How Hudood Laws Targetted Women

Beena Sarwar, a political analyst writes, " In 1979, there were only 70 women in prisons all over Pakistan. By 1988, this figure was an astounding 6,000." (Full Article)

Why did this happen?

Pakistan is a poor country. Families with few viable means to cope with rising poverty and inflation often find that their women's sexuality is a valuable asset. Women are bartered for money, swara in NWFP and vani in Punjab, mostly in rural Pakistan. Few courageous women resist. Their rebellion is crushed by threatening them to be incarcerated for "adultery" under Hudood ordinance. Women in Prison are a testimony of this in-justice.(Read actual stories of women)

Before Hudood ordinace adultery was a sin not a crime. Under Pakistan penal code only husband could bring charges of adultery against women. After Zia's Islamization "adultery" became a crime under hudood and after Musharraf WPB(2006) , it now can be tried under Pakistan Penal Code. (Click here)

Who Interprets Islam: Literalist or Modernist?

Dr. Hasan Askari Rizvi, defence and political analyst, makes a valid argument, in Nov 2006, that the pivotal question facing Pakistan is who will interpret Islam? Literalist focusing on narrow agenda or modernist concentrating on the message of social justice and human rights in Islam.

Mullahs, like in MMA, have used Islam as political capital , are now much more powerful than they were in seventies. Now they have resources, because of monetary gain during their involvement in afghan war, political clout, because of Pakaistan military favouring them to marginalise secular political parties and lastly the ability to bring student of madrassas out on the street. (Full Story) (Other JI pictures)

Asma Jahangir favours the amendment

Asma Jahangir, a renowned women right activist, blasted the network of morality enforcers, the women parliamentarian of Jamaat, who pleaded to retain Hudood, in its present form, as faltering will open floodgates to immorality. They argued, writes Asma, that Pakistan was created to be a theocratic State.Their leaders lamented that like many Western countries people would start living out of wedlock and have illegitimate children.

Asma points out that, both adultery (Zina) and Rape are still offences but before this amendment a rape victim, during the course of investigation, if found to have consented to rape could be arrested for adultery. This amendment has made the procedure for adultery complaint stricter and those making an accusation of rape cannot be punished for zina. Thus, false accusations of zina will dramatically drop.

Since most women in Jail are because of "false" accusation of a adultery so this law is certainly a step in the right direction.(Full Story)

"Adultery" now an offence under Pakistan Penal Code

Daily Times editorial(17th Nov 2006) congratulates Musharraf, PPP and PMLQ for taking the right step in supporting Women's Protection Bill (WPB). Imran Khan and PML-N abstained. MMA walked out.

Both Rape and Adultery can now be tried under Pakistan Penal Code (PPC). It will be good for Rape victims as the condition of 4 pious male witnesses to prove rape, under Shariah law, is not required. Liberals wanted adultery to stay under Shariah law (Hudood Ordinance), so that it would be difficult to prove , but conservative within PML-Q compromised only after fornication (read senator Wasim Sajjad, leader of the House statement)was also brought under PPC. (Full Story)

Fatima Bhutto on Hudood Ordinance Amendment

Fatima Bhutto, daughter of (late) Murtaza Bhutto, makes a valid argument that, not culture nor religion, laws like Hudood needs to be blamed for increasing violence against women. Before Hudood ordinance was implemented fornication was a personal sin not a crime against the state. With hudood ordinance women raped could be incarcerated for adultery. This resulted in rapes being under-reported.

Ms Fatima writes that this amendment doesn't make raped women more safe as they can still be tried for adultery. (full Story)

Asma Jahangir has a slightly different take on the amendment. Ms Jahangir sees the amendment as a step in the right direction. In her opinion this amendment has made the procedure of accusing someone of adultery very difficult. (Click here)

2006: Hudood Ordinance Amended

Step in the Right Direction.

President General Musharraf signed into law Protection of Women Act 2006. (PDF) (Other bills)

Dawn editorial, writes that, the Zina Ordinance would lose much of its bite.

First, Rape has been taken out of the Hudood law and put under the PPC as it was before General Zia decided to equate it with adultery making a raped woman liable of being punished for fornication if she failed to produce four eye witnesses.

The second major amendment is to change the procedure for registering a zina case. The offence is no longer cognizable and only a court can decide whether the case has any merit and even if it does, the offence is bailable.

There is a provision for making "lewdness" (later changed to fornication, defined as consenting sex between unmarried couples) punishable under the PPC.

More than the bill itself, it is the direction the government has taken in the "long journey to protect women's rights", to quote the prime minister, is encouraging.

The amendments also include dropping the death penalty and flogging for persons convicted of having consensual non-marital sex. (HR Watch: Report 2006 on Pakistan)

1979: Hudood Ordinance Enforced

1979: General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, the military dictator of Pakistan, enforced the Hudood Ordinances (Text of Ordinance)as part of the Islamization process, with a view to implement Muslim Shari'a law, which imposes sanctions for a number of crimes mentioned in the Quran and Sunnah. Read General Zia Islamization Details.

Women were the first victim of Zia's effort to marginalise the secular political parties and use Islam as a political capital to strengthen his hold on the society.

How Rape Victims were Incarcerated or Whipped?

A woman raped, risked incarceration and whipping, if she decided to pursue the legal means. To punish her rapist, a victim needed 4 male pious muslims for maximum (hadd) punishment, which include stoning to death of rapist, which was almost impossible. She could only use her testimony, DNA test and other evidences for lesser (tazir) punishment, that was fine, imprisonment and/or whipping, for the rapist. If she failed to prove a rape than she risked being punished for illicit sexual activity (adultery).

According to advocates Asma Jahangir and Hina Jilani of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Tazir punishments or public whippings occur frequently. (Read excellent summary here)


Actual Cases where raped victim were charged with adultery:
Nazir Bashir Case: Karachi, 2003
Zafran Bibi Case: Kohat, 2002