of the girls.

“This kind of fatwa is illegal. It is not only forbidden in our religion but in all four religions,” he maintained, adding that such claims should be proved.

The cleric insisted the girls were alive, and were produced before the commission. Responding to a question as to why the girls did not appear before the court, he said, “Our girls don’t go to courts or police stations.”

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="625"] Maulana Javed, who is believed to be the head of the grand Kohistan Jirga.[/caption]

Further, he alleged that Afzal was lying and had ulterior motives. “I’ve read in newspapers that he wants to leave the country. He wants to prove that his life is in danger here so either the government or human rights activists take him elsewhere.”

Kohistan complexities

Javed said it is against local tradition for girls and boys to hang out together. “Na-Mehram (non-blood relatives) cannot hang out together. This is prohibited.”

If anyone is seen hanging out with a non-mehram, he is called “Kandal Chor”, he added.

“The punishment for such a person is that he should be injured in some small way,” the cleric maintained, “We say nothing to the girl, only if a man is punished.”

Life on the run

For Afzal, life has become increasingly tough. He has been on the run since his brothers were killed and his family is scattered across the region, and also in hiding.

“There was a time when I became really disheartened, especially when the Supreme Court verdict did not rule in our favour. I wanted to pick up arms to avenge my brothers. But I didn’t want to take the law into my own hands,” he said.

Every few days, Afzal has to take almost half-a-day-long journey to his family’s secret hiding place to check on them.

The desire to go back to their home is evident on the faces of Afzal’s family. Afzal’s brother says he wants to go back to Kohistan but fears that he will not be spared. “It is better to die than to live in the kind of house we are living in right now,” he said.

[fbvideo link="https://www.facebook.com/vicenews/videos/545006555659299/"]]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/1034553-Kohistan-1453812949/1034553-Kohistan-1453812949.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>In Pakistan, ancient and modern justice collide</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/520679/in-pakistan-ancient-and-modern-justice-collide</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/520679/in-pakistan-ancient-and-modern-justice-collide#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 14 Mar 13 06:55:22 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=520679</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Judges have begun to question the decisions handed down by the all-male and usually highly conservative jirgas.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[An assembly of village elders in Pakistan sentenced Sikander Bhutto to be put to death and fed to dogs after he said he exposed a case of a woman beaten and killed by her husband.

Then the provincial high court stepped in and ordered police protection for Bhutto, a human rights activist.

"They told me to pay Rs200,000 to them or get ready to be killed," Bhutto told Reuters, referring to the elders in the village of Ghotki in the southern province of Sindh.

The elders accused Bhutto of having an affair with the woman. Bhutto says she was killed in December for refusing to transfer ownership of her house to her husband.

The case is among a growing number where the judiciary is challenging the centuries-old tradition of quick justice handed down by gatherings of local elders, known as jirgas or panchayats.

In most of the country, jirgas are tolerated but not recognised by the formal courts. Decisions are not legally binding, but are usually enforced by the village.

But in the mountainous tribal regions along the Afghan border, home to millions of Pakistanis, there are no courts and police. Jirgas are the only justice system, and if convened according to the law governing the region, their decisions are legally binding.

Qamaruddin Bohra, head of the Supreme Court's Human Rights Cell, has sat on a jirga himself. They are fair 95 per cent of the time and much better than the courts at enforcing decisions, he said.

"Many times people ignore the ruling of the courts but they cannot ignore the jirgas because that is the decision of their own community," he said. "If they disobey the jirga they might have to leave their village."

But in recent years, judges have begun to question the decisions handed down by the all-male and usually highly conservative jirgas, including some punishments like death, gang-rape or enforced child marriage of girls as young as five.

Those sentences are designed to humiliate the family in retaliation for crimes committed by male relatives.

Such a sentence grabbed world headlines when a village council near the central city of Multan ordered the gang rape of a woman called Mukhtaran Mai in 2002.

Mai was allegedly attacked to settle a matter of village honour, as decided by a panchayat. She was then paraded naked through her village. She brought a case against 14 of her attackers but only one received a life sentence.

Death for clapping

In another such case last year, the chief justice ordered an investigation into alleged death sentences a jirga imposed on five women and two men for appearing in a cellphone video, singing and clapping. The jirga was reportedly incensed by the fraternising between men and women, and deemed it an insult to tribal honour.

The women were killed, a witness to their funerals told Reuters. The two men, who are brothers, are in hiding.

Elders in the remote region of Kohistan denied issuing the death decree and produced four women to meet investigators.

Photographic and other evidence gathered by Reuters showed they probably met impostors. Investigators made no effort to verify their identity.

No national statistics exist on Pakistani jirga decisions challenged in court. But activists say judges are taking on jirgas more frequently, spurred by increased coverage of their rulings as a newly vocal media breaks free of years of stifling military dictatorship.

Activist Samar Minallah Khan has lodged one of two cases currently in the Supreme Court seeking to outlaw jirgas altogether.

Khan says the courts have prevented more than 60 jirga-ordered forced marriages since her case began in 2005. The practice was outlawed in 2004 but remains common.

"Definitely these interventions are increasing, as people hear about successful cases, they feel more comfortable in coming forward to the court or the police," she said.

Yet many Pakistanis support the jirgas, partly because the alternatives are so dismal, says CAMP, an aid group that works with jirgas to make them more accountable.

Two-thirds of people think jirgas are effective, although nearly half think they are sometimes unfair, according to a CAMP survey of 1,500 people across tribal areas in 2010.

Last May, CAMP helped organise a grand jirga in the capital Islamabad to reform penalties.

In a groundbreaking move, the gathering voted to scrap many abusive punishments against women and replace them with fines.

The grand jirga leaders intervened in more than a dozen cases over the next month, said Neha Gauhar, a lawyer with CAMP. In one instance, a man demanding three women to settle an 80-year-old feud got 10 bags of flour and a cow instead.

"We should be training jirga members, not outlawing jirgas," she said.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/520679-mohammadafzalkohistanjirgasupremecourtreuters-1363243927/520679-mohammadafzalkohistanjirgasupremecourtreuters-1363243927.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan killings: Rights activists want perpetrators punished</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/503696/kohistan-killings-rights-activists-want-perpetrators-punished</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/503696/kohistan-killings-rights-activists-want-perpetrators-punished#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Wed, 06 Feb 13 23:58:40 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[riazul.haq]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=503696</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Urge the Supreme Court to reopen case at a protest.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Rights activist and educator Farzana Bari has urged the Chief Justice of Pakistan to reopen the Kohistan killings case and order the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa administration to take punitive measures against those responsible.


“It is unfortunate that the killing spree is continuing. As recently as January, three brothers of the key witness were killed and no action was taken by the K-P government or the local administration,” she said.

She was accompanied by Afzal Khan --- the key witness in the case --- and rights activist Nasir Shah, a Pakistan Peoples Party MNA.

“We demand security for the girls, if they are alive. If not, then there should be through investigation into their killings,” Bari said.

She said whole administration of K-P is politicising the case and trying to brush it under the rug. “They have affiliations with local tribals. Dasu Dam is to be built in the area and former MNA Ismatullah has good terms with them as well.”

Bari urged civil society, the media and the SC to play their roles in unveiling the hidden hands and end barbaric traditions in Kohistan. “Concrete action against those responsible will set the precedent that nobody is above the law, otherwise the killing spree will just make the killers more fearless,” she added.

The Supreme Court in June 2012 took suo motu notice of the Kohistan death decree in which clerics had allegedly issued orders to kill four women and two men. This was after a mobile phone video emerged of the six singing and dancing at a wedding in a remote village in Kohistan. In January this year, at least four people were killed and five women were critically injured when assailants attacked the house of a prime witness in the case.



Afzal said the local station house officer, the deputy superintendent of police, and the Salay Khan tribe are misrepresenting the facts with political backing.

“I am blamed for raising my voice and maligned as wanting to go abroad,” he continued. “This is rubbish. I have no such intentions and am going nowhere,” he said.

Shah said dancing at marriages and such events is part of the culture of this country and called the alleged jirga verdict a farce. “Here, powerful people think the weak have no rights and only the rich can rule and have their say in the affairs of society,” he said.

Fouzia Kasuri from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf also condemned the killings and tendered her party’s full support in pursuing and following the case.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 7th, 2013.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/503696-Kohistan-1360195014/503696-Kohistan-1360195014.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Video controversy: Kohistan murder accused sent on judicial remand</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/495618/video-controversy-kohistan-murder-accused-sent-on-judicial-remand</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/495618/video-controversy-kohistan-murder-accused-sent-on-judicial-remand#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 18 Jan 13 04:18:24 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[muhammad.sadaqat]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=495618</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Seven arrested men accused of killing three brothers sent to Dasu District Jail.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[A Kohistan court sent seven people arrested for the murder of three brothers to Dasu District Jail on judicial remand on Thursday. The decision followed the refusal of the accused to confess to the crime, police told The Express Tribune.


Sher Wali, Rafiuddin and Shah Faisal, who were members of the Salehkhel tribe, were gunned down when seven men, with five accomplices, barged into their home in Gaddar village on January 3.  Five people, including three women, were also injured in the attack.



The siblings were allegedly punished for the crime of their younger brothers, of whom a video which showed them clapping and singing with women from the Azadkhel tribe was leaked in May 2012.

The two boys and the five women in the video were condemned to death by an Azadkhel tribe but the two boys managed to escape.



When the Azadkhels failed to find any clue to the boys, they decided to take revenge by attacking their brothers.

A total of 12 people were nominated in the FIR, including two prayer leaders and a jirga head for abetting the murderers. Those accused of the murder itself were Jin Taseer, Mukhtasar, Awal Khan, Shamsuddin, Taoos, Yadool and Munshi Khan.

They were arrested from a remote village of Kaliyar and were handed over to police for four days remand for investigation. They were then sent to jail on a 14-day judicial remand.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 18th, 2013.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/495618-NGOsoutofKohistanPHOTOFILE-1358482680/495618-NGOsoutofKohistanPHOTOFILE-1358482680.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan killings: Another accused in triple-murder case arrested</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/493185/kohistan-killings-another-accused-in-triple-murder-case-arrested</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/493185/kohistan-killings-another-accused-in-triple-murder-case-arrested#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sun, 13 Jan 13 06:13:44 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[our.correspondent]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=493185</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Accused charged with murder, past arrests were for abetment; police now have six in custody.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The Kohistan police on Saturday arrested the sixth accused in a triple murder case in Mansehra. The accused was identified as Shamsuddin and has been charged with the murders of Sher Wali, Rafiuddin and Shah Faisal, all older brothers of Afzal Kohistani.


Shams is among 12 accused who were charged with gunning down the three brothers on January 3 in Gadaar Village of Palas Tehsil. The Kohistan and Mansehra police conducted a joint raid at a house in Mansehra and arrested Shamsuddin, said Kohistan District Police Officer Akbar Ali. He was hopeful that the police would arrest the other accused soon. He said tribal elders have already been warned of an operation if they failed to hand over the accused.

Earlier, the police arrested five persons including Molvi Noorul Haq, Sabeer Khan, Jengir Khan, Maulvi Javed and Mosam Khan, who are all charged with abetment. Maulvi Javed, who runs a seminary in Mansehra, was accused of chairing the controversial jirga held last May which condemned five women from the same tribe and two boys from the Salehkhel tribe on the basis of a video shot at a marriage ceremony.



Four women were caught in the footage clapping and singing while two boys, later identified as Bin Yasir and Gul Nazar, were dancing.

According to Afzal Kohistani, on the alleged decree of the jirga, all four women and the teenage sister of one of them were slaughtered and secretly buried on May 31.

After the story broke, the two boys were arrested and sent to jail on charges of capturing the video footage and publicly releasing it without permission. They were later granted bail by a local court.



However, a fact-finding mission assigned to submit a report to the Supreme Court rejected Afzal’s plea, declared that all the women were alive and the jirga headed by Maulvi Javed had assured them of their security.

The complicated case again took a new turn when Afzal Kohistani’s brothers were shot dead in what he claimed was the repercussion of his revelation about the video and jirga’s decision. He has filed an application with the Supreme Court seeking re-opening of the case as he still believes that all the women were killed and more killing could take place if the culprits are not brought to justice.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 13th, 2013. ]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/493185-NGOsoutofKohistanPHOTOFILE-1358057548/493185-NGOsoutofKohistanPHOTOFILE-1358057548.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan video case: Police arrests remaining suspects in triple murders</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/493163/kohistan-video-case-police-arrests-remaining-suspects-in-triple-murders</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/493163/kohistan-video-case-police-arrests-remaining-suspects-in-triple-murders#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sat, 12 Jan 13 18:40:17 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[web.desk]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=493163</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Police arrested the remaining seven suspects believed to have murdered three brothers of Afzal Kohistani.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The Kohistan police have on Saturday arrested the remaining seven of the 12 accused in the triple murder case from Mansehra and Kohistan, Express News reported. 

The accused were charged with the murder of three brothers, Sher Wali, Rafiud Din and Shah Faisal on January 3 in village Gadaar. The three were brothers of Afzal Kohistani.

The police had earlier arrested five persons including Molvi Noor ul Haq, Sabeer Khan, Jengir Khan, Molvi Javed and Mosam Khan, they all were charged for abetment in the murder of three brothers.

Molvi Javed is the elder of Azadkhel tribe and runs a seminary in Mansehra and was accused of chairing the controversial jirga held in May last year where five women of their own tribe and two boys from Salehkhel tribe were condemned for mingling with each other at a marriage ceremony. The four women namely Bazgha, Sereen Jan, Begum and Amina were caught in the footage clapping and singing while two boys later identified as Bin Yasir and Gul Nazar were dancing.

On the alleged decree of jirga, according to Afzal Kohistani, all the four women and another teenaged girl Shaheen, were slaughtered and buried secretly on May 31. A

fter the story broke, the two boys were arrested and sent to jail on charges of making cell phone footage and making it public. However they were later bailed out from the local court.

A fact finding mission assigned to submit report to the Supreme Court, rejected Afzal's plea declaring that all the women were alive and jirga headed by Molvi Javed assured them of their security.

But the this complicated case again took a new turn when the three elder brothers of Afzal Kohistan were shot dead for which he claimed that it was the repercussion of video film and whatever his family faced was the outcome of jirga's decision.

Kohistan also filed application with the Supreme Court seeking reopening of his case as he still believes that all the women have been killed and many more could be killed if the jirga system continues to prevail and the culprits are not brought to justice.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/493163-NGOsoutofKohistanPHOTOFILE-1358015613/493163-NGOsoutofKohistanPHOTOFILE-1358015613.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan triple murder case: Five accused sent to jail on judicial remand</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/492357/kohistan-triple-murder-case-five-accused-sent-to-jail-on-judicial-remand</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/492357/kohistan-triple-murder-case-five-accused-sent-to-jail-on-judicial-remand#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 11 Jan 13 01:51:01 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[our.correspondent]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=492357</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[The officials says they will not withdraw their men until all seven suspects are arrested.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Five suspects arrested for the murder of three brothers in Gadaar village in Palas tehsil were sent on a judicial remand here on Thursday. They were produced before a senior Kohistan civil judge, where they recorded their statements and were sent to jail.


Javed, Noorul Haq, Mosam Khan, Sabeer and Jehangir were arrested on the charges of murder of Shah Faisal, Sher Wali and Safiuddin four days back and given into physical remand. The murdered men were the elder brothers of Bin Yasir and Gul Nazar, who were filmed with four women during a wedding ceremony last year.

