An "Indecent Haste"
It's always heart-warming to read about a group of men debating the need for a bill to protect women from male violence. In Pakistan, there is a movement afoot to repeal the Hudood Ordinances. Among other things, the Hudood Ordinances require a female rape victim to have four male Muslim witnesses in order to prove a claim of rape (because, you know, rapists generally do commit rape in front of scads of witnesses, no). If the claim cannot be proven, the woman can be convicted of adultery and sentenced to death.
Sadly unsurprisingly, the repeal of this bill is highly controversial in Pakistan. A hard-line religious group has already rejected it. A committee has now been formed to amend the bill in order to make it acceptable to the hard-liners.
The MMA leader said that Chaudhry Shujaat was convinced that there was no need to show an ‘indecent haste’ to get the controversial bill passed from Parliament.
An "indecent haste". Such a lovely phrase. I'm sure if you're a woman who has been raped, there is no haste that is hasty enough to be "indecent". However, all of this must take a back seat to the concerns of a group of men.
Chaudhry Shujaat said the government wanted to resolve the issue amicably.
Amicably for whom? For Pakistani women?
With any luck, this bill will be passed in a non-watered-down version.
Via feministe.