Pakistan’s anger for the death of the child’s maid

A couple in the Northeast of Pakistan has been arrested under suspicion of killing a 13 -year -old girl who worked for them as a maid, to allegedly steal chocolates.

The girl who only goes with a name, Iqra, succumbed to multiple wounds in the hospital last Wednesday. A preliminary police investigation said it had been tortured.

The case in Rawalpindi has caused generalized indignation and publications with the hashtag #justiceforiqra that had obtained tens of thousands of points of view, and revived a debate on child labor and the abuse of domestic workers.

Laws related to child labor may vary throughout the country, but children under 15 cannot be used as domestic workers in Punjab province.

“I felt completely shattered inside when she died,” said Iqra’s father, Sana Ullah, to the BBC.

He said he had received a police call about IQRA last Wednesday. When he ran to the hospital, he saw Iqra lying on a bed, unconscious. She died minutes later.

IQRA began working as a maid from the age of eight. His father, a 45 -year -old farmer, said he had sent her to work because she was indebted.

After working for some employers, he went to work for the couple two years ago, who have eight children. She won around £ 23 ($ 28) per month.

Police said IQRA had been accused of stealing chocolates from its employers, adding that a preliminary investigation showed that IQRA had been tortured.

Police also says that there was evidence of frequent abuse. The images and videos obtained by the BBC showed multiple fractures in the legs and arms, as well as a serious head injury.

An autopsy is being performed to evaluate the total reach of their injuries, and the police told the BBC that they were still waiting for the final medical report.

“My heart cries tears of blood. How many … are subject to violence in their homes every day for a trivial work of a few thousand? “Activist Shehr Bano wrote in x. “How long will they continue to go down to their daughters in tombs in this way?”

Others have pointed out that their murder was supposedly caused by something so minor.

“She died for chocolate?” A Pakistani user asked in X.

“This is not just a crime, it is a reflection of the system that allows (the) rich to treat (the) poor as disposable,” said another.

IQRA, Rashid Shafiq and his healthy wife have been arrested, along with a Koran teacher, who worked for the family. The teacher had brought to the hospital and left after telling the hospital staff that the girl’s father had died and that her mother was not close.

The police told the BBC that it was not clear if he believed that this was the truth.

Iqra’s father says he wants to see “those responsible for my punished daughter’s death.”

Despite public indignation, such cases generally obtain, they are usually resolved outside the courts and it is rare that suspects are successfully prosecuted.

In 2018, a judge and his wife were sentenced to three years in jail For torturing his 10 -year maid in what had been a very publicized case that caused outrage throughout the country. But then they had their prayers reduced to one year.

Tayyaba was found with serious injuries, that the Institute of Medical Sciences of Pakistan said it included burns in his hands and feet. The girl’s photos also showed cuts and bruises on the face, along with a swollen left eye. She told prosecutors that she was beaten for losing a broom.

According to the Pakistani law, victims or their families have the right to forgive suspects in several serious crimes. To do so, they have to declare in court that they forgive a suspect “in the name of God.”

Actually, legal observers say that the main reason for that “forgiveness” is normally financial, and paying victims is not illegal.

Around 3.3 million children in Pakistan are dedicated to child labor, according to the United Nations Childhood Fund (UNICEF). In addition, women and girls constitute the vast majority of the 8.5 million domestic workers in Pakistan, according to the International Labor Organization (ILO).