On Thursday, the suspects said they were in Abbottabad on the day of the attack and pleaded not guilty. The court sent them all to Dasu district jail on judicial remand.



Meanwhile a grand jirga in Palas on Thursday promised that all suspects in the murder case will be handed over to the authorities. They asked that the Frontier Corps and police call back their men from the area. The meeting was attended by police officials and Frontier Corps commanders.

The officials said they will not withdraw their men until all seven suspects are arrested. In response, the jirga formed a 12-member committee of elders tasked with finding and handing over the suspects to the police in three days, District Police Officer Akbar Ali said. The authorities will start a search operation after the three-day deadline.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 11th, 2013. ]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/492357-NGOsoutofKohistanPHOTOFILE-1357868954/492357-NGOsoutofKohistanPHOTOFILE-1357868954.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan video case: Relatives of three slain brothers stage protest</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/491347/kohistan-video-case-relatives-of-three-slain-brothers-stage-protest</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/491347/kohistan-video-case-relatives-of-three-slain-brothers-stage-protest#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jan 13 23:39:50 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[waqas.naeem]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=491347</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Afzal Khan, another brother, who was the killers’ target, demands justice.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The family of three brothers killed in Kohistan protested in front of the National Press Club in Islamabad on Tuesday, seeking justice for its slain family members.


On January 3,  three of Afzal Khan’s brothers were murdered in Kohistan. Their crime: they were related to the two men who appeared in a 2010 video dancing as five women and clapped at a wedding ceremony.

The Kohistan video, which led to death sentences from the local jirga for the men and women seen in the video, became national news in 2012 after rumors spread that the women had been killed by their families. Khan, who is the brother of the men in the video, spoke about it to the media, following which the SC took a suo motu notice of the alleged murders.

Khan and his relatives still claim that the girls were murdered after the video was circulated. But an investigation team, comprised of human rights activists, sent to Kohistan by the Supreme Court in 2012, returned with the news that at least some of the girls were alive. The case was closed thereafter. The two men in the video were on the run.

In the first week of the New Year, Khan’s family found themselves at the receiving end of tribal vengeance again. Three of his brothers were murdered by a relative of the women, on the pretext that the jirga’s decision of killing the two men in the video must be upheld somehow.

The police has since arrested the local cleric, Maulvi Javed and four suspects on the charges of murdering the three brothers, according to media reports. Khan petitioned the SC on January 5 to re-open the Kohistan case.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 9th, 2013. ]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/491347-protestPHOTOMuhammadJavaidExpress-1357671794/491347-protestPHOTOMuhammadJavaidExpress-1357671794.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan video controversy: Four accused in triple murder arrested</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/490826/kohistan-video-controversy-four-accused-in-triple-murder-arrested</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/490826/kohistan-video-controversy-four-accused-in-triple-murder-arrested#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jan 13 05:32:40 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[our.correspondent]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=490826</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Surviving brother says his tribe is being deprived of water.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The Kohistan police claimed on Monday to have apprehended four accused in a triple murder case connected to the Kohistan video controversy.


Kohistan District Police Officer (DPO) Akbar Ali told The Express Tribune that the head of the jirga, which had sentenced women and men seen singing and clapping together in a video to death last year, was among those arrested.

“We have arrested four accused from Hasan Abdal and a few others are also expected to be nabbed very soon,” Ali said, adding that he would arrest the remaining eight charged with the murder of three brothers. The siblings’ other brothers include the two men filmed in the leaked video.

According to the DPO, Maulvi Javed, Maulvi Noorul Haq, Sabeer Khan and Mosam Khan were taken into custody from a house in Hasan Abdal early on Monday. Raids are to continue in search of the rest of the accused, nominated in the murder case of Sher Wali, Shah Faisal and Safiuddin on January 3.



The DPO dismissed reports that heavily armed men from the rival tribes of Azadkhel and Salehkhel were ready for a ‘trench battle’, adding that there was peace in the area.

Meanwhile, another brother of the murdered siblings, Afzal Kohistani, who had also taken the video controversy to the Supreme Court last year, told media men via telephone that over 80 members of his tribe were being deprived of water by the Azadkhel tribe, which had halted water supply to their area. Kohistani belongs to the Salehkhel tribe.

An informed source from the Salekhel tribe in Kohistan’s Pattan Tehsil told The Express Tribune on the condition of anonymity that the elders of his tribe have sent an emphatic message to the Azadkhel tribe. They should declare that the five women seen in the video have been murdered for mixing with men from another tribe, and murder another two men from the Salakhel tribe – so that they could call it equal.

But, if the murder of the five women is not declared, according to the message, Azadkhel should be ready for revenge – Salehkhel has vowed to kill two members of Azadkhel for each brother murdered.

The DPO, however, has denied this information, saying that this was ‘mere guesswork’.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 8th, 2013.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/490826-NGOsoutofKohistanPHOTOFILE-1357623098/490826-NGOsoutofKohistanPHOTOFILE-1357623098.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Police arrest four masterminds of Kohistan video scandal</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/490499/police-arrest-four-masterminds-of-kohistan-video-scandal</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/490499/police-arrest-four-masterminds-of-kohistan-video-scandal#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 07 Jan 13 07:28:05 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[web.desk]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=490499</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[DPO says jirga leader Maulvi Javed arrested along with Maulvi Noorul Haq, Mausam Khan and Baseer.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Police arrested four suspects, who reportedly masterminded the Kohistan video scandal, from Hassan Abdal area of Punjab, Express News reported Monday.

District Police Officer (DPO) Akbar Ali said that the suspects – namely Maulvi Javed, Maulvi Noorul Haq, Mausam Khan and Baseer – were the masterminds of the video scandal.

DPO Ali said that Maulvi Javed, the head of the jirga, had condemned to death five girls of the Azadkhel tribe and two boys of the Salehkhel tribe for clapping and singing at a local wedding held in March 2012. Such mingling with the opposite gender was said to go against the tribal customs of the area.

On January 4, 2013, Afzal Kohistani, a native of Kohistan district in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, told The Express Tribune that his three brothers Shah Faisal, Safiud Din and Sher Wali were killed during an attack by over a dozen armed men from the Azadkhel tribe.

Afzal was the same person who had approached local media agencies with the information that the jirga had ordered the killings.

The Supreme Court had also taken suo motu notice and had sent a fact-finding mission to the area on June 4, 2012 that reported back that the women were alive.

When the commission met Maulvi Javed, the head of the jirga, it was informed that no killings had taken place. Following this finding, the case was abruptly disposed of.

However, Kohistani maintained that jirga authorities presented similar-looking girls to the commission which deluded court authorities into believing that the girls were alive.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/490499-NGOsoutofKohistanPHOTOFILE-1357543524/490499-NGOsoutofKohistanPHOTOFILE-1357543524.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan video scandal: Man says his three brothers were killed on jirga order</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/490257/kohistan-video-scandal-man-says-his-three-brothers-were-killed-on-jirga-order</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/490257/kohistan-video-scandal-man-says-his-three-brothers-were-killed-on-jirga-order#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 07 Jan 13 05:12:07 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[our.correspondent]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=490257</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Afzal Kohistani requests reopening of case; fears bloody feud if judicial action not taken.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The Kohistan video scandal took a new turn after Afzal Kohistani requested the reopening of the case, and told The Express Tribune on Sunday that if the matter was not decided through court, a bloody feud may stretch for years between the Azadkhel and Salehkhel tribes.

In May 2012, Kohistani, a native of Kohistan district in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, approached local media agencies with the information that a local jirga of his area had condemned to death five girls of the Azadkhel tribe and two boys of the Salehkhel tribe for clapping and singing at a local wedding held in March 2012. Such mingling with the opposite gender was said to go against the tribal customs of the area.

Kohistani later claimed that the four girls seen in the video, along with a teenage girl who was also present at the scene, were killed on May 30 in accordance with the tribal decree.



Upon this revelation, the Supreme Court took suo motu notice and sent a fact finding mission to the area on June 4 that reported back that the women were alive. When the commission met Molvi Javed, the head of the jirga, it was informed that no killings had taken place. Following this finding, the case was abruptly disposed of.

However, Kohistani said that jirga authorities presented similar-looking girls to the commission which deluded court authorities into believing that the girls were alive.

On January 4, Kohistani told The Express Tribune that his three brothers Shah Faisal, Safi ud Din and Sher Wali were killed during an attack by over a dozen armed men from the Azadkhel tribe. He said that his brothers were involved in the video too, and the jirga had ordered their death as well.

As per the tribal culture of Kohistan, whenever both men and women are condemned to death for violation of tribal culture, the men are punished before woman. But in this case, the women were murdered first as the accused boys went into hiding, said Kohistani. He said that since he was poor, “no one listened to him”. But it has now proved that the tribal custom has claimed eight lives of innocent people who did not commit an act that could be described as against the Islamic or penal laws.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 7th, 2013.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/490257-NGOsoutofKohistanPHOTOFILE-1357535484/490257-NGOsoutofKohistanPHOTOFILE-1357535484.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan video case: K-P government confirms killing of three people</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/489686/kohistan-video-case-k-p-government-confirms-killing-of-three-people</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/489686/kohistan-video-case-k-p-government-confirms-killing-of-three-people#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sun, 06 Jan 13 06:15:08 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[our.correspondent]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=489686</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[None of family members came to collect the bodies that were buried as amaanat.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The provincial government of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa on Saturday confirmed the killing of three people in connection with a feud related to the Kohistan video case, which had kicked up a storm in the country last year.


The men were killed when assailants attacked the house of Afzal Kohistani, a prime witness in the Kohistan video case, in which four girls were declared fornicators after they were allegedly caught on video singing and dancing at a wedding ceremony in violation of the tribal custom of gender segregation.



However, the commission formed by the Supreme Court had visited the area and confirmed that the girls were  in fact alive and had not been killed.

Talking to Express on Saturday, K-P Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain said that the men were gunned down due to enmity over the case. He added that the bodies were temporarily buried by government officials and if relatives want, the bodies could be exhumed and handed over to them for burial. He said that FIRs were lodged against 18 accused allegedly involved in the killing of the men. “We have directed the police to apprehend the culprits as soon as possible,” Ifitikhar said.



Furthermore, the minister said that none of the relatives or family members of the victims came to collect the bodies after the post-mortem of the slain brothers.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 6th, 2013. ]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/489686-AfzalKhanx-1357452887/489686-AfzalKhanx-1357452887.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Edict against NGOs</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/406895/edict-against-ngos</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/406895/edict-against-ngos#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Wed, 11 Jul 12 19:07:17 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[editorial]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Editorial]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=406895</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Kohistan’s clerics are now on the warpath against NGOs because of their alleged ‘conspiracies against Islam.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The district of Kohistan is once again in the news for all the wrong reasons. Just weeks after reports of a death sentence passed by a Kohistani jirga against five girls emerged, the obscurantist elements of the district have struck again. Kohistan’s clerics are now on the warpath against NGOs working there because of their alleged ‘conspiracies against Islam, ulema and local customs’ and have declared their projects haram, as well as threatening that funeral prayers will not be offered for the beneficiaries of these projects. This edict came as a result of the controversy related to the Kohistani jirga’s verdict with the clerics blaming NGOs for blowing up the whole affair. The area’s NGOs have suspended their activities and are reluctant to resume them unless their security is guaranteed.

It is difficult to understand the logic behind declaring the NGOs’ development work as un-Islamic, except that the clerics want to preserve their age-old customs, which often hinder progress, deny people their basic rights, have little to do with religion and only help in maintaining the supremacy of obscurantist forces. The district’s clergy seems to hold the belief that ultraconservative elements in many Muslim societies share i.e., a strong conviction that NGOs work on a Western agenda and that any work geared towards breaking the shackles of outdated customs is a threat to their version of faith and their hegemony over Muslim populations.

This move will cause unemployment among the local youth and deprive the district of development, which makes it imperative upon Kohistan’s authorities to provide NGOs with foolproof security that enables them to restart their work. The local clergy must be reined in, too, as it has no right to stop NGOs from operating in the district. There is a need to educate people about the work that NGOs are involved in, as a majority of them have done a lot for welfare work all over Pakistan and it is essential that the people of Kohistan, and elsewhere, are made aware of their efforts.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 12th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/406895-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875/406895-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Who leaked the news about the Kohistani women?</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/405023/who-leaked-the-news-about-the-kohistani-women</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/405023/who-leaked-the-news-about-the-kohistani-women#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sat, 07 Jul 12 16:30:40 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[fouzia.saeed]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=405023</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[The local admin officials seem obsessed with figuring out how to prevent such stories from getting out in the future.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The recent case of the alleged murder of five women in Kohistan was hot news all around our nation. Our government and civil society joined hands and responded professionally soon after the news broke. The case was partially resolved upon finding out that some of the women were safe … for the moment. Although the story has subsided at the national level, beneath the calm surface it has become more alive than ever before within the local community.

Who leaked the news to the outside world is now the key question. It reminds me of what happened after the death of Osama bin Laden. In the past year, we have learned little from the special investigation about who created the safe haven for Osama but, one after the other, those who gave information about him to the US have been hunted down and punished.

In Kohistan, the local administration officials have made no comment on how this case has unveiled the barbaric customs that continue to persist in the Kohistan society. Rather, they seem obsessed with figuring out how to prevent such stories from getting out in the future. Once the bright light of the national media shifted elsewhere, the local administration started bad mouthing Afzal, the young man who broke the news to the media, by narrating stories of his alleged notorious past. In addition,the brave young men in Pattan, Dassu and other towns with links to various media outlets have been threatened by the Kohistan DCO and DPO. A local stringer told me, “we were told that if any negative story about killing or humiliating women in Kohistan leaks out, they will issue FIRs against us and our whole families”. When will these ‘officials’ learn that it is the occurrence of inhuman acts, such as the regular killing of women for honour as well as the February murder of Shia pilgrims on their way to Gilgit that brings shame to the people of Kohistan and to our nation, rather than the telling of the story?

At the same time, the local religious leaders are moving against all change agents in their midst. Some of the more enlightened locals with outside exposure represent one of the only possibilities to help the peasants break the chains that bind them to these barbaric traditions. But NGOs are always an easy target. Several fatwas have already been issued but they don’t seem to have been effective. So, the latest move has been to pass a fatwa to separate the NGO workers from the community. This recent fatwa bans anyone from saying funeral prayers over the body of a person who has ever received assistance from an NGO.

How can such a palpable political power play be allowed under the cover of religion? The provincial government has already issued a statement condemning the fatwa. Our president, with his authority over tribal affairs in the country, should take notice of such notorious fatwas and authorise the governors to take action against individuals who are inciting illegal acts.

It is often not the decisions of traditional jirgas that are fanning the flames; it is radical religious groups that are often leading the process. But the cover of tribal customs has long been used by power brokers at many levels of our society to serve various purposes. These practises should not be accepted any longer. We have to stop walking on egg shells when addressing tribal tradition if its actions counter Pakistan’s laws. Based on my discussions over the past month and my earlier work in tribal areas, I believe the people of Kohistan and some of their tribal leaders truly want to find a way to create a better world for their children. Unfortunately, the local administration has become a major hurdle because their inaction empowers the mullahs to keep these people in the Stone Age.

The province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa has restored the old colonial commisionerate system. The Hazara commissioner was involved in missions to locate those five women; let’s see if he can enforce the laws of Pakistan in that area and convict those who unrepentently take the lives of women and anyone else they decide is not deserving of life. If he can’t, what real purpose does a commissioner serve?

