Thursday, March 20, 2008

Rape in Pakistan at Jinnah's Mausoleum

Amidst all the troubles besetting Pakistan, it saddens me to come across this report of a rape at the mausoleum of the country's founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah.

The incident occurred on 15 March. A 19 year-old newly wed Pakistani female was kidnapped at gun-point by two men at the entrance of the mausoleum. She was drugged and raped by her captors and other culprits.

She was found two days later at the mausoleum still in a drugged state.

This is such an abhorrent crime, committed by thugs at the country's national symbolic site against a young woman who had gone to pay her respects to the nation's founder. Rape is a serious crime in any country, but it's amongst the worst of the worst in a Muslim country. And it's an added shame that it took place at Jinnah's mausoleum.

Pakistan faces many problems, and its capital Karachi has the further distinction of having a high crime rate. Whatever the political conflicts, what hope is there for peace and stability if there is no personal security and safety even on a visit to a national site?

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