In Mukhtaran Mai's village, Meerwala, rape is condemned. However, there is more shame associated with a raped woman, because a woman is a symbol of her family's honour. Mukhtaran's brother, Shaqoor, had relations with a woman from the higher-caste Mastoi clan, which is why the Mastoi wanted revenge. Some male members of the Mastoi clan captured and imprisoned Shaqoor. Not only did they torture him, but they also raped Shaqoor, age 12. However, this was not enough for the Mastoi, because Shaqoor was a boy and not a symbol of his family's honour.
Indeed, when Mukhtaran reported her rape to the police the second time and the police went to Meerwala to investigate, the Mastoi denied that any rape ever occurred. They argued that such a thing, a public rape, could not occur because there was a multitude of onlookers.
The incident is much more complicated than the way it is often interpreted by Westerners who get their information from only soundbites. The "tribal council" (panchayat) are usually a group of the village elders, but in this case, the "tribal council" consists of the Mastoi elders. The Mastoi were the most powerful clan in the village, and the "tribal council" was anything but an objective third party.
The alleged rapists were arrested by the Pakistani police, but Mukhtaran had to go to court and give a testimony of what happened by herself, as no one else wanted to speak up. Here are Mukhtaran's words on that experience:
We left at about 9 o'clock. It took about an hour. I was worried a lot on the first day, because I did not know what would happen. I testified for three days, and they kept on recording my statement. I was scared, very scared. The defense asked me a lot of questions. At first I was surprised by some of their questions. The lawyers said horrible things. Then I began to understand why women were afraid to visit the court. But I have come this far, now I have to face them.
This sounds very familiar, because just a few decades ago, women in developed countries reported very similar experiences during rape trials. My high school law teacher said one woman who went through the ordeal told her that she was raped twice; the second time was in the courtroom. Only relatively recently were laws passed that prevented defense lawyers from asking about the alleged victim's sexual history. I do not know about the current experience of a woman testifying about her alleged rape in developed countries, but such women still suffer social stigma, which is why there remains a low report rate.
Mukhtaran Mai is admirable, because not only does she go through the ordeal of testifying about her own rape in court, but she also does it coming from a very conservative culture from a small, remote village in the countryside of Pakistan. Moreover, Mukhtaran does it not for herself (why would anyone want to announce to the world that they were violated and dominated, especially in a culture that has such strong views about virginal honour?), but for setting an example for future victims of rape. Mukhtaran explains:
But now at least other cases have emerged and women have gained courage. Now if anything happens to them, they go straight to the police station. Some still do keep quiet. I tell these women that we have to work together to fight against this evil. Otherwise these crimes will continue to happen.
This is why I'm a fan of Mukhtaran. She's received a few awards and honours, but she's still underrated.
More words of Mukhtaran Mai will come in Part III of this series.
