Jirgas are an assembly of leaders called upon to issue verdicts
and settle disputes in many of the tribal regions of the country. They are
largely dominated by the most influential members in the community. Mob
justice thus prevails as the panel acts as both the judge and the jury.
And much like other spheres of Pakistani life, the ones calling
the shots here too are the elderly Sunni Muslim males, with silver beards and
pants hitched above the ankles.
While much has been said (and to a certain extent, done) to raise
awareness about the impact of the tribal justice system on women and the poor,
the religious minorities are still widely unrepresented in this pseudo court
room. The situation turns even more dismal when women of a religious minority
are concerned. In the January of 2010, a 17-year-old girl Christian girl belonging to an area near Nagar Park
was brutally raped. The response of the Jirga called upon to deal with the
matter was to summarily order her to first convert to Islam and then to marry her alleged rapist.
In the Jirga system, the underdogs are frequently downtrodden.
What happens the victim is female, poor, and non-muslim to top it off?
1 comment:
Mariam - Thank you for highlighting how the most oppressed members of society are the least able to get justice from this system. But this is also true in the state court system. Therefore, I think this issue needs to be raised on all levels. As a country, we should judge ourselves based on how we treat the weakest members in our society.
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