PressEthic

Gen. Pervez Musharraf, the president of Pakistan is currently in the midst of a controversy which, for once, is not related to terrorism.

This time he has evoked the ire of women right’s activists at home and internationally because of controversial comments about rape cases in Pakistan. President Musharraf was quoted in the Washington Post, ‘a lot of people say if you want to go abroad and get a visa for Canada or citizenship and be a millionaire, get yourself raped.". He was furthur quoted as having said that rape had become a ‘money-making concern". These statements were followed by outrage and widespread criticism back in Pakistan. In the wake of these developments he claimed that he had been misquoted.

The whole saga remains unresolved, as this high profile tussle continues between the media and president Musharraf. My concern in this whole situation is for the rape victims whose names came up in this controversy- Mukhtar Mai and Dr. Shazia Khalid. How long are these women going to be subjected to the scrutiny of the media? Pakistan is an unforgiving society where rape is a social stigma- most victims would rather stifle themselves in silence than seek justice. Mukhtar Mai and Dr. Shazia are exceptional women who have stood up where thousands would not dare to. They don’t deserve to have their names dragged up in the media over and over again.

The Australian informs about Dr. Shazia, ‘She said in an interview in February she had chosen to leave as it was not possible for her to be accepted by society after her name and rape became public.

Mukhtar Mai's case is an even more vulnerable one as she comes from a poor and conservative background and has displayed phenomenal strength in going public with her story. These women deserve justice from the courts and the privacy to fight their battles in peace.

How insatiable is out appetite for drama in the news? It seems the best of people sometimes forget that harrowing tales of rape and death in the newspapers are happening to real people. I, for one do not want someone’s personal trauma being narrated with different angles over and over again. I want to know what is being done about the laws and systems which allow such injustices to happen--authorities that allow them to go unnoticed. There are thousands of Mukhtar Mai’s in Pakistan and they need the media to bring about reform, not create drama.