Published in The Express Tribune, July 8th, 2012. ]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/405023-FouziaSaeednew-1341676175/405023-FouziaSaeednew-1341676175.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Clerics pass edict against funerals of NGO beneficiaries</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/402219/clerics-pass-edict-against-funerals-of-ngo-beneficiaries</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/402219/clerics-pass-edict-against-funerals-of-ngo-beneficiaries#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 02 Jul 12 05:13:35 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[muhammad.sadaqat]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=402219</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Kohistan clerics form 34-member committee to decide future line of action.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Local clerics in Kohistan have handed down their “final edict” against non-governmental organisations (NGOs) operating in the district, terming their activities “haram” and demanding that the local administration revoke their NOCs immediately.


In a meeting at Jamia Masjid Kamila, over 150 clerics from across the remote district vowed that they will not offer funeral prayers (Namaz-e-Janaza) for the people who continue to be beneficiaries of any NGO. They also formed a 34-member committee for the purpose of ensuring that the NGOs pack up and leave the area as soon as possible. The committee will meet on July 14 to decide on a future line of action if the NGOs are not driven out from the district.

The clerics had earlier given the NGOs until June 29 to pack up.

Former Member National Assembly from Kohistan, Maulana Abdul Haleem, blamed NGO workers for launching a campaign against Kohistani customs and Islamic codes. He said that despite repeated warnings they did not stop ‘hatching conspiracies’ against the ulema and their customs.

Former members of provincial assembly Maulana Dildar and Maulana Abdul Khanan of Kundiya valley, Maulana Fakhrul Islam, and Maulana Noor Nabi Shah also spoke at the meeting.

According to official sources, the district administration has been persuading the clerics to allow NGOs to work by following their local customs. Earlier, Kohistan District Coordination Officer Aqal Badshah held a meeting with the clerics in this regard but they refused to rescind their decision.

There are over 500 local youths working with NGOs in the district and a majority feel that their jobs are now at risk, said a local social activist requesting anonymity.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 2nd, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/402219-moviex-1341205994/402219-moviex-1341205994.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Lessons from the Kohistan episode</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/399006/lessons-from-the-kohistan-episode</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/399006/lessons-from-the-kohistan-episode#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 25 Jun 12 16:25:24 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[dr.farzana.bari]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=399006</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[When it came to translating our emotional response into practically addressing the issue, we all faltered.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Recent media reports on the alleged killing of five women for clapping at a wedding ceremony in Kohistan invoked a strong reaction from the state, civil society and human rights activists. The shock, rage and anger expressed by people over the incident reveal two things about our society.

One, that despite frequent violations of human rights on a routine basis, the collective conscience of our society is still not dead. The media brought the incident to public notice. Civil society swiftly reacted by protesting and demanding an inquiry into the incident. Political representatives (Bushra Gohar from the ANP in particular) took personal interest in the matter and demanded that the local administration provide information on the incident. The federal government agreed in no time to provide all the logistical support in the shape of helicopters for investigating the matter. The Chief Justice of Pakistan promptly took suo motu notice and sent a fact-finding mission, which included human rights activists and civil society representatives, to the area. We have proven through this collective response that the Pakistani nation qualifies to be in the comity of civilised nations.

However, when it came to translating our emotional response into practically addressing the issue, we all faltered. The inadequacies in the performance of various sections of the state and the society in this case were highly pronounced. For example, the media reported the incident without having any substantive evidence about it. No effort was made to blur the images of the women and men shown in the video, and this may have put their lives at greater risk now. Civil society organisations and human rights activists reacted immediately to the news by staging demonstrations and protests. NGOs and CSOs (civil society organisations) have no institutional mechanism or capacity to verify such news on their own. Hence, their response on even alleged human rights violations is often knee-jerk and also without any systematic follow-up.

As for the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) administration, it appeared highly incompetent and ill-equipped, intellectually as well as practically, to handle the issue. On the order of the Chief Justice, its officials first went to the area to verify the initial report that the women had been killed without taking any female officer along. Although they did not meet even one of the five women, they still reported to the Chief Justice that all of them were alive. Their excuse was that they couldn’t meet the women in person since local tradition and custom did not permit them to meet local women. However, it seems as if this was being used as a pretext to not produce the women before the apex Court.

The first fact-finding mission left in a hurry as the Chief Justice ordered that he wanted the women to be brought before the Court by the evening of the same day. However, for the second one, there was enough time to prepare but no effort was made to include any expert on the area. Civil society representatives and human rights activists, in particular myself, had no prior experience of investigation of such cases (I was asked by the Chief Justice of Pakistan to join the mission). Ideally speaking, the K-P government should have provided assistance to the fact-finding missions and this should have been in the form of experts, interpreters and volunteers who were willing to spend a number of days in the area to find out what exactly had happened. Instead, what we saw was an ostentatious display of ministers and senior officials going in the helicopters though they served no real purpose.

The higher judiciary expressed its own mindset when it accepted the tribal tradition as a legitimate reason for not insisting on producing the women before the Court. One of the judges not only accepted but also justified the tradition of the area where men in the name of respecting local tradition strictly control women’s mobility.

However, despite all the inadequacies at all levels, the best thing is that the strong reaction by the judiciary, politicians, administration, media, human rights activists and CSOs has sent a clear signal to the rest of the country and to Kohistan in particular, that these jirgas are unconstitutional and that decrees of killing people will not be tolerated by the state and society.

Published In The Express Tribune, June 26th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/399006-DrFarzanaBarinew-1340638330/399006-DrFarzanaBarinew-1340638330.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan video: SC disposes of case, rules girls are alive</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/396444/kohistan-video-sc-disposes-of-case-rules-girls-are-alive</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/396444/kohistan-video-sc-disposes-of-case-rules-girls-are-alive#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Wed, 20 Jun 12 09:53:44 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[web.desk]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=396444</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[A report of a judicial officer stated that media reports about the killings were bogus and that the girls were alive.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Disposing of the Kohistan video case, the Supreme Court of Pakistan said on Wednesday that the girls were alive and that if the plaintiff had more evidence then the case could be reopened, Express News reported.

A suo motu notice was taken on media reports of a Kohistan Jirga that had ‘condemned’ to death four girls for defying strict tribal custom.

A report of a judicial officer was presented before a three-member bench, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry. The report stated that media reports about the killings were bogus and that the girls were alive.

Social Worker Dr Farzana Bari said that she still had some “reservations”. She said that the girls presented before them did not resemble the girls seen in the video.

Justice Jawad S Khwaja said that the statement given by Muhammad Afzal, brother of two men who filmed the video, had been proven untrue.

Afzal’s brother Bin Yasir and Gul Nazar, had allegedly made the film and uploaded it on a video sharing site.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/396444-supremecourtafp-1340185772/396444-supremecourtafp-1340185772.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>K-P minister calls Kohistan women issue a fabrication</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/395268/k-p-minister-calls-kohistan-women-issue-a-fabrication</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/395268/k-p-minister-calls-kohistan-women-issue-a-fabrication#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 18 Jun 12 04:53:12 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[hassan.ali]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=395268</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Mian Iftikhar says the specific agenda is to malign the jirga system.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) government responded with force on Sunday to the second Kohistan fact-finding mission’s revelations. The mission had expressed its doubts over the identity of the women presented to it.


However, according to K-P Minister for Information Mian Iftikhar Hussain, the whole Kohistan issue had been built on fabricated information, with the clear agenda of undermining the jirga system of administering justice.

“We have substantial evidence that all the five women who had supposedly been condemned to death are still alive and unharmed,” said Iftikhar while talking to the media.

“The members of the second fact-finding mission, including Farzana Bari, personally met four of the five women and recorded their statements,” he pointed out.

Iftikhar maintained that only one of the women, Bazgha Bibi, had been unable to have her statement recorded due to pregnancy.

However, according to the K-P minister for information, the statements of Bazgha’s father, mother and other family members had been recorded, which detailed that she is still alive.

Iftikhar admitted that there still exists doubt over the identity of the women presented to the commission but blamed the photographs for the ambiguity.

“The photographs of the women were not clear and had been taken from a cell phone,” pointed out Iftikhar.

“We had taken new photographs of the women, with their approval, assenting to them that these will not be made public,” he said.

Praising the performance of the provincial government, Iftikhar termed rumours regarding the jirga ruling as well as the issuance of a fatwa calling for their death as utterly baseless.

“It was done with the specific purpose of maligning the tribal justice system,” he remarked.

The provincial information minister requested the Supreme Court (SC) to take a strong action against those individuals who were involved in spreading these rumours to the public.

The fact-finding mission will present its report to the SC on June 20.

Iftikhar asked both the media and representatives of civil society to practise restraint, since the provincial government has undertaken a thorough investigation of the matter.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 18th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/395268-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875/395268-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan ‘killings’: Fact-finding mission uncovers more questions</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/394911/kohistan-%e2%80%98killings%e2%80%99-fact-finding-mission-uncovers-more-questions</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/394911/kohistan-%e2%80%98killings%e2%80%99-fact-finding-mission-uncovers-more-questions#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sun, 17 Jun 12 04:22:18 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[our.correspondent]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=394911</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Dr Farzana Bari refuses to endorse the identity of the women produced.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The mystery surrounding the case of five Kohistani women, allegedly condemned to death following a jirga verdict declaring them ghul (fornicators) for singing with men at a ceremony, deepened on Saturday as the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) government’s latest attempt to verify facts remained unfruitful. 


The second fact-finding mission, set out to collect documentary evidence in the case, returned to Pattan from Seertaiy village in the Peech Bala area on Saturday, with more questions than answers.

The mission was headed by Additional District Judge Muneera Abbasi and comprised Mian Iftikhar Hussain, Awami National Party’s MNA Bushra Gohar, Dr Farzana Bari, DCO Kohsitan Syed Aqil Shah, District Police Officer Abdul Majeed Afridi and elders of the Azadkhel tribe.

According to an official source accompanying the commission, the jirga was held on the rooftop of the house of Jin Taseer of the Azadkhel tribe, and the officials informed the elders that they had come to confirm the Supreme Court’s order that all women filmed in the video were alive and would not be harmed.

The elders welcomed the commission, and denied that any of the women filmed were killed on the decree of the jirga, terming media reports wrong and aimed at maligning Kohistan’s tribal culture.

The tribal elders, including Maulvi Javed, the alleged head of the jirga that condemned the women and men to death, and Omar Khan, brother of two of the condemned women, also assured Abbasi that the women were alive and would not be harmed.

Later, Abbasi, MNA Gohar and Bari were reportedly allowed to see the girls inside the house. Sources claimed that they met Seerin Jan and Begum Jan. The commission supposedly verified the two with the video footage and copies of their pictures that they had obtained. They also reportedly tried to speak to them with the help of a male translator. But, Bazgha, one of the women in the video, was not presented to them, because according to Bari, the tribesmen informed them that she was pregnant and was unable to move.

However, Bari, a human rights activist, publicly refused to endorse the identity of the women produced before them. The tribesmen also did not allow the commission members to take them to the Supreme Court. Bari expressed fear that the women the mission met might not be the ones who were filmed. She added that she wanted the two boys, jailed for filming the video, to verify the pictures of the women, but the police did not allow her to meet them.

Published In The Express Tribune, June 17th, 2012. ]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/394911-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875/394911-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan ‘killings’: Second fact-finding mission returns with more questions than answers</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/394673/kohistan-%e2%80%98killings%e2%80%99-second-fact-finding-mission-returns-with-more-questions-than-answers</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/394673/kohistan-%e2%80%98killings%e2%80%99-second-fact-finding-mission-returns-with-more-questions-than-answers#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sat, 16 Jun 12 13:39:04 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[web.desk]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=394673</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Dr Farzana Bari expresses fear that the women she met might not be the ones who had been filmed.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The second fact-finding mission, set out to collect documentary evidence in the Kohistan ‘killing’ case, returned from Peech Bala area on Saturday after meeting the “condemned” girls.

Five Kohistani women had been allegedly sentenced to death, and later killed by a tribal jirga after a video was released in which they were seen singing at a wedding. The act defied age old tribal traditions.

The fact-finding mission, comprising four activists, reached the Peech Bala area on helicopters and met the women and tribal people on Saturday.

Dr Farzana Bari, a member of the mission, on her return from the trip expressed fear that the women the mission met might not be the ones who had been filmed. She added that she wanted the two boys, jailed for filming the video, to verify the pictures of the women but the police did not allow her to meet them.

She also stated that the collected evidence will only be presented to the Supreme Court.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/394673-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875/394673-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan ‘killings’ case: ‘Condemned’ women most likely had NICs</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/394492/kohistan-%e2%80%98killings%e2%80%99-case-%e2%80%98condemned%e2%80%99-women-most-likely-had-nics</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/394492/kohistan-%e2%80%98killings%e2%80%99-case-%e2%80%98condemned%e2%80%99-women-most-likely-had-nics#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sat, 16 Jun 12 04:37:07 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[our.correspondent]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=394492</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[A second fact-finding mission is scheduled to visit Peech Bela union council.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The possibility of documentary evidence in the Kohistan ‘killing’ case is likely to aid a second fact-finding mission scheduled to visit Peech Bela union council on Saturday, sources told The Express Tribune on Friday.


Sources said that 80% of married women and men of the the Azadkhel tribe have NICs and are the beneficiaries of the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) and Watan cards.

Since having an NIC is a prerequisite for the BISP and Watan cards, the tribesmen from Azadkhel and two other tribes had allowed 159 women to apply for NICs when NADRA’s mobile team visited Seertaiy village in May-June last year, they added.

According to sources, the mobile team issued the women manual receipts. However, it is yet to be ascertained whether they were issued ID cards or not.

On the other hand, Muhammad Afzal, the brother of the two men detained by local police for filming the footage, reiterated that the women have been murdered. He added that the killings could be confirmed through the women’s NADRA, BISP and Watan card records.

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain is also reported to have reached Kohistan for the second time in the past two weeks to prove reports of the killing as false.

On June 7, the Supreme Court assigned the task of probing the reports of the murder of five women to a judicial commission, headed by Additional District Judge Swabi Muneera Abbasi.

The commission will submit its report to the court on June 20, sources said.

Earlier a fact-finding mission, comprising four activists, had visited Kohistan and informed the Supreme Court that they met two of the five ‘condemned’ women, namely Shaheen and Amina.

However, Dr Farzana Bari, a member of the fact-finding mission, retracted from her earlier comments and said that she met only one of the girls who resembled a girl in the footage.

Similarly, another member of the commission Riffat Butt said that since the men of their families did not have ID cards, she was unable to confirm whether the women she met were the ones in the video.

Published In The Express Tribune, June 16th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/394492-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875/394492-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan jirga: As panel members stay away, slayings’ probe falters</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/394046/kohistan-jirga-as-panel-members-stay-away-slayings%e2%80%99-probe-falters</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/394046/kohistan-jirga-as-panel-members-stay-away-slayings%e2%80%99-probe-falters#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 15 Jun 12 05:02:32 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[sumera.khan]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=394046</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[DIG says he will be leaving for Kohistan to gather more information.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The National Assembly standing committee on human rights was unable to initiate a probe into the alleged honour killing of five women ordered by a tribal jirga in Kohistan on Thursday.


Due to the absence of majority of the members – owing to the ongoing session of the National Assembly – the standing committee on human rights could not be briefed in detail by the police and concerned officials. However, Hazara division Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Dr Naeem Khan briefed the committee about the progress made in the case so far and said that he would be leaving for Kohistan on Thursday to gather more information to present during the next meeting of the committee.

