Karo-kari punishment to lady doctor slammed | Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF)

Pakistan Press Foundation

Karo-kari punishment to lady doctor slammed

PESHAWAR, January 27,2005: Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) has demanded of the government to immediately arrest the elders of a Jirga who reportedly gave a verdict of killing Dr Shazia Khalid in order to restore the lost honour of the tribe.

“We have been informed by the in-laws and husband of Dr Shazia Khalid that a tribal jirga in Gumbar, Khairpur, interior Sindh had decided that in order to restore their lost honour of the tribe, Dr Shazia should be killed under the black laws of Karokari” Dr Umar Ayub, president of PMA informed journalist here in a press conference.
Dr Umar demanded of the government that all the elders of the Jirga, who reportedly have givev the verdict, should immediately be arrested and proceeded against under section 307.

President of PMA regretted the slow proceedings of the inquiry tribunal and said the inquiry tribunal of Balochistan should not be going indefinitely and should complete the inquiry report within a period of one month.

Dr Umar said government should arrest the culprits immediately and hanged them publicly. He lamented the government behavior in the case and said the culprits were not heroes as the government was projecting their views on National Television.

Dr Umar suggested the culprits, who have been charged with the rape by the leadership and people of Balochistan, to prove themselves innocent, before the inquiry tribunal rather than having luxury of being on national hook-up.

President of PMA asked the government to suspend all the Defense Security Guards who failed to protect the lady doctor on that fateful day. He also demanded of the government to immediately suspend the high ups of Pakistan Petroleum Ltd, who covered up the story of gang rape and termed it a robbery.

Dr Umar regretted that NWFP assembly did not raised the issue in its last meeting and said he would expect that NWFP assembly would pass a unanimous resolution against the barbaric incident.

Talking about the interior Minister Aftab Shirpao, Dr Umar said that PMA was astonished that interior minister did not find time to visit the ill fated lady doctor and did not do enough to satisfy the family.

About future plane of PMA, Dr Ayub said if their demands were not met, they will seek an appointment with President of Pakistan to appraise him about the unrest in the doctor’s community, especially, lady doctors who were skeptical of working in the periphery after this incident.

Source: Frontierpost
Date:1/27/2005