Kasur pornography victim slams government

In video message, he bemoans failure to protect province’s children


Muhammad Shahzad September 21, 2019
Representational image (PHOTO: FILE)

LAHORE: The abuse of minors, whether physical, sexual or mental, is one of the most pressing social issues facing society.

Observers believe that violence against children is a tragic reminder of the failure of the government and many of them have called for a complete overhaul of measures to protect minors.

Danish Malik, one of the victims of the Hasnain Khanwala pornography scandal, has lashed out at the current and previous governments for their failures to address the issue of child abuse.  In a video message posted on social media, he seemed disturbed over the tragic incident in Chunian where three minor boys were reportedly abducted and murdered before their bodies were dumped.

In the same video, he questioned the outcome of the 2015 Kasur child pornography scandal. “At least 25 FIRs were registered, but only three to the four accused were convicted in two cases.”

The rest of the 10-11 accused persons were set free, he added. The Hasnain Khanwala village of Kasur district gained nationwide media attention after a child pornography scandal emerged in 2015. A joint investigation team was formed to investigate the matter and revealed 19 cases of child abuse and 17 perpetrators of the crime. Danish Malik was one of the victims of the scandal.

Malik added that the previous Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government did not fulfil their promise to deliver justice to the victims. “The previous government made various promises including the provision of lawyers, psychological counselling and education for the victims.”

He elaborated that the prime minister, in his first speech, said he would ensure justice for the victims of Kasur scandal. “However, nothing was done for the victims.”

Malik maintained that after the scandal, the Zainab murder case was reported. “If the culprit had been publicly hanged, no one else would have looked towards the children. I request the prime minister to enact stricter laws against child abuse rather than simply transferring the DPO.”

Malik commented that the punishment, according to the current law, was very lenient. “Punishment for sexual violence against children is just seven to 10 years of imprisonment, according to current legislation.”

Malik demanded that the culprit in the Chunian case be hanged publicly. He also recommended an awareness campaign at every street and corner of the region to address the issue. The victim further said that the child abuse issue is becoming more serious by the day. He asserted that more cases have already been reported in 2019 than the whole of 2018.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 21st, 2019.

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