Consequently, committee head Riaz Fatyana deferred the issue till June 21. He also issued directives to the concerned officials and members of the committee to ensure their presence in the next proceedings so a proper parliamentary inquiry could be launched to establish whether the women – who had been condemned to death after the release of a wedding video where they were seen singing with other men – have actually been murdered.

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Secretary Ghulam Dastgir Khan, Home Secretary Azam Khan and Hazara division Commissioner Khalid Umarzai appeared before the committee to share the investigation they had conducted so far. But when the issue was deferred, the officials were asked by the chair to compile additional investigation points with the previous ones and then present it on the next date of hearing.

The provincial government officials claim that the women who were issued the death decree are safe and some of them are even living with their families. However, last week when authorities from the Hazara division were asked by the Supreme Court to present the women before the apex court bench, which is hearing a suo motu case on the issue, they were not able to do so.

Higher Education Commission

The panel later took up another serious issue pertaining to the Higher Education Commission (HEC) over the blocked salaries of its public sector faculty and stipends to 5,000 indigenous scholars from across the country — particularly those students belonging to the conflict-hit areas, including the tribal belt.

HEC officials responded that the finance ministry has not released the funds for the last quarter and despite repeated efforts and requests, the ministry has not taken any action.

Published In The Express Tribune, June 15th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/394046-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875/394046-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Jirga murders: KP govt flies in team for Kohistan ‘cover-up’</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/394037/jirga-murders-kp-govt-flies-in-team-for-kohistan-%e2%80%98cover-up%e2%80%99</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/394037/jirga-murders-kp-govt-flies-in-team-for-kohistan-%e2%80%98cover-up%e2%80%99#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 15 Jun 12 04:34:28 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[our.correspondent]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=394037</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Provincial authorities want tribesmen to help prove that the women are indeed alive.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government on Thursday airlifted a four-member team via helicopter to Peech Bela in an effort to cover up the alleged execution of five innocent women on the orders of a jirga.

Their mission was to convince the Azadkhel tribesmen to help the government prove that the said women were safe in their homes and the evidence should be admissible in the Supreme Court that has fixed June 20 for hearing the case, sources said.

The team comprising Maulana Asmatullah former provincial minister of MMA, PML-N district president Syed Gul Badshah, Moulvi Javed the alleged head of the controversial jirga and DSP Palas Bazimir Khan was sent to Seertaiy village of Peech Bela via helicopter, official sources said.

The trip came ahead of a July 16 judicial commission tour of the area. The commission is headed by a woman additional judge from Swabi.

Journalists face threats

The journalists, who broke the news of the jirga decree and later covered the alleged killing of five women on the orders of a jirga in Kohistan district, are facing threats from the local tribes and the administration.

Shamsur Rehman, a stringer for a local Urdu daily, said that during an encounter with a local journalist the Hazara division commissioner blamed the media persons of Kohistan and Hazara for maligning the Kohistani customs by exposing the murders of the women.

Qari Saeed, a senior journalist, said that the commissioner told him that as a journalist he was slinging mud on the honour of Kohistan. Senior police officials of the district were provoking the local tribes against the journalist calling them traitors of Kohistan.

DSP Palas, Bazimir Khan, rejected the report that he or his senior officers had ever hurled any threat to the media persons.

Bazimir Khan asserted that the women were alive and would remain unharmed.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 15th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/394037-artDESIGNSJAMAL-1339734840/394037-artDESIGNSJAMAL-1339734840.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan complexities</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/393835/kohistan-complexities</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/393835/kohistan-complexities#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 14 Jun 12 17:31:16 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[editorial]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Editorial]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=393835</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[It is imperative that we get to the bottom of the matter and discover the whole truth.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[We still do not know what happened in the remote Dassu village of Kohistan. We still do not know if the five women reported to be dead by a man whose brothers recorded videos of them are, in fact, really dead. What we do know is that the women have not been produced before the Supreme Court and no one quite knows where the truth lies.

According to a member of the team of women activists who visited Kohistan on Court orders, Dr Farzana Bari, she and her fellow fact-finders were able to ascertain the identity of only one woman.

Writing in this newspaper, Dr Bari has said that they were unsure who the second woman they saw was and the team was unable to find out anything about the other three who lived at an even remoter spot. The fact that members of the jirga who had given the death verdict, accompanied the activists makes it less likely that the villagers spoke the truth.

The Supreme Court is still locked in its struggle to discover what happened. Dr Bari’s warning that the women may be killed after the attention on the case fades away is also ominous. What is most frightening is that such incidents can still take place in our country. It appears that local officials have little desire to find out what has really transpired and are engaged in a game to cover up the entire matter. In fact, only media reports taken up by the Court brought the matter to light. We do not know how many other women may have been killed in secrecy in such parts of our country. It is also, of course, a reflection on our situation that even today, we should be talking of five women possibly killed merely for clapping their hands in the company of men. It is imperative that we get to the bottom of the matter and discover the whole truth. The Supreme Court must persist in its efforts and we hope it will be joined by reporters and human rights activists so that the fate of all those involved in the murky incident can come to light.

Published In The Express Tribune, June 15th, 2012.

&nbsp;]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/393835-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875/393835-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan video: NA panel fails to initiate parliamentary probe</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/393767/kohistan-video-na-panel-fails-to-initiate-parliamentary-probe</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/393767/kohistan-video-na-panel-fails-to-initiate-parliamentary-probe#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 14 Jun 12 15:47:20 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[sumera.khan]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=393767</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Standing Committee on Human Rights could not be briefed due to the absence of a majority of members.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[A National Assembly standing committee could not initiate a parliamentary probe into the alleged honour killing of five women ordered by a tribal jirga in Kohistan on Thursday.

The Standing Committee on Human Rights could not be briefed in detail by police or other concerned officials as most of the members were absent with the lower house session being conducted on the same day.

DIG Hazara Dr Muhammad Naeem Khan, however, briefed the committee on the progress made in the case so far. He informed that he will be leaving for Kohistan by Thursday evening to gather more information, which will be presented during the committee’s next meeting, scheduled next week.

Committee chairman Riaz Fatyana deferred the issue till June 21 and issued directions to concerned officials and members of the committee to ensure their presence at the next meeting so that a proper parliamentary inquiry can be kicked off to establish whether the women were actually murdered.

The women had been allegedly sentenced to death by a tribal jirga after a video was released in which they were seen singing and dancing, in alleged defiance of tribal traditions.

Chief Secretary Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Ghulam Dastgir Khan, Home Secretary Azam Khan and Commissioner Hazara Divisional Khalid Umarzai appeared before the committee to share the resutlts of their investigations. But when the issue was deferred, the officials were asked to compile additional investigation points and present them during the next hearing.

The K-P government officials claimed that the women against whom a death decree had been issued, were safe and a couple of them are living with their families. But last week when the authorities from Hazara Division were asked by the Supreme Court to produce the women before the bench hearing a suo moto case on the issue, they were unable to do so.

Chairman of the committee also discussed suitable dates, with the members in attendance, to travel to Kohistan to gather a view of the on ground situation and meet the locals to investigate the issue themselves.

‘HEC not releasing salaries, stipends’

The panel later took up an issue pertaining to the Higher Education Commission for not releasing salaries to its faculty of public sector and stipends to 5,000 indigenous scholars from across the country, particularly those belonging to conflict-hit areas including tribal regions facing difficulties.

The officials of HEC responded that the ministry of finance was yet to release their funds for the last quarter, and despite repeated efforts and requisitions, the finance ministry did not offer an answer.

The chairman, after hearing suggestions from all members of the committee, issued directions to the finance ministry to immediately release the funds of HEC so that the faculty members and students can get their amount paid to meet their requirements well in time.

Threats to Asma Jahangir

At the end of the meeting, the Human Rights panel took stern notice of life threats being given to renowned lawyer and human rights activist, Asma Jahangir.

The committee directed the interior ministry to immediately provide security to Jahangir and said that the National Assembly body would call a special meeting to look into the matter which is “quite of a serious nature”.

The chairman ruled that all the parties that have been mentioned by Jahangir for alleged threats would be summoned to the meeting to get their stance. Jahangir will also be summoned before the committee, he added.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/393767-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875/393767-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan jirga controversy: NA rights panel to probe alleged killings today</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/393469/kohistan-jirga-controversy-na-rights-panel-to-probe-alleged-killings-today</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/393469/kohistan-jirga-controversy-na-rights-panel-to-probe-alleged-killings-today#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 14 Jun 12 03:58:25 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[zia.khan]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category><category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=393469</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Concerned officials to brief committee, ask them to produce girls.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[A National Assembly panel is set to initiate a parliamentary probe into the alleged honour killing of five women ordered by a tribal jirga in Kohistan on Thursday.


The Standing Committee on Human Rights will be briefed by officials, in an attempt to establish whether the women have actually been murdered after they were seen singing in a video with other men present, in alleged defiance of tribal traditions.

Doubts still remain regarding the fate of the women after a tribal jirga allegedly ordered that they be killed after declaring them ‘ghul’ (fornicators).

According to statements made by provincial government officials, the women are safe and a couple of them are living with their husbands in Mansehra and Azad Kashmir respectively. Media reports, however, quote local tribesmen suggesting that they were killed and buried.

A member of the rights committee told The Express Tribune on Wednesday that
the panel will probably attempt to do what the Supreme Court was unable to do successfully –  ask officials and local elders to produce the women to establish they are still alive.

“This is what we will be focusing on today… we will then see what can be done to those who issued edicts and orders for killing the women,” said Jawad Hussain, MNA from Orakzai tribal agency and a member of the committee.

Last week, authorities from Hazara Division failed to comply when the Supreme Court ordered them to bring the women from the remote district to Islamabad before an apex court bench hearing a suo moto case on the issue.

A team of human rights activists which travelled to the area last week was unable to meet all the women against whom the death decree was issued.

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Secretary Ghulam Dastgir, Home Secretary Azam Khan and Hazara Divisional Commissioner Khalid Umarzai are likely to appear before the committee to share whatever investigation they have conducted so far.

The human rights panel is also scheduled to investigate why the government had failed to fulfil its promise to provide free higher education to students belonging to conflict-hit areas including tribal regions.

Published In The Express Tribune, June 14th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/393469-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875/393469-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>June 29 deadline: Clerics want ‘conspiring’ NGOs out of Kohistan</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/392908/june-29-deadline-clerics-want-%e2%80%98conspiring%e2%80%99-ngos-out-of-kohistan</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/392908/june-29-deadline-clerics-want-%e2%80%98conspiring%e2%80%99-ngos-out-of-kohistan#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Wed, 13 Jun 12 03:58:29 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[muhammad.sadaqat]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=392908</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Say the Kohistan video footage scandal was a result of NGO’s campaign against local customs.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Accusing non-governmental organisations (NGOs) of working against Kohistani tribal customs, local clerics have decided in principle to expel them from the district.


“We have given the NGOs until June 29 to pack up,” Maulvi Karimdad, a local cleric and son of former MNA Maulana Abdul Haleem, told The Express Tribune on Tuesday.

He said a meeting of Ulema was held in Badakot Kamela village Monday evening, with Maulana Haleem in the chair, to discuss the emerging situation especially following the Kohistan video scandal.

The meeting, which was attended by over 85 prayer leaders from across four tehsils of Kohistan district, expressed their concern over the scandal that ensued after the footage surfaced of four Kohistani girls singing at a wedding with men.

The clerics were of the view that the scandal brought a bad name to the centuries-old tribal customs and religious norms.

They blamed NGO workers for launching a campaign against Kohsitani customs and Islamic codes, adding that despite repeated warnings they did not stop ‘hatching conspiracies’ against the Kohistani Ulema and their customs.

“Whatever humiliation the tribes of Kohistan have faced in the last fortnight is part of the conspiracies of NGOs,” said Maulvi Karimdad.

He added that another meeting would be held on June 29, after which they would give a final warning to the NGOs to wind up and leave the district or else face consequences. However, he said the clerics have no plans on using force against the NGOs.

Criticising the role of NGOs, Karimdad said that while the organisations get billions of rupees for development in education, health and infrastructure, they hardly spend any money on the people in Kohistan.

He claimed that NGOs have not contributed towards poverty alleviation and development in health or education, and added that Kohistan was a resource-rich district where people were not poor.

He also suggested donors to channel funds through the government and local clerics rather than to people from outside the district.

Maulana Haleem had earlier warned NGO women during a Friday sermon to stay away from Kohistan otherwise those who were single would forcibly be married off to Kohistani boys and those married would be sent back to their husbands.

He accused NGO women of spreading obscenity and misguiding Kohistani women.

Meanwhile, Mirza Khan who serves as district coordinator for an NGO working in the health sector, said the communication gap between the local clerics, civil society and administration, needed to be bridged.

He said expelling NGOs from Kohistan would render hundreds of local youth jobless and deprive the district of development.

Khan suggested that a joint committee comprising local clerics, civil society and people from the local administration should oversee the activities of NGOs.

When approached for comments, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz MPA from Kohistan Abdul Sattar Khan said that since NGOs were working for the wellbeing of Kohistanis they would be provided full security.

However, he also stressed the need for NGO staff to strictly follow local customs. Kohistan DCO Syed Aqil Badshah was not available for comments.

Published In The Express Tribune, June 13th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/392908-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875/392908-NGOsoutofKohi_1735799875.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan jirga: Tribesmen deny being witness to executions</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/392331/kohistan-jirga-tribesmen-deny-being-witness-to-executions</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/392331/kohistan-jirga-tribesmen-deny-being-witness-to-executions#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 12 Jun 12 04:13:27 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[muhammad.sadaqat]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=392331</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Say they have been wrongly implicated by condemned men’s brother.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The case of Kohistani women condemned by a jirga took another turn on Monday when three tribesmen appeared before the court and denied that they were eyewitnesses to the alleged murder of women.


However, they were unaware of the fate of the five women who were condemned to death by a local jirga after mobile phone footage emerged of them mingling with men and singing at a village wedding.

Recording the statement in the court of Senior Civil Judge Dassu, the three tribesmen – Qadam Khan and Haji Safeer Salar of Hakeemkhel tribe and Zeb Hayat Khan of Chotaykhel tribe – rejected that they were eyewitnesses to the murder of five women of the Azadkhel tribe.

They stated on oath that the women were neither killed in front of them nor do they have any knowledge about their murder on the order of jirga.

Earlier, Muhammad Afzal, the elder brother of two men who were also condemned to death by the jirga, had claimed that the ‘condemned’ women had been slaughtered and that there were eyewitnesses to the incident.

“[Afzal] is wrongly implicating us in a case … we are totally ignorant about,” the three tribesmen said while speaking to media outside the court.

They said their village, Hakeem Abad, was at three hours’ walk from Seertaiy village, to which the girl belonged.

“We got to know about the issue when some women and administration flew to our village by helicopters on June 7th,” they added. Rights activists and officials had flown in to uncover the fate of the condemned women on the apex court orders.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 12th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/392331-moviex-1339474394/392331-moviex-1339474394.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>I am not sure if all the Kohistani jirga women are alive</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/392145/i-am-not-sure-if-all-the-kohistani-jirga-women-are-alive</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/392145/i-am-not-sure-if-all-the-kohistani-jirga-women-are-alive#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 11 Jun 12 18:26:46 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[dr.farzana.bari]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=392145</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[In my view, a far more detailed investigation is required to establish the fact whether such a fatwa was given or not.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[I was a member of the fact-finding team that was sent by the Supreme Court last week to check whether the five women who had been deemed liable for death by a local jirga in Kohistan were alive or not. Their lives had come under threat after a video showing a boy dancing and another in a baseball cap filming and the girls sitting on the floor, heads covered, and merely clapping, was put up on YouTube. Reports began to appear in the national media that their lives were under threat and then it emerged, after two relatives of the men who uploaded the video claimed that the women had been killed.

