Here in Pakistan, women are very easy targets. The patriarchal mindset reinforces the idea that men control the reigns of a woman’s life. And if she tries to negate these ideas, it is men who get to decided whether she gets to live or not. Even if a woman is not directly involved, people just decide that the easiest way to hurt someone is to hurt their female family members.

Again, it is the women that suffer.

It was reported yesterday that a girl had been shot by her brother in Faisalabad because she had told her opinion about being married off to someone

Warda is a school going girl, completely dedicated to what she studies and adamant to deliver her best and make something out of her life. Warda topped in her FSC examinations in 2017 and scored a total 1001 marks out of a total of 1100. She had worked hard to score this number and based on this number, she wanted to be a doctor.

She refused to get married before she completed her studies and her brother shot her for refusing the proposal. She was shot three times.

The angry creature shot her in the arm, face and abdomen, injuring her severely.

Social media is in rage and people want severe action to be taken against the brother

After being shot, Warda was rushed to the Jhang District Headquarters Hospital, from where she was then referred to the Allied Hospital Faisalabad

A case was registered against the brother 12 days after the incident. This probably indicates the family’s hesitance in registering a case against their own son. The FIR was lodged under section 324 of PPC with the Kotwali police station. The father, Muhammad Aslam, was a witness to the incident. After shooting their daughter, the brother left the house and ran away.

It is so easy for people to take lives in this country, especially a woman’s. Men here feel entitled to deciding everything for the females in their houses and that is just wrong. They want to protect their honor, which is apparently attached to women. And if it is not about honor, then a simple marriage refusal for education would encourage them to take up the gun and end your life.

Social media pages and groups are right in pointing out that it is not always the Taliban who are up against our lives. Mostly it is the very people we call family.

Spread this news as much as you can, so that the girl’s future does not look murky and the accused does not get away with it. And remember to pray for her.

 

Cover image via: ndtv.com