Pakistani rapist serving life in jail freed as he marries deaf survivor who birthed his child

Islamabad: A Pakistani man who raped a deaf woman and was sentenced to jail for life has now been set free by the Peshawar High Court on the condition that he marries the victim who gave birth to his child.  

The High Court’s decision drew huge flak from rights activists who say it legitimises sexual assault against women in Pakistan where a majority of rape goes unreported.

The 25-year-old accused, Dawlat Khan, was sentenced to life imprisonment by a lower court in Buner district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province for raping a deaf woman who is his relative.

On Monday, the Peshawar High Court freed him from prison after an out-of-court settlement agreed by the family of the rape survivor.

Dawlat Khan was apprehended after the rape victim, earlier this year, gave birth to a baby and a paternity test proved he was the child’s biological father.

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Khan’s lawyer Amjad Ali said, “The rapist and the victim are from the same extended family. Both families have patched up after an agreement was reached with the help of local jirga (traditional council)."

Village councils in rural Pakistan are known as jirgas or panchayats which are constituted of local elders who bypass the justice system. However, their decisions have no legal value.

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said it was “appalled” by the Peshawar High Court ruling.

“Rape is a non-compoundable offence that cannot be resolved through a feeble ‘compromise’ marriage,” the Commission tweeted.

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Pakistan rape cases

In Pakistan, rape is notoriously difficult to prosecute. The conviction rate is below three per cent for cases that go on trial, says the Asma Jahangir Legal Aid Cell, a group providing legal assistance to vulnerable women.

Only a handful of cases are reported because of the associated social stigma. There are, however, major lapses during investigations, shoddy prosecutorial practices and out-of-court settlements which lead to abysmal conviction rates.

“This is effectively the court’s approval of rape and facilitation of rapists and rape mentality,” a report by news agency AFP quoted Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir, a lawyer and human rights activist, saying.

“It is against the basic principles of justice and the law of the land which does not recognise such an arrangement,” Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir added.

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