The Supreme Court took suo motu notice of this and asked the local administration, principally the commissioner of Hazara division and the DPO to bring the girls to Court. They went to the Court expressing their inability to bring the girls citing tribal custom and tradition but said — without any proof — that the girls were alive and well. It was then that the Court decided to send the fact-finding team, comprising four activists (including myself) to the remote area in the Kohistan district via a government helicopter.

The chief secretary of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa asked me to accompany the fact-finding team that was chosen for this purpose. It included Riffat Butt, who is legal adviser of the National Commission on the Status of Women, Shabina Ayaz, member of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s Commission on the Status of Women and Dr Fouzia Saeed. We were told that we had to leave right away with no time even to take essentials with us. We all left within an hour after the court hearing on June 6.

As for the women whose status we were sent to check, I can speak of only one, named Amna (out of four shown in the cell phone video) and confirm that she is certainly alive. We met her and verified her identity. We also met another of the women named Shaheen but we didn’t have her photograph to independently verify her identity and hence had to go by what the local people told us and after she herself confirmed her identity. Maulana Javed, who was the head of the jirga that allegedly gave the verdict, was in fact accompanying the team and to us he denied giving such a fatwa. People in the area also denied that any such incident had ever taken place.

That said, it should be remembered that in the presence of the jirga elders, chances that the local residents we met would give us reliable information were bleak. In my view, a far more detailed investigation is required to establish the fact whether such a fatwa was given or not. Also, as of yet, we do not know what could be the motive behind the leaking of the said video on the internet. This is something that the police should investigate.

What was foremost in my mind was that I wanted to see with my own eyes that the women were alive. This is important because this would have been the clearest evidence of their safety. I did not believe the version being given by the government officials because they usually try and cover up such things, either to hide their own inefficiency, or because of political and other vested interests, such as doing favours for the influential people in the area of their jurisdiction.

We landed in Pattan, one of the four tehsils of the Kohistan district. We were not able to fly to the village where the women were because of bad weather. So we decided to explore whether the local people knew about the video and/or the alleged killing of the women shown in it. What we found was that many local men had the video on their cell phones and the majority of the people thought that these women had in fact been killed. Their perception was clearly based on their prior knowledge of the customs of the area where in such cases families invariably kill both the men and women. The next day at six in the morning we left Dassu (which is a small town on the Karakoram Highway) for the village where the women were supposed to reside. When we landed and asked the villagers about the houses of these women, they pointed towards dwellings that were empty and abandoned.  We were told that these families had move up in the mountains, which is a common practice in summer.

After four hours of walking, we reached the place where we met a few men; one of them was the father of Shireen Gul (one of the women) and the other said he was Amna’s uncle. We were told that they would bring the women down because their home was further up the mountain. After a few hours, two women Amna and Shaheen appeared. We showed them still photographs, presumably screen shots of the video on YouTube, which we managed to take with us.

We asked Amna to point out who was who in the photographs. She gave us the names of the other women and also pointed out herself in the photographs. She told us that that the video was made more than a year ago and that it was not at a wedding ceremony. She did not understand Urdu and her uncle translated for us. We asked her about the safety of the other women and she pointed towards the mountains and said that they were alive and living up there. Then we requested her uncle to allow us to make a video of her on the cell phone. Initially, he was reluctant but when we told him that it will be shared only with the Chief Justice of Pakistan and not with the media, we were allowed to film both Amna and Shaheen. After that we took them to a room where we checked whether there was any sign of torture on their bodies but we found none.

We were not able to contact the other three women, since that would have required that we stay there for another two days. In any case, the officials accompanying us said that we must return immediately because of the Supreme Court’s order to return and report back the same day.

As for the two women that we did meet, they could have been brought back with us to Islamabad and before the Supreme Court but for some reason the provincial administration was not willing to do that. Perhaps, the reason is that there is hardly any government writ in that area and local officials operate through tribal elders.

Also, I feel that there is now a very real and serious threat to the lives of these women since the video has been widely circulated in the area. Unfortunately, the killing of men and women in such cases is a routine matter. Before we left, we told the jirga elders that the village will be monitored on a regular basis and if anything happens to these women, they will be held responsible. However, my fear is that once the public attention will be off the case, these women could be harmed, that is if they are not already dead.

Published In The Express Tribune, June 12th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/392145-DrFarzanaBarinew-1339435989/392145-DrFarzanaBarinew-1339435989.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan Jirga case: Salekhel tribe asks Azadkhel to own killing of women</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/391880/kohistan-jirga-case-salekhel-tribe-asks-azadkhel-to-own-killing-of-women</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/391880/kohistan-jirga-case-salekhel-tribe-asks-azadkhel-to-own-killing-of-women#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 11 Jun 12 03:38:50 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[our.correspondent]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category><category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=391880</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Otherwise clear the Salakhel men they plan to kill for making the video of Azadkhel women.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The tribal elders of Salekhel tribe on Sunday decided to call a grand jirga of other tribes asking the Azadkhel tribe to either declare the killing of their five women or clear the Salakhel men from the allegation of being Ghul (liable to be executed under Kohistani custom).

The jirga of Salekhel tribe was held at Shariyal Shrakot village of Palas Tehsil where over a thousand tribesmen gathered to discuss the emerging situation after the video scandal that led to the alleged killing of five women.

According to Qari Abdullah and Muhammad Tahir the two elders of Salekhels, the jirga discussed at length the issue of declaring the four women of Azadkhel tribe and two men from Salekhel tribe as Ghul and later condemning them to death by a Jirga of Azadkhel tribe.

The participants expressed their concern over the concealment of information of killing of five women by Azadkhels before the fact-finding mission of human rights activists and the administration.

Tahir said the tribesmen decided that they would call a grand jirga of other tribes to appoint a mediator.

The mediator would contact the Azadkhel tribe asking them to follow the centuries-old customs of Kohistan and publicly declare the killing of women and if they had not followed the custom of killing women declared Ghul, they should clear their two men already arrested by the police, from the allegation of being liable to be killed.

The mediator would also ask Azadkhel to also clarify whether they would only kill the two men seen in the cell phone video or there were some other people they have planned to murder equalling the killing of their five women, Tahir said.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 11th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/391880-moviex-1339385893/391880-moviex-1339385893.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan jirga: Doubts cast on the safety of ‘condemned’ women</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/391538/kohistan-jirga-doubts-cast-on-the-safety-of-%e2%80%98condemned%e2%80%99-women</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/391538/kohistan-jirga-doubts-cast-on-the-safety-of-%e2%80%98condemned%e2%80%99-women#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sun, 10 Jun 12 03:55:52 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[muhammad.sadaqat]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category><category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=391538</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Human rights activists claim the other three women were in another village rendered inaccessible by bad weather.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Questions have been raised over the fate of five Kohistani women – even after social activists vouched for their safety – who were condemned to death by a local jirga after mobile phone footage emerged of them mingling with men and singing at a village wedding.


Human rights activists Riffat Butt, Farzana Bari, Fauzia Saeed and Shabina Ayaz claimed the other three women were in another village rendered inaccessible by bad weather.

“I met two women and they are alive. I was told three others are also alive. They are in their homes far away in mountainous areas. I could not go there,” rights activist Farzana Bari had said after her return from the region.

Precise details of the case, however, have been shrouded in mystery. The identities of the two women, Shaheen and Amna, were ascertained only by their resemblance to those in the video. The women do not have national identity cards.

Furthermore, Kohistani women do not understand Urdu, Punjabi or even Hindko, and the language they speak, Shina, was not understood by the rights’ activists.

Two interpreters – both members of the same jirga that allegedly issued the death decree – mediated between the girls and the activists. Interestingly, one of the translators, Maulvi Javed, is the head of the jirga.

“How can they (the translators) voice opinions against their own decision and translate accurately what the women want to say,” questioned a source familiar with the matter.

The social workers, however, seem to be undeterred by this fact. They maintain that the women seemed confident during their encounter and bore no marks of physical oppression.

“After landing in the Seertaiy village of Peech Bala, we walked for about an hour and a half to meet the male members of the tribe. They were resentful at first, but later agreed to let us speak to the women,” Riffat Butt told i.

Butt said they were allowed to film the women after repeated assurances that the footage was only meant for the court. “The women identified themselves, pointing to where they were sitting in the room as the video was shown to them.”

Butt added that she was satisfied with their assertions about themselves and the other three women. She said Shaheen appeared to be around 15, while Amina was in her twenties.

Shaheen is the younger sister of Bazgha, one of the three who are yet to be seen. Shaheen told Butt that her sister was in another village at the time but that she had met her three days earlier. “She said the village was about five to six hours on foot and that we could either walk through the difficult terrain or wait for them to return in the evening.”

Asked why then the rights activists did not wait to see the rest of the women, Butt said one of the pilots, citing bad weather, advised them to take-off by 11 am.

Butt said male members of the tribe were alright with them waiting there, but they had to leave due to the unfavourable weather. “Officers of the civil administration had also been with us since a day and a half and had to return to Islamabad.”

Butt said another team would visit the region shortly to verify that the rest of the women had not been slaughtered either.

However, Muhammad Afzal, the brother of the two men who reportedly filmed and appeared in the video, is still adamant that the women are dead.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 10th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/391538-women-1339300495/391538-women-1339300495.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>A tipping point?: Real concerns in Kohistan</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/390562/a-tipping-point-real-concerns-in-kohistan</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/390562/a-tipping-point-real-concerns-in-kohistan#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 08 Jun 12 00:42:18 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[fouzia.saeed]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=390562</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Attention given to this incident by the KP government, our judiciary and the media might just become a tipping point.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[A two-hour long helicopter ride from Islamabad brought us to Pattan, one of the four tehsils of Kohistan district. I was one of four women selected in an ad hoc delegation by the Chief Justice to confirm the facts about the widely circulated  report of the murder of five women in this area.


The Chief Secretary of KP, Ghulam Dastgir, organized the delegation with the assistance of the Hazara Commissioner, Khalid Khan Omerzai. After a quick investigation by our team in Pattan and Dasu, we flew in three helicopters to the village of these girls, Sertai, at 6 the next morning.

A long search resulted in identifying two of the five girls, Amina and Shaheen, who were quite embarrassed, but so far, unharmed. They assured our group that the others were also safe. Thus, it appears that our trip confirmed the earlier claims of the KP government.

The main question that can be asked then is why did the story gain national attention? The story reported on Monday in the press was pretty much correct. The gathering happened almost a year ago, but the cellphone video appeared only recently, perhaps by accident, and spread like wildfire. The boys involved have been arrested on the charge of defaming the family of the girls and one of their brothers spread the false news that the girls had been killed, possibly to prevent that from happening to his brothers.

Although it might be fair to say that foreign news media are too quick to believe such stories about Pakistan, there are serious issues related to regions like Kohistan that need our attention. The case opened up conversations where people told us that several killings have happened after husbands suspected a link between his wife with another man. They said they “don’t waste the jirga’s time” on what they called “women matters.”

Two shop keepers said a husband has to take care of the man involved. It is the brother who is expected to kill his sister, the offending wife. They said at least they don’t throw acid on them like is done in the rest of the country. Bullets are apparently not wasted on their “own women”.

They simply use a hatchet or a knife to slit her throat or throw her off a ridge into the river. Upon asking whether things will change for women in this area, one man said, “They already have. We hardly have the old tradition of cutting off their nose and the ears; nowadays we simply kill them. This is more humane.”

One man from Sertai argued that the murders could not have happened because there had been no funeral prayers. I argued that usually in Pakistan women who are killed in the name of honour do not get a funeral prayer. He quickly retorted, “Not in our culture!  When I killed my sister we had a proper funeral. You can ask my fellow villagers!”

Almost all people we talked to told us that the ulema have a strong grip over this region. One of them gave a fatwa that education is haram for women. Therefore a middle school for girls remains vacant. A few primary schools exist for deviant families but moving out of Kohistan is really the only options for those who want to educate their daughters. We learned about quite a long list of fatwas about women.

The attention given to this incident by the KP government, our judiciary and the media might just become a tipping point. At least the village we visited clapped when Mian Iftikhar, Minister of Information said that finding the girls alive has restored the dignity of women in Kohistan and Pakistan.

We cannot leave areas like Kohistan without basic facilities, livelihood opportunities, limited access through roads and hardly any education. Perhaps this case was a blessing in disguise to bring all this attention to Kohistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 8th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/390562-artDESIGNSJAMAL-1339115738/390562-artDESIGNSJAMAL-1339115738.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan ‘killings’: Condemned women alive, social workers tell court</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/390561/kohistan-%e2%80%98killings%e2%80%99-condemned-women-alive-social-workers-tell-court</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/390561/kohistan-%e2%80%98killings%e2%80%99-condemned-women-alive-social-workers-tell-court#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 08 Jun 12 00:17:56 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[our.correspondent]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=390561</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[CJ says he is ready to send in army unless he has a clear report on the women.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[A group of Kohistani women who were allegedly sentenced to death for mingling with men and singing at a village wedding are alive and well, the Supreme Court was told on Thursday.

A team of social workers and the Hazara commissioner finally succeeded in meeting two of the five women, the court was told on Thursday.

“We met two of the girls, Shaheen and Amina. They are happy with their families,” said Farzana Bari, a social activist and one of the members of a fact-finding mission sent to the Beech Bela union council of Kohistan on the court’s orders to probe the incident.

Following the revelation, the entire courtroom breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank God the incident is not true,” the Supreme Court observed. Earlier reports had suggested that a local jirga sentenced four women and two men to death after mobile phone footage emerged of them singing and mingling at a wedding in Kohistan, in defiance of strict tribal customs.

Officials insisted the women were safe, but the Supreme Court took up the case after reports surfaced that the women and one of their sisters had been killed.

The court was informed that the incident took place about 15 months ago.

Media reports were based on the statements of the two boys in the video and their brother Muhammad Afzal.

Afzal insisted that he would not believe that the girls were alive until they appeared before the court and proved their identities.

“I still say that they are dead. If they are alive, I will accept any punishment the court gives me,” he said, while addressing the media.

CJP ready to provide troops

Heading the bench, Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry said he was ready to send in the army unless he had a clear report on all the women. “We are even ready to provide you troops,” he said. “Delay will not help the operation. Either the girls will escape or be killed.”

The court also appreciated the Khyber-Pakhtukhwa administration and the federal government, particularly Rehman Malik, for providing assistance in contacting the women.

The court in its orders asked Attorney General Irfan Qadir to coordinate in arranging a meeting with the other three women and adjourned the case till June 20.

Meeting the victims

National Implementation Watch Committee (NIWC) Chairperson Dr Fouzia Saeed, Dr Bari and the Hazara commissioner told the court that two of the Kohistani girls, Shaheen and Amina, were alive and bore no signs of torture.

Speaking about the language barrier, Riffat Butt of the National Commission on Status of Women said they recorded their entire conversation with the girls, which will be independently verified.

Dr Saeed told The Express Tribune that they took pictures of the girls to identify them, adding that they did not seem scared. “We wanted to bring the girls back but the administration said that the families would mind it.”

