Pakistani court agrees to review gang-rape case

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan's Supreme Court agreed yesterday to reopen an inquiry into the high-profile case of Mukthar Mai, a laborer's daughter from southern Punjab province who allegedly was gang-raped on the orders of a tribal council in 2002.

The court decision overturned a judgment by the Lahore High Court, issued in March, that threw out the convictions of five of the men accused of involvement in the rape and commuted the death sentence of a sixth.

The Supreme Court also ordered the rearrest of 13 of the original suspects in the case. The decision, after two days of hearings, was a victory for Mai, whose case has prompted international sympathy and become a focal point for concern about violence against women in Pakistan.

Hundreds of women are raped, maimed and killed every year in so-called honor attacks, many at the hands of their own families. Victims of sexual assault often suffer in silence for fear they will be shunned by their families if they come forward.

The court now will review the evidence and make its own determination as to the guilt or innocence of the accused, a process likely to take months.

Outside the court yesterday, dozens of women hugged and congratulated Mai. "I am happy, and I hope those who humiliated me will be punished," she said.

Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry, the head of a panel of three judges that heard the appeal, issued nonbailable arrest warrants for the 13 suspects, who are in jail but not formally charged.

Pakistan has been under intense international pressure to punish those involved in the alleged rape and recently came under renewed criticism when Gen. Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan's president, barred Mai from traveling to the United States on grounds that she might project a "bad image" of Pakistan. The ban was lifted after protests from the U.S. and other governments.

Women's-rights activists say Mai's greatest impact may be at home, where her boldness has helped change people's perceptions of rape victims.

"She has become a symbol of resistance and defiance in the country," says Farzana Bari, a leading women-rights activist. "For the women's movement, her case is significant as she is showing the cruel face of a system which considers women as property."

The fate of Mai, 32, changed when she was allegedly raped by several men on the orders of a self-styled community justice council, known as a punchayat, in the Punjab village of Meerwala. The councils consist of tribal elders and influential feudal lords.

She was punished after a rival clan claimed her teenage brother allegedly had a sexual relationship with a girl of their clan. Villagers said the boy was merely seen walking with the girl. The punchayat ordered that Mai be raped to settle the score.

Mai said she shouted and screamed for help while she was dragged in front of hordes of villagers to be raped. She walked back to her family house in front of the villagers, shivering, crying. But nobody came forward as a witness in her case.

When the case hit the headlines of international media, Mai became a celebrity and visited several countries in the West.

Using money she raised abroad, she runs a primary school for girls and boys. Within two years, the enrollment increased to 350 and she plans to build more classrooms. The success shows that the villagers trust her, even to teach the Quran.

This story was compiled from The Washington Post, The Associated Press and The Christian Science Monitor.