16-year-old girl set on fire as 'punishment' by Abbottabad jirga

[HAIDER]

ABBOTTABAD: The chilling murder of a 16-year-old girl strangled and set on fire in Galyat's Makol village has been linked to the orders given by a local jirga last week, police said Thursday.

Abbottabad police said a 15-member jirga called by the Makol village councillor Pervez ordered for the deceased, Amber, to be killed and set on fire as punishment for helping her friend escape the village to marry of her free will. Thirteen members have been arrested and due to appear before an anti-terrorism court, including the victim's mother, said police.

When the jirga ended after a six-hour meeting on April 28, the girl was taken from her home to an abandoned house where she was drugged, killed, and placed in the backseat of a parked van. The van was then doused with petrol and set on fire.

The charred body of the teenage girl was found in a torched Suzuki van in Donga Gali on Friday. Police recovered the drugs from the abandoned house near the site, as well as the can of petrol used to start the fire.

The body was tied to the seat of the vehicle, which was parked at a bus stop in the village. Another vehicle parked near the gutted van was also damaged. Police moved the body to Ayub Medical Complex for an autopsy.

The girl was later identified as the daughter of Riasat, a labourer who works in Balochistan’s Gadani area.

A police official told Dawn that the fire on the bus had occurred at 3am.

According to District Police Officer (DPO) Khurram Rasheed, a couple eloped and left Makol April 23 for Abbottabad with the girl’s help and a driver named Naseer. A jirga was called at Naseer’s home when the couple could not be found.

DPO Rasheed said the case will be tried by an Anti-Terrorism Court and "exemplary punishment" will be recommended by the police.

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) MPA Shaukat Yousafzai told DawnNews "strict action" will taken against the jirga which ordered the brutal ruling. "This is not a part of KP's culture," he said.

"This is the first time an incident of this type has taken place."

He hailed the role of the local police for solving a case "that shook the entire Khyber Pakhtunkhwa" and lauded them for taking the investigation forward in a professional manner.

A jirga is a local community council composed of local elders and notables and a traditional dispute resolution forum.

 

[risingsinga]

Oh My God

 

[T-123456]

Sick idiot people,kill them all by burning them alive.

 

[EasyNow]

There will always be crime but there is not always justice. The system should be commended in this case.

 

[Spring Onion]

This is the second so-called honor-killing case in Hazara division in the last four days. Earlier a man killed his wife and handed himself over to the police . Ironically the same man had killed his male cousin in February when the video of his wife and this male cousin of his surfaced. If this killer was arrested then, then the woman might not had been killed. But alas police is incompetent so is the government machinery

 

[Samandri]

What kind of jirga is this?..........setting a human on fire, this is unprecedented

 

[jamahir]

in true islam a person, especially the lady, marries only by their free will and they don't need the consent of the mother, the uncle or some village "elder".

declare these criminals as munafiq and have them shot in public by a firing squad.

what south asia needs immediately is hardcore socialism... only this will civilize this region.

 

[xyxmt]

Punishment should fit the crime, burn MFers alive

 

[Spring Onion]

What kind of jirga is this?..........setting a human on fire, this is unprecedented

Samandri you know this fact very well that moistly punchayats in Punjab and Sindh indulge in such kinds of orders of honor-killings and lately our media which BTW Is controlled mostly by these two powerful regions started using the Pashto word Jirga for such punchayats which in my personal opinion is an attempt to malign Pashtuns.

Having said that it is also a fact that honor-killing in Kpk/FATA is also rampant.

 

[jamahir]

Samandri you know this fact very well that moistly punchayats in Punjab and Sindh indulge in such kinds of orders of honor-killings and lately our media which BTW Is controlled mostly by these two powerful regions started using the Pashto word Jirga for such punchayats which in my personal opinion is an attempt to malign Pashtuns.

Having said that it is also a fact that honor-killing in Kpk/FATA is also rampant.

but surely when these panchayats and jirgas call themselves muslim and justify these crimes despite islam being in the opposite direction to their beliefs they can be challenged on their anti-human beliefs... can't a group of progressives call the cii chief to make statements about "honor killing" and interest-based economics?? what is the cii for then??

 

[CHACHA"G"]

Samandri you know this fact very well that moistly punchayats in Punjab and Sindh indulge in such kinds of orders of honor-killings and lately our media which BTW Is controlled mostly by these two powerful regions started using the Pashto word Jirga for such punchayats which in my personal opinion is an attempt to malign Pashtuns.

Having said that it is also a fact that honor-killing in Kpk/FATA is also rampant.

Dear Sir/Madam,
I m sorry but I don't agree you with the bold parts , First this incident happened in KPK so that is a Jirga and when ever that type of incidents happened in Tribal (Societies) people or area that will also be call Jirga ,,, Punchayat system only exists in the areas where Biradari system (cast system)have strong legs, and Biradari system is completely different from Tribal system.
For Example You will easily find Punchayats in cities ,you will find them if you saw a couple (husband and wife ) fighting , 5 to 6 alders from Biradaris of both sit-down and resolve the issue ,
Thank you.

 

[HAIDER]

but surely when these panchayats and jirgas call themselves muslim and justify these crimes despite islam being in the opposite direction to their beliefs they can be challenged on their anti-human beliefs... can't a group of progressives call the cii chief to make statements about "honor killing" and interest-based economics?? what is the cii for then??

This has nothing to do with Islam, its abuse by primitive centuries old jirga system using the sacred name of Islam. Centuries old tribal mentality and man dominated society .

 

[VCheng]

This has nothing to do with Islam, its abuse by primitive centuries old jirga system using the sacred name of Islam. Centuries old tribal mentality and man dominated society .

Islam is only what its followers actually do, not what they claim.

 

[باپ]

Unfortunately this isn't a one off. Its part of the old culture and traditions of the area. I am from that place and in college I remember one of my class fellows killed his two or three sisters,for having an affair with men. He is in the jail. But from what I remember he was a nice and funny guy,and his crime was very shocking and was a surprise.

 

[Zahoor Raja-Jani]

still we need to do lot of changes in society first of all abolish any jirga, panchayat and made it illegal.For this incident hang all the culprits in public view and in the same village + let the vultures to do the rest job ...don't burry them or honour to have funeral.
Islam allow us to kill animals and even humen under certain cicumstances and conditions but Islam forbade us to kill any body by burning because this punishment is only given by Allah and for those who openly commited adultry and idol worshiping despite they are called for Islam in their life time.
Not only this Jirga commited a crime but also falls under religious Blasphemy.