“We will produce them before the court when the weather gets better,” Commissioner Umarzai told The Express Tribune.

Media slammed for ‘drama’

The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa information minister, also part of the visiting team, insisted again on Thursday that all the women were alive.

The minister said that the other three women, Bazgha Bibi, Begum Jan and Amina Bibi, were alive but the delegation could not met them since they were not at the village.

“The village jirga assured us that all the women were alive and safe,” the minister said.

He claimed that the reports of the killings were spread by Mohammad Afzal, adding that the government has already registered a case and stern action will be taken against those found responsible for spreading false news.

During the hearing, however, the chief justice gave credit to the media for bringing the issue to light, saying that the court was able to take care of the girls and get first-hand information.

(Read: Women and the jirga)

(ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY ABDUR RAUF IN PESHAWAR)

Published in The Express Tribune, June 8th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/390561-farzanabariINP-1339113778/390561-farzanabariINP-1339113778.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Women and the jirga</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/390260/women-and-the-jirga</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/390260/women-and-the-jirga#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 07 Jun 12 16:31:35 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[editorial]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Editorial]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=390260</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Those who issued murder verdicts against Kohistani women must be given exemplary punishment.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The Supreme Court hearing into the alleged killing of five women in Kohistan by a tribal jirga for the ‘crime’ of singing and dancing at a wedding in the alleged company of men has become quite the controversy. Till recently, the Court had been unable to verify whether the women were killed or not, or whether the jirga ever gave the order in the first place. The fault here does not lie with the Court, which has been pursuing the case vigorously in order to get the truth out of local officials. It is, in fact, these officials who are to blame since they claimed that the women were not killed but retreated into stony silence when asked if they had seen them.

This stony silence on the part of the officials prompted the Supreme Court into sending a fact-finding mission to determine if the women had indeed been killed. It has been discovered that the mission was able to meet two of the girls in the Sertay village of Kohistan. Thankfully, they bore no signs of torture and were reported to have been “happy with their families”. However, it is important to confirm the fate of the other three girls as soon as possible as one of the brothers of the two men who were dancing with the five women in the video, had earlier insisted that the women had been killed on the orders of the jirga. Even if all the girls are ultimately found to be alive and safe, this case raises a lot of questions about the concept of ‘honour’ in our society. Dancing at weddings is a common Pakistani tradition and the idea that these women dishonoured their families by singing and dancing is a ridiculous assertion. For some reason, we have also decided that it is only women, and never men, who dishonour their families. Those who issued murder verdicts against these women must be given exemplary punishment.

It is also unacceptable that the remoteness of Kohistan and tribal tradition means that the writ of the state does not extend there. Jirgas exist outside the conventions of the law and if there is anyone who should be punished, it must be those who insist on conducting them. Each judgment of a jirga is inherently illegitimate. It is time to take action against this unjust and backward system of tribal justice and bring every Pakistani under the legitimate law of the state.

Published In The Express Tribune, June 8th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/390260-justicewomen-1339086566/390260-justicewomen-1339086566.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan video: Human rights activists meet two out of five girls</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/390203/kohistan-video-human-rights-activists-meet-two-out-of-five-girls</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/390203/kohistan-video-human-rights-activists-meet-two-out-of-five-girls#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 07 Jun 12 09:25:25 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[zahid.gishkori]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=390203</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Human rights activist says girls safe and happy, brother of the boys who made video insists girls were killed.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Dr Fouzia Saeed, Chairperson, National Implementation Watch Committee (NIWC) and Dr Farzana Bari, a social worker and Commissioner Hazara Division told The Express Tribune that two of the Kohistani girls were alive in the Sertay village in the Kohistan district and bore no signs of torture. 

A team of social workers and Commissioner Hazara met two of five girls reportedly killed on order of a jirga. “We met two girls, Shaheen and Amina and they are happy with their families,” said Saeed.

Saeed said that when they reached the girls’ village, they found it to be deserted. Amid rumors of the families running away, the group decided to divide itself and made teams to search for the girls.

“After traversing rough terrain, we found two girls,” said Saeed. She said that they took pictures so they would be able to recognise the girls. Upon meeting them, Saeed said that the girls “did not seem scared.”

“We wanted to bring the girls back but the administration said that the families would mind it,” said Saeed.

"It is now up to the chief justice to tell us whether this proof is sufficient or not."

"A team, on directions of the Supreme Court left for Kohistan yesterday (June 6), but could not complete the journey due to bad weather," said Saeed. "But today early in the morning we met two girls," she added.

Commissioner Hazara Khalid Omarzai also confirmed that they met girls and they were safe and living happily with their families.

When asked when the girls will be produced before the court, Omarzai said, due to bad weather it is difficult to bring them to Islamabad. He also appreciated the helicopter team which succeeded to reach Kohistan despite bad weather.

Bari said that government should have established their writ and brought the girls here.

Speaking about language barrier, Saeed said that the people of the area speak Shina mainly but all the male members could converse in Urdu as well. “The girls, however, spoke only Shina,” she said, adding that the regional language is not very difficult to understand and that they had a translator to help them understand what the girls were saying.

She added that they have recorded the entire conversation with the girls and will independently verify if it was rightly translated.

Commenting on media’s role during this entire episode, Bari said that the journalists should investigate every issue thoroughly before presenting it to a larger audience.

Reiterating this point, Commissioner Hazara said media should approach all the stakeholders for information and consider everyone’s point of view.

“I kept insisting that the incident never happened but the media refused to believe me,” he said.

Speaking to the media, Mohammed Afzal, the brother of the boys in the video, however, said that he would not believe that the girls were alive until they were brought before the court and fingerprinted to prove their identities.

"I still say that they are dead. If they are alive, I will accept any punishment the court gives me," said Afzal.

Earlier, while the Khyber-Pakthunkhwa chief secretary failed to produce the five girls before the Supreme Court, the chief justice sent a fact-finding mission comprising women activists to visit the Peech Bela union council of Kohistan.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/390203-farzanabariINP-1339078194/390203-farzanabariINP-1339078194.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Facing the music: Performers’ haven threatened in Banr</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/389784/facing-the-music-performers%e2%80%99-haven-threatened-in-banr</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/389784/facing-the-music-performers%e2%80%99-haven-threatened-in-banr#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 07 Jun 12 02:21:54 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[fazal.khaliq]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category><category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=389784</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[After Taliban, police ban cultural activities, warn of dire consequences.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[After dancing rituals became the centre of controversy in Kohistan, the performers’ community of Banr seems to be taking a share of the spotlight. The community, which depends solely on singing and dancing for a living, has been banned by the police from performing the cultural activities in the district.


Ironically, the news comes as efforts are underway by the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) government to give Banr the status of a “cultural industry”.

The ban has upset the locals who would perform in houses and hujras to entertain people, said Javed Iqbal, a local singer. “We get Rs200 to Rs400 for a single music and dance performance, which is our sole source of income. If these things are stopped we will have no other option but to beg or commit suicide,” he lamented.

Another artist, Gul Wadood, who lay sick in his bed, was perturbed over the matter. “The police have besieged us in our homes,” he said. Wadood added that as a single concert earns for up to 10 families, banning such performances will render his community homeless.

The artist said that under the government of the last ruler of Swat, locals had the freedom to perform their crafts. He said that a high court legalised the activities in 1977 by giving a verdict in their favour. “However, the Taliban came and not only banned the practice but also punished those involved in it; and now the police are doing the same,” he added.

“We had guests over when the police raided our place. They disgraced our families and took us to the police station where they beat us and warned of dire consequences if we continue performing music and dance, said a wounded Mushtaq. “They tell us to sell tomato in the Grain Square instead,” he added.

The community members claim that the police have threatened to shave their women’s heads if they violate the ban. “This is exactly what the Taliban did during their regime,” added another artist, requesting anonymity.

“We are starving and have nothing to eat; if the government wants to ban our profession, it should provide us an alternate means of earning livelihood,” said Dilawar. “Unfortunately, the police are only harassing the poor community and letting the rich get away,” he added.

A performing artist, holding her medical reports and medicines, said she has to buy medicines worth Rs300 and pay Rs6,000 house rent every month. “How should I make ends meet with a ban on our profession?” she questioned. She said the government should present a solution before banning us from singing and dancing.

With similar woes, an old Rahat said that as four of her sons have died of a “mysterious” disease, her daughter supported the family through singing. She appealed to the prime minister, K-P chief minister and the Supreme Court to allow them to practice their profession.

Svastu Arts and Cultural Association Chairman Usman Ulas Yar said, “instead of banishing cultural activities, the police should improve their performance. Music and dance is part of the Pakhtun culture and peace can never prevail without them,” he said.

When contacted, Deputy Superintendant of Police Mingora Amjad Ali Khan said that they have implemented restrictions on logical grounds over cultural activities which lead towards criminal lines. Then he got furious and hung up.

Published In The Express Tribune, June 7th, 2012. ]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/389784-TalibanILLUST_1735799875/389784-TalibanILLUST_1735799875.JPG" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan jirga death decree: Condemned women remain a no-show at SC</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/390061/kohistan-jirga-death-decree-condemned-women-remain-a-no-show-at-sc</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/390061/kohistan-jirga-death-decree-condemned-women-remain-a-no-show-at-sc#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 07 Jun 12 01:03:07 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[our.correspondent]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=390061</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Helicopters dispatched to fetch women fail to return; apex court extends deadline till 1 pm today.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Contradictory versions flooded the Supreme Court on Wednesday during the hearing of a case where a death decree was issued against five women in Kohistan.


Government functionaries adamantly denied the women had been killed, while Gul Nazar and his two brothers, who had secretly filmed the women singing and dancing at a wedding ceremony, insisted they had been killed.

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Secretary Ghulam Dastagir informed the apex court that helicopters had been dispatched to fetch the five women to court and asked for them to wait till 6pm. Adviser to the Prime Minister on Interior Affairs Rehman Malik told the court earlier in the day that the interior ministry was ready to extend any kind of support required, whether it was helicopters, Frontier Corps (FC) men or army personnel.

At 6 pm, neither the helicopters nor the girls showed up. After this, the bench, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, adjourned the hearing for a second time in the day, and extended the deadline to present the four girls before court by 1pm today (Thursday).

The court also directed the government functionaries to produce the jirga participants.

According to reports, the five girls, along with two other men, were declared ‘ghul’ (fornicators) after they were allegedly caught on video singing and dancing together at a wedding party.

During the hearing, officials from Kohistan district’s administration had appeared before the court, including the Hazara deputy inspector general of police, and Hazara Commissioner Khalid Umarzai. They informed the court they had failed to contact the girls despite several attempts – but they insisted the girls were alive.

They officials clarified that the culture of Kohistan does not allow men to contact girls freely. The court told the officials that if the girls were alive then they should take someone who could access them in order to record their statement.

While the chief justice was issuing these orders, the two men accused of filming the video and uploading it on the internet – Bin Yasir and Gul Nazar –were brought before the court by the police. Nazar told the court that the girls had been killed. Attorney General Irfan Qadir informed the court that the families of the girls were not willing to send them. He added that so far, all the people who have been investigated regarding the video said that the video is doctored.

Girls ‘slaughtered’ on May 30 

Speaking to the media on the premises of the Supreme Court, Muhammad Afzal, the brother of Yasir and Nazar said that the girls were “slaughtered” on the eve of May 30.

Afzal said that if required, he was ready to swear on the Holy Quran “a thousand times over.” He further revealed that he and his brothers were facing threats to their lives and alleged that the Hazara DIG and commissioner were planning on “killing them”.“The only relation that I and my brothers have with this whole incident is that my brothers filmed the celebrations of our uncle’s wedding,” he said.

Afzal said that only the men danced, while the girls clapped. He added that the fatwa against them and the girls was given a month back by Maulana Javed in Mansehra. “After giving out the fatwa, they sent out 40-50 men to hunt us down in different areas including Battagram, Abbottabad and Mansehra.” The girls belonged to the same family, he said, “Three out of them were cousins, while two of them were closely related.” He had identified them as Bazgha, Shaheen, Amina and Begum. He could not recall the name of the fifth girl. Afzal further revealed that he knew four men who had seen the girls getting slaughtered.

Published In The Express Tribune, June 7th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/390061-AfzalKhan-1339030890/390061-AfzalKhan-1339030890.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan video: Hearing adjourned as girls not produced in court</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/389568/kohistan-killings-bring-girls-to-court-in-helicopter-orders-cj</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/389568/kohistan-killings-bring-girls-to-court-in-helicopter-orders-cj#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Wed, 06 Jun 12 06:00:08 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[azam.khan]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=389568</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Chief Justice had ordered the chief secretary K-P to bring the girls to the court in a helicopter.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[While adjourning the hearing, the Supreme Court has extended the deadline to present four girls, condemned to death by a jirga, before the court till 1pm tomorrow (June 7).

The court was hearing a suo motu notice of media reports that a Kohistan jirga condemned four girls to death for defying tribal customs.

Earlier, Chief Secretary Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Ghulam Dastagir informed the Supreme Court that a helicopter had gone to bring the girls and asked them to wait till 6pm. However, the girls were not produced before the court. Dastagir and Attorney General Irfan Qadir cited several reasons for their failure to bring the girls to the court, including the rugged terrain and language barrier.

The Supreme Court also stated that if the authorities fail to present the girls, they must then bring the jirga members - those who issued the death decree - to the court.

Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry had ordered the chief secretary K-P to bring the girls to the court in a helicopter.

According to reports, the four girls, along with two other men, were declared ‘ghul’ (fornicators) after they were allegedly caught on video singing and dancing together at a wedding party.

During the hearing, officials from Kohistan’s dictrict administration had appeared before the court, including the chief secretary K-P, Deputy Inspector General of Police Hazara, Commissioner Hazara Khalid Umarzai.

They had informed the court that they had failed to get in contact with the girls despite several attempts, however, they said that the girls were alive.

They had added that the culture of Kohistan does not allow men to contact girls freely.

The court had told the officials that if the girls were alive then they should take someone reputable to the girls in order to record their statement.

When the chief justice was issuing the orders, the two men accused of filming the video and uploading it on the internet – Bin Yasir and Gul Nazar –were brought before the court by the police.

Nazar had revealed before the court that the girls were killed.

The chief justice had expressed concern over the statement and had asked DIG Hazara as to why there were conflicting statements in the case.

He had said that the interior ministry was ready to extend any kind of support required, whether it was helicopters, Frontier Corps (FC) men or army personnel, but the girls should be brought before the court.

The chief justice had earlier adjourned the hearing till 2pm.

The court, however, did not record the statement of the other accused, Yasir.

Civil society members had pleaded to the court that the girls were alive and that the court should gather evidence regarding it.

The chief justice had asked what had happened to the inquiry that Rehman Malik had initiated. Attorney General Qadir had informed the court that the interior ministry had provided a helicopter and that the civil society members “could meet the girls if they wished to.”

He had further informed the court that the families of the girls were not willing to send them. He had added that so far, all the people who have been investigated regarding the video said that the video is forged.

Chief Justice Chaudhry had told AG Qadir: “You always inform us about the code of conduct, apprise us about it in this hearing, too.”

Girls were 'slaughtered' on May 30

Speaking to the media on the premises of the Supreme Court, Muhammad Afzal, the brother of Yasir and Nazar had said that the girls were “slaughtered” on the eve of May 30, 2012.

Afzal had said that if required, he was ready to swear by the Quran “a thousand times over.”

He had further revealed that he and his brothers were facing threats to their lives and alleged that the DIG and commissioner Hazara were planning on “killing them”.

