Kohistan ‘killings’: Second fact-finding mission returns with more questions than answers

Dr Farzana Bari expresses fear that the women she met might not be the ones who had been filmed.


Web Desk June 16, 2012

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.

COMMENTS (15)

Imran Con | 11 years ago | Reply

True or false, as said many times by others and myself at least once, the issue that comes only second to the possible murder itself is this should be over and done with by now because it's an extremely simple issue forced to be made complicated. The judge should put his foot down and get them into his court room to either end it completely or finally get things heading in a productive direction. It also harms the image of the court as it's saying the tribal areas are above the law and the citizens who even behave well but must interact with the court are unappreciated and of second class ranking in the eyes of the law. Everyone in Pakistan's borders are supposed to be treated equally in accordance to the law. The tribal areas are part of Pakistan and should be just as accountable. Another way to look at it is: What do you call an area that is self governed and is not under the authority of anyone else? A separate country.

Soho | 11 years ago | Reply

@A real Bloch: Sir, do you even have an idea what's the criteria to become an American Operative? It takes a lot to be one, pls do some research! FYI most of them r hard working People trying to help the very unfortunate. Some of them(rarely) may be used as naive informers to gather low level intel as most of the staff work in a very confined surrounding. Think about what class of people these NGO's deal with! They r helping our people so pls give them credit for that. But I could be wrong so pls enlighten, sorry ENTERTAIN me with your vast knowledge. BTW if they leave who's gonna do their job to serve OUR people?

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