Shireen Mazari finally spoke up against the CCPO Lahore
The news of a woman being raped right in front of her kids has left the people of our country in shock. The news has not only been a source of torment for the masses but it has also raised questions over the safety of the women in our country. This all ended up stirring an online debate regarding the matter and like, many other cases, the victim in this case was blamed for being out at ‘that’ hour and using ‘that’ particular route. The surprising part is that this irresponsible statement came from the CCPO Lahore, who’s leading the law enforcement agencies in that area.
CCPO Lahore, Umar Shiekh, while being asked about progress in the motorway rape case, implied that the woman herself was to be blamed for being raped
He stated that the woman should have opted for an alternate and relatively ‘safer’ route and should have also re-checked the amount of fuel in the vehicle
Shameful!!! Newly appointed CCPO lahore blames rape victim for being raped bcz she was travelling alone on motorway . How can you expect this man to arrest the culprits?
#PublicHangingOfRapists#HangRapists pic.twitter.com/g4tzZFMkq9
— Najeeb (@The_Najeeb) September 10, 2020
The people have rightly called out the CCPO for his irresponsible statement and have demanded his immediate removal from the office
They were shocked at the audacity of the CCPO to accuse the victim of doing wrong to herself by not choosing an alternate route.
Everyone tweet the hashtag #RemoveCCPOLahore – time for @UsmanAKBuzdar to wake up. Time for him to know what kind of crime Rape is. Seems like for him it’s not big deal. As PTI voter im hurt and disturbed by the statement of CCPO lahore. How dare you blame the victim
— Hassaan Niazi (@HniaziISF) September 10, 2020
The Minister for Human Rights, Shireen Mazari also condemned the CCPO Lahore, saying that his statement was extremely irresponsible and she has decided to take this issue further
She concluded her statement by saying that nothing can ever rationalize the crime of rape.
For an officer to effectively blame a woman for being gang raped by saying she should have taken the GT Road or question as to why she went out in the night with her children is unacceptable & have taken up this issue. Nothing can ever rationalise the crime of rape. That's it.
— Shireen Mazari (@ShireenMazari1) September 10, 2020
In response to Shireen Mazari condemning the CCPO Lahore, people were quick to point out that she has finally woken up
They made suggestive jokes to highlight the way she doesn’t speak up through most of the human right violations in the country.
I think Sleeping in the working hours is high priority and high achievement 😴
— Dr. Imran Sarwar, Ph.D. (@imranisb7) September 10, 2020
She will fall asleep again
— 𝓢𝓪𝓪𝓭𝓲 🇵🇰 (@Saad_Khani) September 10, 2020
Let her sleep Umair.
— M0in (@DreadThanatos) September 10, 2020
She's awake!
— Mrnoname (@theVanquisher7) September 10, 2020
The awaam is highly disappointed because of mere lip service paid by politicians across the board, being cautious that Shireen Mazari condemning CCPO Lahore could become just that if no real action is taken by her
A LOT of them demanded a stern ‘action’ rather than just a tweet to call out the culprits.
Take some action and find the culprits.
Mere tweeting is not enough !— Zartash Chaudhry (@ZartashChaudhry) September 10, 2020
Ohhhh there you are!
Now I hope some action will taken against those culprits.
Being minister of human rights. It is your responsibility to handle this saddened matter.— Saجاwal_Ijaz (@sajawal_Ijaz) September 10, 2020
What are you going to do about it?
— Umair Hassan (@umairhsn) September 10, 2020
People pointed out that Mrs. Mazari’s job is not only limited to condemn the officer or culprits but also to ensure that justice is provided by all means through actual action
He is raising some points that should be kept in mind for other ladies, there are no angels at night even during day to help stranded women.
And your job is not to condemn officers, its to make justice available to the victims.— Käptáànï (@CraZufiy) September 10, 2020
It’s important to understand that blaming the victims or advising that women take certain precautionary measures in advance, will NOT eradicate the issue of rape from society. The issue needs to be addressed from the root cause which in this case is the underlying patriarchy and casual misogyny which dictate the norms of the society. It is this misogyny that allows for men to go on exerting violence on women as if they are their property and not equal human beings. Of course, strict implementation of the laws is a must too, but educating society is the most important way to change these criminal occurrences.
A 16-Year-Old Girl Was Raped In Karachi And People Are Blaming Her For It
I Suffered Sexual Abuse Since I Was 6, I Couldn’t Speak Up Earlier Because I Was Told It Was My Fault
Cover image via: dawn.com / @AmmarZamann via Twitter