“They are carrying out proceedings against us, but what about those who slaughtered those girls?” he had questioned.

“The only relation that I and my brothers have with this whole incident is my brothers filmed the celebrations of our uncle’s wedding,” he said.

He had said that the girls did not dance, only the men danced, while the girls clapped.

Afzal had said that the fatwa against them and the girls was given a month back by Maulana Javed in Mansehra. “After giving out the fatwa, they sent out 40-50 men to hunt us down in different areas including Battagram, Abbottabad and Mansehra.”

Revealing that the girls belonged to the same family, he had said, “Three out of them were cousins, while two of them were closely related.”

He had identified them as Bazgha, Shaheen, Amina and Begum. He could not recall the name of the fifth girl.

Afzal had further revealed that he knew four men who had seen the girls getting slaughtered.

The video had caused a furore in the community, which felt the video had tainted the honour of the tribeswomen. According to sources, elders of the Azad Khel tribe had summoned a jirga at Seertaiy village, which sentenced the four women and two men to death.

DIG Hazara assures brothers of security

DIG Hazara had assured Afzal that he will be provided security by the police and had said that he appreciated that he had stepped up and spoken for justice.

“You come to me, on my responsibility, and get your statement recorded. I assure you that you will be provided security,” the DIG told Afzal.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/389568-ghulamdastagirexpress-1338978823/389568-ghulamdastagirexpress-1338978823.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan killings: Minister insists women are alive, sounds sceptical</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/389437/kohistan-killings-minister-insists-women-are-alive-sounds-sceptical</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/389437/kohistan-killings-minister-insists-women-are-alive-sounds-sceptical#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Wed, 06 Jun 12 03:56:27 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[muhammad.sadaqat]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category><category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=389437</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Witnesses from rival tribe say they can help identify the graves of slain women.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Confusion prevailed on Tuesday over the fate of five women allegedly slaughtered following a jirga decree in Kohistan district.


While Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain denied that the women have been killed, witnesses from the rival tribe insisted otherwise, saying they were prepared to identify graves of the slain women.

‘Alive, and in safe hands’

Speaking at a press briefing on Tuesday, Hussain said that a fact-finding mission discovered that all women involved in the jirga decree were ‘alive and in safe hands’.

He said that a day ago, the mission comprising Hazara commissioner Khalid Khan Umerzai, DIG Dr Mohammad Naeem, Kohistan DCO Aqaal Badshah and DPO Abdul Majid Afridi visited the area and met the women and their parents.

“The women are alive and according to local elders and families of the said women, no one can kill them on the basis of a suspicious video,” the minister said.

The two brothers of Mohammad Afzal – who had filmed the women, made the video public and subsequently broke the news of the jirga decree and the women’s killing – were also arrested, Hussain said.

“Along with the mission members, clerics and elders of the area, we also searched for new graves but found nothing in support of Mohammad Afzal’s claim about the killing of the five women,” he added.

Asked if the women will be produced before the Supreme Court on June 6, as directed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Hussain said that due to the geographic distance and cultural barriers, it would be difficult but they would try to take the women to the apex court. The minister, however, did not appear entirely convinced either.

He said that anyone who has information about the killing of the women, with solid evidence, should share it with the administration.

“Investigation is still continuing and if I get any kind of information about their killing, I will inform the media,” he said.

Tortured in custody

Afzal, however, said his brothers were being tortured in detention by the police to force them to change their statements on the women being killed.

His brothers, 20-year-old Bin Yasir and Gul Nazar, 21, were arrested two days ago after being booked for filming four women of the Azad Khel tribe and making the video public.

The men, according to police sources, confessed to filming the women with their consent. They also told the police that the women were slaughtered on the jirga’s decree and a man, Lajalil Khan of the Chootaykhel tribe, was the eyewitness.

The two men were also condemned to death by the jirga but managed to flee initially.

Meanwhile, elders of Salikhel tribe, to which the men belong, have announced to identify the graves of the slain women.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 6th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/389437-MianIftikharHussainnni-1338954964/389437-MianIftikharHussainnni-1338954964.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Death to four women: Civic society demands an end to jirga system</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/388723/death-to-four-women-civic-society-demands-an-end-to-jirga-system</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/388723/death-to-four-women-civic-society-demands-an-end-to-jirga-system#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 05 Jun 12 04:40:18 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[hidayat.khan]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=388723</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Blames government for failing to ensure protection to the women condemned to death in Kohistan.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Civil society members on Monday staged a protest demo outside the Peshawar Press Club against a jirga’s decision in Kohistan condemning four women to death for dancing and singing with men at a wedding ceremony.


Chanting slogans, members of Pakhtun Civil Society Network, Shirkatgah, Blue Vain, Aurat Foundation, Camp and Woman Recourse Centre demanded an end to the jirga system and blamed the government for failing to ensure protection to the women. Majority of the participants were from the tribal areas, where people have reportedly been the worst-affected by the jirga system.

“Women have been subjected to cruelty in the name of honour by the jirgas and it is high time that the system should be abolished,” opined Niaz Mohammad, a resident of Landi Kotal, Khyber agency.

Shereen Javaid of Aurat foundation said, “We strongly condemned this act of brutality against women.” He said that by the time the Supreme Court took suo moto notice of the case, it was “too late. There are speculations that the women have been killed,” she added.

Another protester, Shagufta Hayat, urged the government to strive to get the women released if they are still alive. “Everyone has the right to entertainment: clapping and singing songs are the rare moments in life and these can no way be termed crimes,” she added.

Idreas Kamal, a tribal elder also protesting the jirga’s verdict, said that no cleric or tribal chief has the right to issue an edict (fatwa). He added that “neither the jirga system nor Islam allows for such brutality.” The tribal elder demanded that the matter be handed over to the Shariat Court or the National Ideology Council. He said that if the jirga members find handing over the women to the government humiliating, they should surrender them to the judicial commission appointed by the Supreme Court.

The tribal jirga had declared four women and two men ‘Ghul’ (fornicators) two weeks ago after they were allegedly caught on videotape singing and dancing together at a wedding ceremony in Bando Baidar village of Peech Bela union council. The video caused furore in the community, which felt the video had stained the honour of the tribes.

The jirga had reportedly condemned to death the four women for defying strict tribal customs; however, there are conflicting reports about their safety. Where some news channels report that the woman have been shot died, Hazara Commissioner Khalid Khan claims that the women are “safe and secure in their homes.”

Published in The Express Tribune, June 5th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/388723-artDESIGNSJAMAL-1338871164/388723-artDESIGNSJAMAL-1338871164.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan killings: Govt draws blanks, witnesses say women slaughtered</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/388937/kohistan-killings-govt-draws-blanks-witnesses-say-women-slaughtered</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/388937/kohistan-killings-govt-draws-blanks-witnesses-say-women-slaughtered#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 05 Jun 12 03:42:49 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[muhammad.sadaqat]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=388937</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Officials unable to meet women; witnesses say the ‘condemned’ women’s throats were slit.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[There is a massive cover up under way of a brutal slaughter in Kohistan, if key witnesses are to believed – and the provincial government and its security apparatus is abetting the effort to conceal the facts.


While the provincial government continues to deny the incident, key witnesses insist that not only were five women murdered by relatives on the premise of honour, their throats had been slit – contrary to reports that they had been shot.

The victims – four women caught on video singing and dancing at a mixed gathering and one ‘accomplice’ – were allegedly shot dead over the weekend and secretly buried in Seertaiy village on the orders of a local jirga for defying strict tribal customs. According to the story, which first appeared in The Express Tribune, the footage of the women was filmed and made public by two brothers, Bin Yasir and Gul Nazar. When the video caught the eye of the village elders, the women and those who had made the video were condemned to death.

Later, reports emerged that the five women had been shot dead. The provincial government, however, denied the allegations, insisting that the women were safe, and directed the divisional administration to investigate the matter to further prove their claim.

Women not produced

In this regard, Hazara Division Commissioner Khalid Khan Umerzai, DIG Dr Naeem Khan, DCO Kohistan Syed Aqil Badshah, DPO Abdul Majeed Afridi and Maulvi Javed, the alleged head of the controversial jirga, visited the Seertaiy village on Monday.

According to a source familiar with the matter, Omar Khan, the brother of two of the victims, told the officials that the women were alive but declined to present them in person. The officials, therefore, returned empty-handed as villagers insisted that exposing their women to outsiders was against tribal tradition.

On their return to Pattan tehsil, the commissioner told the media that the women were safe and secure, but could not be presented either before the court or the visiting team.

Witnesses’ statements

On the other hand, in a recorded interview, Muhammad Afzal, the brother of the two condemned men, along with two other villagers, who chose to remain anonymous for fear of their lives, reiterated that the four filmed women and a teenage girl, who the jirga ruled was an accomplice, were slaughtered on May 31.

The men alleged that the women were not shot, but were in fact slaughtered as slitting of throats was ‘easier’ and would not leave behind any evidence.

The two men said they had very strong reasons to believe that the women, namely Sereen Jan, Begum, Bazgha, Amina and Bazgha’s sister Shaheen, were murdered on the jirga’s order, while the life of Afzal and his brothers was at risk. They said that the jirga members include Maulna Mustafa, Omar Khan, Raj Mir, Jehangir, Khush Mir and Parvez of the Azad Khel.

They suggested that the murder could be proven if a judicial inquiry was conducted by women judges with the help of the National Database and Registration Authority.

The men said that all the victims had Watan and Nadra cards.  They added that if all of them, including the brothers, were provided security they would help identify the women and would also try to move the Supreme Court.

Afzal and the two men also accused the local police for aiding the accused, saying that, after learning of the jirga’s verdict, they could have taken measures for saving the victims’ lives.

Backlash

Meanwhile, local clerics announced to stage a demonstration in front of the Supreme Court on June 6, to condemn media reports on the incident as well as the administration for “violating” tribal code of ethics and maligning their women. According to reports, the demonstration will be led by former MPA Maulana Dildar.

The Kohistan DIG, Commissioner, DPO and DCO were not available for comments.

&nbsp;

Published In The Express Tribune, June 5th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/388937-artDESIGNSJAMAL-1338867671/388937-artDESIGNSJAMAL-1338867671.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Jirga Controversy: Chief Justice takes suo motu notice</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/388940/jirga-controversy-chief-justice-takes-suo-motu-notice</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/388940/jirga-controversy-chief-justice-takes-suo-motu-notice#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 05 Jun 12 03:38:47 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[our.correspondent]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=388940</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Justice Chaudhry says this incident is a gross violation of fundamental human rights.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry took suo motu notice on Monday of media reports that a Kohistan jirga condemned four girls to death for defying tribal customs.


According to reports, the four girls, along with two other men, were declared ‘ghul’ (fornicators) after they were allegedly caught on videotape singing and dancing together at a wedding party.

The reports of the alleged killing of four girls, and a man who was declared ‘an accomplice’, were presented before the chief justice by the registrar of the Supreme Court.

The chief justice summoned the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa chief secretary, the Kohistan district police officer and the Hazara division deputy inspector general on June 6.

The video caused a furore in the community, which felt the video had tainted the honour of the tribeswomen. According to sources, elders of the Azad Khel tribe had summoned a jirga at Seertaiy village, which sentenced the four women and two men to death.

The chief justice ordered Attorney General Irfan Qadir to ascertain if the news reports about the incident were factual. He further said that, if the reports were false, and the girls had not been killed, then they should be presented before court the same day. Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain said that the reports were “wrong and baseless”.

The chief justice also told the attorney general that if, as per tradition, the women do not prefer to attend open court, then a meeting should be convened with them in the office of the attorney general and the court be briefed about the matter in chamber.

Justice Chaudhry said, “This incident is a gross violation of fundamental human rights.” He added that the Supreme Court had already given directions to crack down on such illegal jirga systems.

The police had earlier registered an FIR against two brothers, Bin Yasir and Gul Nazar, for allegedly making the film and uploading it on a video sharing site.

On Sunday, Yasir and Nazar’s elder brother, Muhammad Afzal, said the women were called back from their in-laws and locked in a room. He added that their family members subjected the women to severe torture by throwing hot water on them, beating them, and keeping them in isolation.

Afzal also said that the jirga sent over 30 men to kill one of his brothers.


Published In The Express Tribune, June 5th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/388940-chiefjustice-1338867477/388940-chiefjustice-1338867477.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Initial inquiry finds girls to be alive as CJ takes suo motu notice of Kohistan jirga</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/388533/cj-takes-suo-motu-notice-of-kohistan-jirga-controversy</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/388533/cj-takes-suo-motu-notice-of-kohistan-jirga-controversy#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 04 Jun 12 07:16:28 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[azam.khan]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=388533</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Chief justice orders attorney general  to find out if the news reports about the incident were factual or not.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Taking suo motu notice of media reports of a Kohistan Jirga that ‘condemned’ to death four girls for defying strict tribal customs, Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on Monday summoned Chief Secretary Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, District Police Officer Kohistan and Deputy Inspector General Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa on June 6. However, Express News reported late on Monday that an initial inquiry report submitted to the K-P government had found the girls to be alive. 

Media reports of the alleged killing of four girls and a fifth for being ‘an accomplice’ were presented before the chief justice today by the registrar of the Supreme Court.

According to an exclusive report by The Express Tribune, the jirga had declared four women and two men ‘Ghul’ (fornicators) after they were allegedly caught on videotape singing and dancing together at a wedding party in Bando Baidar village of Peech Bela union council.

The video caused a furore in the community, which felt the video had stained the honour of the tribeswomen. According to sources, elders of the Azad Khel tribe had summoned a jirga at the Seertaiy village, which sentenced the four women and the two men to death.

The chief justice ordered Attorney General Irfan Qadir to find out if the news reports about the incident were factual or not.

He further said that if the reports were bogus and such an incident never occurred, then the girls be presented before the court the same day.

The chief justice said, “This incident is a gross violation of fundamental human rights.” He added that the Supreme Court has already given directions against the jirga system.

The police had registered an FIR against two brothers, Bin Yasir and Gul Nazar, for allegedly making the film and uploading it on a video sharing site.

Earlier on Sunday, Yasir and Nazar’s elder brother, Muhammad Afzal said the women were called back from their in-laws and locked in a room.

He added that their family members subjected the women to severe torture – threw hot water on them, beat them, and kept them in isolation for two months.

Afzal also said that the jirga sent over 30 men to kill one of his brothers.

Girls are alive?

An initial inquiry report, investigating into the controversy, has been presented to the K-P government. According to the report, the five women are alive and were currently living at their respective residences, Express News reported.

Commissioner Hazara Division Khalid Khan Umarzai and area Deputy Inspector General (DIG) visited the village of Sardia in Tehsil Palas, where they met the parents and families of the allegedly killed women. They also recorded the statements of the five women, while they were veiled behind a curtain.

The report added that the video was doctored, via a conspiracy due to personal enmity, to make it appear as if the men and women were in the same room when they were actually in separate rooms.

According to the investigative team, two brothers of the alleged perpetrator [who made the video] have been arrested, while efforts are underway to arrest the the latter, who is still at large.

Earlier, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain also said that the reports were “wrong and baseless”.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/388533-chiefjustice-1338793128/388533-chiefjustice-1338793128.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Jirga injustice: Four Kohistani women, accomplice ‘killed’ for defying customs</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/388419/jirga-injustice-four-kohistani-women-accomplice-%e2%80%98killed%e2%80%99-for-defying-customs</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/388419/jirga-injustice-four-kohistani-women-accomplice-%e2%80%98killed%e2%80%99-for-defying-customs#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 04 Jun 12 03:57:57 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[muhammad.sadaqat]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=388419</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Administration officials refute claims, insist the women are safe.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Four women of the Azad Khel tribe allegedly paid the ultimate price after being ‘condemned’ to death by a jirga for defying strict tribal customs. Their crime: singing and dancing with men at a wedding ceremony.

