Lahore: activists call for repeal of Hudood Ordinances
Eleven human rights organisations described the wording and application of these Islamic laws as irremediable, saying they contradict the national Constitution and constitute a danger for all Pakistani society.
Lahore (AsiaNews) The National Solidarity for Equal Rights (NSER), a group of 11 human rights organisations, yesterday passed a resolution calling on the government to repeal the Hudood Ordinances, Islamic-inspired laws on property, adultery and rape that make for discrimination.
In statement, the group said: "The Council of Islamic Ideology which does not include representatives of human rights organisations or religious minorities is referring [only] to amendments." But the group said it wanted nothing less than abolition because "amending the ordinance won't undo the injustice existing in the very approach and text of these laws."
On 27 June, the Council of Islamic Ideology called on the government to amend the Hudood ordinances. Admitting that abuses had been committed in the name of these notorious laws, they even proposed that all those in prison for related cases be released.
The statement continues: "These laws have inbuilt religious discrimination, as non-Muslim citizens can neither be witnesses at trials nor can a non-Muslim judge preside over a hearing, even if they have the same qualifications as Muslim judges. The same goes for non-Muslim lawyers, who are barred from pleading Hudood cases. These laws therefore contradict the Article 25 of the Constitution, which guarantees equal rights for all irrespective of sex, religion, race and creed."
The Islamic Hudood ordinances were approved in 1979 under the military junta of General Zia-ul-Haq: they are made up of four sections that regulate propriety, qazaf [false accusations of adultery], adultery and prohibitions.
For one thing, the ordinances make no distinction between adultery and rape. To get justice from the state, a woman who is a victim of rape must bring before an Islamic court the testimony of four males - adult and Muslim - who witnessed to and can testify the act was carried out using violence. According to the ordinances, if the victim is unable to produce these witnesses, she may find herself accused of adultery and condemned to imprisonment.
The members of the 11 organisations "thanked the media for highlighting problems facing women and called on the government consult independent law experts and human rights organisations on the laws rather than only Islamic clerics".
They added: "A strong commitment to justice can only lead to repealing the unjust, discriminatory laws, which are a danger to our society."
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11/12/2006
