Cannibals
These two men appear to be suffering from a form of mental illness and the populace must be protected from them.
Arif, arrested on suspicion of cannibalism, is escorted to a police station in Bhakkar district on April 14, 2014. PHOTO: AFP
A cursory glance through the newspapers of the world reveals that yet again a story from Pakistan is hitting the headlines — that of the cannibal brothers of Bhakkar district. The story is carried in multiple languages across five continents, as well as on the electronic media with all the major international 24-hour news channels carrying it. A week ago there was similar blanket coverage for the sorry tale of the toddler who was charged with attempted murder, a case that was eventually thrown out of court by a judge with more common sense than his colleague who had allowed the case to proceed in the first case.
The case of the Bhakkar cannibal brothers is as bizarre as it is curious. Cannibalism among humans is extremely rare and often forced on people by circumstance — the survival by members of a South American rugby team after their plane crashed in the mountains was only possible by the consumption of their erstwhile teammates, for instance. The two brothers had been jailed for eating parts of as many as 150 bodies that they had dug up. This was in April 2011 and they have now been released only too quickly to return to their old haunts and habits, much to the alarm of their neighbours. A police raid on April 13 recovered the head of a boy aged about five years. There is no specific legislation in the statute books under which the men may be prosecuted, a matter which might be worthy of the most urgent attention by our lawmakers. They were originally arrested under the Maintenance of Public Order section of the Pakistan Penal Code, later being charged under section 295-A of the code. This is a matter clearly outside the norms of jurisprudence — anywhere. These two men appear to be suffering from a form of mental illness, and their activities are such that the populace must be protected from them. Detention in a secure psychiatric facility would seem to be the humane solution — which begs the question as to whether such a facility exists in Pakistan.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 16th, 2014.
The case of the Bhakkar cannibal brothers is as bizarre as it is curious. Cannibalism among humans is extremely rare and often forced on people by circumstance — the survival by members of a South American rugby team after their plane crashed in the mountains was only possible by the consumption of their erstwhile teammates, for instance. The two brothers had been jailed for eating parts of as many as 150 bodies that they had dug up. This was in April 2011 and they have now been released only too quickly to return to their old haunts and habits, much to the alarm of their neighbours. A police raid on April 13 recovered the head of a boy aged about five years. There is no specific legislation in the statute books under which the men may be prosecuted, a matter which might be worthy of the most urgent attention by our lawmakers. They were originally arrested under the Maintenance of Public Order section of the Pakistan Penal Code, later being charged under section 295-A of the code. This is a matter clearly outside the norms of jurisprudence — anywhere. These two men appear to be suffering from a form of mental illness, and their activities are such that the populace must be protected from them. Detention in a secure psychiatric facility would seem to be the humane solution — which begs the question as to whether such a facility exists in Pakistan.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 16th, 2014.