Another girl was also reportedly killed for being ‘an accomplice’. The women were shot dead by their families in a remote village of UC Peech Bela, Palas tehsil, independent sources said on Sunday.

However, police and official sources rejected the allegation and insisted that the women were safe in their homes.

Two months ago, footage showing the four women singing Kohistani folk songs and clapping for two women of the Salikhel tribe was made public.

The police had registered an FIR against two brothers, Bin Yasir and Gul Nazar, for allegedly making the film and uploading it on a video sharing site.

The video caused a furore in the community, which felt the video had stained the honour of the tribeswomen. According to sources, elders of the Azad Khel tribe summoned a jirga at the Seertaiy village, which sentenced the four women and the two men to death.

It was reported that both men had fled the area. However, they were arrested by the police in Alai tehsil, Battagram district on Sunday.

According to Yasir and Nazar’s elder brother, Muhammad Afzal, the women were called back from their in-laws and locked in a room.

He added that their family members subjected the women to severe torture – threw hot water on them, beat them, and kept them in isolation for two months.

Afzal also said that the jirga sent over 30 men to kill of his brothers.

However, after the jirga’s ruthless verdict was reported in the media, the men were called back to the village to kill the women first.

‘Shot dead’

At around two in the morning on May 30, the four women along with a teenage girl were taken out of the room, shot dead and buried at some distance from their village, Afzal alleged.

He said that the teenage girl, believed to be a sister of one of the women, was killed after being suspected of being an ‘accomplice’ and keeping the gathering a secret.

“Yes, they killed the condemned women on May 30,” a resident of the Seertaiay village, who belongs to Chootaykhel tribe, said on the condition of anonymity.

He said the family had to implement the jirga’s decision at every cost to uphold the culture of the area.

The Express Tribune was the first to break the news of the jirga’s decision two weeks ago. Two members of the jirga, Maulvi Javed, who runs a seminary in Mansehra and Maulvi Noorul Haq, a former union nazim, were booked under section 107 of the PPC.

Conflicting reports

Meanwhile, Hazara Commissioner Khalid Khan Umerzai refuted the reports, saying that the women were safe and secure in their homes. A team of investigators had returned from the remote village on Saturday after recording the statement of one of the girl’s mother who confirmed that the women were safe. Umerzai also accused the media of creating hype on a baseless issue.

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain also said that the reports were “wrong and baseless”. Nevertheless, he said he has directed the Kohistan DCO to send an investigation team to the area.

However, an unnamed police source neither confirmed nor denied the report, saying that he could not comment on the issue.

Head of the legal section of the National Commission on Status of Women Riffat Bibi told The Express Tribune that if the women were alive the district administration must present them before the court.

She also strongly condemned the jirga system in Kohistan, adding that the NCSW had already moved the apex court for a ban against parallel justice.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 4th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/388419-moviex-1338782249/388419-moviex-1338782249.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan video: Local claims five women killed, officials deny</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/388164/kohistan-video-local-claims-five-women-killed-officials-deny</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/388164/kohistan-video-local-claims-five-women-killed-officials-deny#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sun, 03 Jun 12 14:09:12 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[muhammad.sadaqat]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=388164</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Brother of one of those accused of making video claims women were tortured before they were killed on May 30.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Five women in Kohistan, four of whom were filmed 'singing and dancing' with men at a wedding party, were killed on May 30 after a tribal jirga ordered their execution, claimed Muhammad Afzal – brother of the two accused of filming the video and uploading it on the internet. Officials have however denied this claim.

Commissioner Hazara Khalid Umarzai and Provincial Minister for Social Welfare Sitara Ayaz denied that the women were killed and said they were alive and safe at their homes. Police officials in the area also denied the incident.

The fifth girl, sister of one of the women filmed, was also killed on suspicion, claimed Afzal.

Police had filed an FIR against the two brothers, Bin Yasir and Gul Nazar, for filming these four women and putting the video online.

According to Afzal, the women were kept in captivity for a month and were tortured by pouring boiling water on their bodies before they were killed.

The jirga had also ordered the execution of the two brothers along with the four women. However, the men had fled the area.

It was earlier reported that the accused, in connivance with four other people including their elder brother and a cousin uploaded the video on the internet and also released it to some media outlets. This caused uproar in the community, which felt the video had stained the honour of the tribe’s women.

&nbsp;]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/388164-moviex-1338732530/388164-moviex-1338732530.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Kohistan jirga controversy: Two brothers booked for filming women</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/388018/kohistan-jirga-controversy-two-brothers-booked-for-filming-women</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/388018/kohistan-jirga-controversy-two-brothers-booked-for-filming-women#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sun, 03 Jun 12 04:37:47 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[our.correspondent]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category><category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=388018</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Both men have already fled the area, sources in the police told The Express Tribune.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Police have registered an FIR against two brothers for allegedly making a film of four women singing and dancing with men at a wedding party in the conservative region and then putting it up on the internet.


However, both men have already fled the area, sources in the police told The Express Tribune on Saturday.

According to the FIR, the two brothers, Bin Yasir and Gul Nazar, filmed the four women and then added their own footage to the video, in which they themselves were dancing.

The accused, in connivance with four other people including their elder brother and a cousin uploaded the video on the internet and also released it to some media outlets.

The video caused uproar in the community, which felt the video had stained the honour of the tribe’s women. The FIR adds that all of the accused conspired to damage peace in Kohistan by pitting two tribes against each other.

Earlier, a tribal Jirga had reportedly condemned the four women and two men to death when the video was made public.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 3rd, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/388018-movie-1338698161/388018-movie-1338698161.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Rights’ activists urge SC to ban jirga system</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/386606/parallel-courts-rights%e2%80%99-activists-urge-sc-to-ban-jirga-system</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/386606/parallel-courts-rights%e2%80%99-activists-urge-sc-to-ban-jirga-system#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 31 May 12 02:51:55 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[our.correspondent]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=386606</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Cite subjugation of individual rights in general, women and children in particular.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The Women Action Forum (WAF) on Wednesday urged the Supreme Court to uphold the Sindh High Court verdict declaring the jirga/panchayat system illegal.


The demand was made at a meeting held to draw attention to the rapidly deteriorating situation in all parts of the country and increasing cases of violence against women.

The participants at the gathering strongly condemned the recent “outrageous” decision and verdict given by jirga members in Kohistan, where two men and four women were condemned to death for dancing at a wedding.

“WAF is seriously concerned at the inability and will of the state and the apathetic response to the rampant violence and suffering of the citizens, sectarian violence, and loss of lives in all parts of the country,” said the participants.

The Sindh High Court declared the Jirga system illegal in 2005.

In addition, the National Commission on the Status of Women (NCSW) has filed a petition against such parallel legal systems that is currently being heard.

WAF said that as the lives of these six victims from Kohistan are in jeopardy, they must be freed and protected and the jirga members should be severely punished to set an example for those who take the law into their own hands.

The forum also condemned out of court settlements in cases of violence against women and girls, particularly rape cases such as the recent case of a 13-year-old school girl from Rawalpindi.

Talking to The Express Tribune, some of the women rights’ activists said such incidents are an eye opener for the state.

Former NSCW chairperson Anis Haroon said it is very unfortunate that in Pakistan there is no one who could hold the jirgas accountable for what they are doing with innocent women.

She said, “Where does the Islamic law say that a woman who claps during a celebration should be punished.”

“Illiteracy, poverty and weak implementation of laws in the country are the main reasons behind such evil acts,” said Haroon.

Decrees should be issued against dowries and violence against women among other things, she suggested.

Moreover, civil rights activist Farzana Bari noted that the root cause of such incidents is the lack of respect for individual rights in the country.

“Such incidents reflect the complete failure of the state and non-existence of rule of law. Non-state actors such as jirgas, and the taliban are taking full advance of this and imposing their own laws,” she said.

She urged the Chief Justice of Pakistan to take stern action against the parallel judicial systems in the country.

Moreover, Samar Minallah said the Jirga system is exploiting women and children. “In our country, women have always become victims of such parallel judicial systems and weak implementation of laws,” she added.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31st, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/386606-jirga-1338432634/386606-jirga-1338432634.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Jirga (in)justice: Jirga members booked as doubts rise over women’s safety</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/386069/jirga-injustice-jirga-members-booked-as-doubts-rise-over-women%e2%80%99s-safety</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/386069/jirga-injustice-jirga-members-booked-as-doubts-rise-over-women%e2%80%99s-safety#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Wed, 30 May 12 04:46:42 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[muhammad.sadaqat]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=386069</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Authorities insist that all four women are safe in their village homes.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[In the wake of searing criticism from right groups, the police have booked two of the eight jirga members who condemned four women and two men to death for “disrespecting gender segregation customs” in a remote village of Kohistan district, police sources said.


Head of the jirga Molvi Javed, a prayer leader of a Mansehra-based seminary, and former union nazim Peech Bela Molvi Noorul Haq, were booked under section 107 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) on Tuesday.

The jirga had declared four women and two men ‘Ghul’ (fornicators) after they were allegedly caught on videotape singing and dancing together at a wedding party in Bando Baidar village of Peech Bela union council.

The two members of the jirga who were booked addressed a press conference at the Manshera Press Club on Tuesday denying that they had ever issued any decree of killing the people.

They claimed that the video was fake and doctored by rival tribes in a bid to hatch a conspiracy to pit the two tribes against each other.

They pointed out that it was against the “Shariah” to condemn somebody on the basis of some “engineered footage”. The two jirga members, who also denied being part of the jirga, brushed aside reports that they had ever furnished surety bonds to the police administration.

Conflicting reports

As conflicting statements on the case continued to emerge on Tuesday, neither the women nor the men could be presented before the press to confirm whether they were safe or not.

District Police Officer (DPO) Abdul Majeed Afridi, who claimed to have dispatched a police party to recover the detained women on Monday, gave a new statement on Tuesday. He said that all four women were safe in their homes and peace prevailed in Seertaiy village.

On the other hand, Hazara Division Commissioner Khalid Khan Umerzai said that the administration had met all the eight jirga members, who belonged to the women’s Azad Khel tribe, and they had agreed in principle to not cause any harm to the women.

According to DPO Afridi, the situation was under control. He said one of the four women was in Muzaffarabad with her in-laws, the second one was at Manshera with her in-laws too and the other two women were with their families at home in Seertaiy. “They all are safe and face no life threats,” he said.

However, Muhammad Afzal – the elder brother of Bin Yasir and Gul Nazar who were allegedly seen in the footage and condemned to death by the jirga – claimed that the girls were still locked in a room.

He demanded if the women had been rescued, they should be brought before the press and even the courts to record their statements.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 30th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/386069-artDESIGNSJAMAL-1338353167/386069-artDESIGNSJAMAL-1338353167.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Mixed gathering: Cleric arrested over dancing death decree</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/385764/mixed-gathering-cleric-arrested-over-dancing-death-decree</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/385764/mixed-gathering-cleric-arrested-over-dancing-death-decree#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 29 May 12 10:30:48 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[afp]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=385764</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Cleric denies issuing death sentence to six people for dancing, singing together, says his name was being misused.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Police on Tuesday arrested a cleric accused of sentencing six people to death for singing and dancing at a wedding in Kohistan.

"Police have arrested a cleric and his companion for issuing the death decree, but they totally denied it," local administration official Aqal Badshah Khattak told AFP.

"The cleric has said he had no role in the decree and his name was misused," Khattak said.

Police told AFP on Monday that clerics sentenced four women and two men to death after mobile phone footage emerged of them enjoying themselves at a village wedding in the mountains of Kohistan district, 175 kilometres north of the capital Islamabad.

The men and women had allegedly danced and sung together in Gada village, in defiance of strict tribal customs that separate men and women at weddings.

But on Tuesday, district police chief Abdul Majeed Afridi said it appeared to be a case of tribal rivalry and an attempt to defame a family.

He said the video was recorded three years ago and then edited in an attempt to implicate the party goers.

"I am satisfied that there is no danger to the life of the girls," he said.

According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, at least 943 women and girls were murdered last year after being accused of defaming their family's honour.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/385764-artDESIGNSJAMAL-1338287378/385764-artDESIGNSJAMAL-1338287378.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item><item>
			<title>Jirga decision: Authorities move to save ‘condemned’ Kohistani women</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/385619/jirga-decision-authorities-move-to-save-%e2%80%98condemned%e2%80%99-kohistani-women</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/385619/jirga-decision-authorities-move-to-save-%e2%80%98condemned%e2%80%99-kohistani-women#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 29 May 12 01:13:31 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[muhammad.sadaqat]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[K-P]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=385619</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[A jirga had condemned six people to death for “disrespecting gender segregation customs” in remote village of...]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[In a bid to preempt the execution of six people condemned to death for “disrespecting gender segregation customs” in a remote village of Kohistan district, administration officials ordered the detention of eight tribesmen on Monday.
A jirga had declared four women and two men Ghul (fornicators) and condemned them to death after they were allegedly caught on videotape singing and dancing together at a wedding party in Bando Baidar village of Peech Bela union council.

“We have detained eight people (from the women’s tribe). And they have given us a written guarantee that the women would not be harmed,” Hazara Division Commissioner Khalid Khan Umerzai told The Express Tribune.

Umerzai added that he had seen the video showing the women and the men dancing and singing together.

“Judging by the local tribal culture, it is objectionable,” he said but added that he would not condone if a tribal jirga has condemned them to death as was reported by The Express Tribune on Sunday.

“The women have violated their tribal norms by dancing and singing with Na-mehrams (those who one can marry in Islam). But the law does not allow nobody to condemn them to death,” he added.

The commissioner claimed that the women were safe at the homes of their parents in Seertaiy village. He also confirmed that the condemned men have fled their village.

The local police chief said that a police party, headed by a deputy superintendent police, has been sent to Seertaiy village to recover the girls who, The Express Tribune reported, were locked in a room and were being starved.

Abdul Majeed Afridi, the district police officer, also endorsed Umerzai’s claimed that “the women are safe in their parents’ homes”.

Interestingly, DPO Afridi went back on his earlier statement and said that it was a local cleric, not a jirga, who condemned the six to death. On Sunday, he confirmed to The Express Tribune that a jirga had condemned them to death.

Afridi appears to have good knowledge of local tribal customs. “If a woman is found talking to a Na-mehram, she is ‘punished’ while the man is ‘wounded’ for his crime,” he said. However, he would not say how the woman is ‘punished’ and the man ‘wounded’.

Rights campaigners have condemned the jirga’s decision. In their statements, Sahara Development Foundation, Human Development Organisation, Rural Development Project, Integrated Human Rights Network, Aurat Foundation and Aurat Association called upon the government to ensure that the six people are not harmed.

They also demanded that the administration shift the women to Darul Aman for their security. They called for a ban on the jirga system which, they believe, is the root cause of discrimination against women in society.


(Read: The farce of tribal jirgas)

Published in The Express Tribune, May 29th, 2012.]]>
			</content:encoded>
			<image>
				    <img src="https://i.tribune.com.pk/media/images/385619-women-1338253709/385619-women-1338253709.jpg" class="featured_image"/>
            </image>
			</item>	</channel>
                </rss>
