Qandeel Baloch: Should we even expect justice for women in Pakistan?

The people of Pakistan did not need another reminder of the injustice that is rife in Pakistan. From recent honour killings to casual accusations of blasphemy, it appears that the daily news cycle serves us with enough evidence of just how badly the state is failing its people. The irony, of course, is that even when justice is seemingly dispensed in some cases, relief for perpetrators in Pakistan is never far away, regardless of a guilty verdict or not. Hence, on the face of it, one gets the impression that the entire system and machinery is perhaps designed to see just how much state negligence and apathy the masses can endure. After all, we remember Shah Hussain’s early release from prison after he stabbed Khadija Siddiqui 23 times.

So when Muhammad Waseem openly confessed to the murder of his sister Qandeel Baloch, it was hard for most of us to imagine a more open and shut case. Instead a man, who should have spent the rest of his life in prison, has now been acquitted after serving less than six years of his sentence.

For the uninitiated, Baloch rose to notoriety after her posts on social media caught public attention since they scandalised a largely conservative nation. A video of Baloch alongside Mufti Qavi in particular led to great uproar. Baloch had spoken about wanting to challenge and change “the typical orthodox mindset” prevalent in Pakistan. What Baloch’s brother did as a result is not a matter up for debate since he has previously spoken about it himself, stating,

“My friends used to send me videos and pictures on my mobile and everyone in the mobile market was sharing pictures and videos of her with me. Murdering her was better than committing suicide so I went with the former plan.”

“She was on the ground floor while our parents were asleep on the roof top. It was around 10.45 pm when I gave her a tablet... and then killed her.”

Evidently, here we have a man who has stated his motive, and admitted to drugging and then murdering his sister. In his opinion, his sister had besmirched the family’s honour and forced him to endure shame and embarrassment, which is why he chose to kill her. Yet, only two and a half years after Waseem was declared guilty of the murder by a court in Multan and sentenced him to life imprisonment, he has been acquitted.

There are several facets here which need to be addressed. Let us begin with the manner of the acquittal first. At the time of Baloch’s death, it was permissible for the family of a murder victim to forgive the murderer under Pakistani law. A legislation was subsequently passed against this law in the months following Baloch’s death, and the ability to simply pardon a murderer was to be rightfully taken away from any victim’s family. This, coupled with the fact that Baloch’s parents had initially said they would not absolve their son of the murder, meant that Waseem was handed a sentence of life imprisonment.

However, the parents of both the murderer and the murder victim had a change of heart in 2019, and they submitted an affidavit to the court in Multan asking for their son to be pardoned. Flash forward to 2022, the Lahore High Court upheld this acquittal and cancelled Waseem’s life imprisonment. The court order is yet to be made public. It has been argued that this acquittal was possible since the amendment in the pardon law only came into effect after Baloch’s murder had already taken place.

All this truly beggars belief. The fact that the mechanisms of Pakistan’s justice system can declare an individual guilty of murder, yet he can instead simply walk free after being pardoned makes a complete mockery of the entire legal process. If such criminal behaviour is to be settled by the concerned parties themselves, then what indeed is the point of having courts and a legal process? What purpose does the judicial system and Pakistan’s legal code have if it can simply be thrown out the window at the behest of the concerned parties? And if we as a nation are so forgiving, why does this ability to forgive not extend to those falsely accused of blasphemy?

Furthermore, the acquittal only serves as yet another reminder of why women in Pakistan fear for their safety. A man guilty of murder can walk the streets of Pakistan freely, yet a woman who dares to challenge the norms in this country must fear for her life. It appears that having to suffer for the consequences of their actions does not apply to the men of this nation, something which they take full advantage of.

The government has now stated that it will challenge the acquittal in the Supreme Court, but the masses would be forgiven for having little faith in the result of this outcome. The verdict by the Lahore High Court has already sent a bone-chilling message to the women of this country, and signalled to the men that the state machinery will serve to protect them no matter what. Such an acquittal only further reinforces a mentality which is all too pervasive in Pakistan and lends state support to what Waseem had previously said,

“Girls are born only to stay at home and to bring honour to the family by following family traditions, but Qandeel had never done that.”