Visiting Pakistan’s Adiala Jail: A Spotlight on Women Aid Trust
[Above, women prisoners embroidering handbags in Adiala Jail]

KALSOOM:- About six and a half years ago, I interned with Women Aid Trust, a small not-for-profit organization in Islamabad that provides legal aid and rehabilitative services for women and juveniles in Pakistani prisons, . In 2002, many of the female prisoners I met in Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail were zina [adultery] cases. However, as was often the case with the Hudood Ordinance of 1979, many of the prisoners hadn’t actually committed adultery – rather, many had been raped, and because they could not provide four male witnesses [of the act], were subsequently arrested and charged for zina – a non-bailable offense.

One woman I met that summer had been raped and subsequently impregnated by her brother-in-law. Although she went to the police station to report the crime, she was ultimately charged with adultery. Pakistan’s lower courts found her guilty of the crime, sentencing her to stoning to death [the punishment outlined by the Hudood Ordinance]. The case subsequently garnered so much attention from international rights groups and women’s organizations that the country’s High Court swiftly reversed the decision. Despite her relatively happy ending, I will forever remember my image of this woman at the end of the trial – clutching a tiny baby [born within prison walls], she appeared tiny and frail among the swarm of reporters, human rights organizations, and big shot lawyers. It made me wonder – in our quest to address the overarching obstacles facing women’s rights in Pakistan, how often do we forget the individual victims? How often do they become just another statistic, another nameless face in our crusade for the greater good?

Working with Women Aid Trust [WAT] allowed me to comprehend that in the gender battle, both top and bottom approaches are necessary. WAT takes the latter avenue, addressing specific cases, providing legal aid to individual women and [male] juveniles, and teaching them the professional skills [from tailoring to embroidery to carpet weaving] necessary to lead a productive life post-prison. For the organizations campaigning for more overarching change, their victories are also significant. In 2006, Pakistan’s National Assembly passed the Women’s Protection Bill, which effectively replaced/amended the Hudood Ordinance. The bill ultimately brought the crime of rape under the Pakistan Penal Code, which is based on civil law, not Shari’a [Islamic law], thereby abolishing the need for four male witnesses, etc.

Last week, I witnessed the product of both these approaches. The company I now work for supports and funds WAT, and I paid a visit to Adiala Jail once again. Six and a half years later, the change is palpable. In 2002, the women, their small children in tow, would show us how their food had been infested with maggots and insects. Many stared blankly into space or cried helplessly on WAT co-founder Shaheena Khan’s shoulder. Today, with WAT’s support, the women’s section has their own kitchen as well as small stovetops to cook their own meals. Today, skill development classes run seamlessly within the prison. The children of some of the female prisoners have a small classroom, and will happily recite their latest poem or show off their colorful drawings. While this is obviously no utopia, it is nevertheless a dramatic improvement from the state of affairs I witnessed almost seven years ago. Moreover, the organization itself has expanded its work to include juvenile boys – who are often susceptible to militant recruitment when they leave these prison walls – by teaching them professional skills and preparing them for a matriculation exam accredited by a local university. WAT, with a staff of teachers, psychologists, anthropologists, and lawyers, now supports six jails throughout Pakistan. Their success is both due to their dedication as well as the support and cooperation of the prisons’ staff – the superintendents, the guards, etc.

The advent of the Women’s Protection Bill has also altered the prison demographics, and is a shift worth discussing. As mentioned above, many of the women I encountered in 2002 were either zina cases or had been involved in drug smuggling cases. In Pakistan, much like other societies in the developing world, many women involved in narcotics-related cases commit such crimes because of their impoverished situations [i.e., they are given a small sum of money - sometimes as small as 500 rupees - to carry drugs from one point to the next.]. Following the Protection Bill, adultery-related cases have decreased, and the women who are charged for the crime can now be bailed out. As a result, many of the women I encountered in Adiala Jail last week were either convicted of drug smuggling or murder. In several of the murder cases I observed, many of the women had actually killed their husbands – and, while I am not armed with quantitative proof, I am convinced that some, if not many of the female prisoners had been victims of domestic violence.

To be honest, my recent experience at Adiala Jail did challenge my previous black-and-white notions of right and wrong. However, although I realize that not all women in Pakistan’s prison system are victims, there is still a viable gray area that should always be considered. That is why the work of WAT is so significant – regardless of whether a woman is a victim of a man, of the legal system, or of society, the organization advocates that they all deserve a chance to live a life beyond prison walls. For both the female and juvenile prisoners, WAT’s objective [from my observations] is to find ways to break the cycle, so that their release does not ultimately lead to a re-entrance into the prison system. The organization also engages in advocacy efforts to raise awareness about the issues impacting women and juveniles in the legal system. As someone who has personally witnessed their evolution, I can state with certainty that the men and women of WAT are true heroes – humanizing an issue that is often overlooked in many countries, especially Pakistan.

[Above some of the children of the female prisoners at Adiala in the classroom built by a WAT initiative]

Posted By Naiha Shafiq

Marital visits for Pakistan jails

Posted By Asad Suleman
28 August 2009:

Pakistan's top Islamic court has ruled that prisoners in jails across the country must have greater conjugal rights and visits from spouses.

The order followed a petition which argued that the lack of conjugal rights was behind rising levels of homosexual sex and drug addiction in jails.

Pakistan has a high prison population with many inmates awaiting trial

Human rights groups say prison conditions are "nightmarish" and often lead to rioting by inmates.

"We understand that there are no facilities in any jail across the country for the privacy needed for family visits," the court noted in its order.

"We order the authorities to construct such facilities so that families can meet with the necessary seclusion."

'Islamic rights'

The court said that the lack of such facilities had indeed led to rising levels of homosexual sex, drug addiction and what it termed as other "immoral" activities in national jails.

It said it was the human and Islamic right of every prisoner to have access to such facilities.

The court ordered the authorities to examine international prison systems and gauge what improvements needed to be made in Pakistan.

Prisoners who were deemed to have improved their behaviour should be allowed family visits and the concept of "open jails" should also be investigated, the court said.

The decision by Pakistan's federal shariat [Islamic] court comes as a result of a petition first submitted in 1992.

Human rights organisations have often criticised the way Pakistani jails are operated.

They have alleged that officials routinely assault prisoners.

They say the facilities for prisoners are dismal with dozens being lodged in cells designed for four to six prisoners.

About 7000 women, children in 75 Pakistani jails
Posted By Saad Mahboob

About 7,000 women and children are languishing in 75 jails across the country, both as the under trial and convicted prisoners.

As the statistics compiled by the Society for Advancement of Community Health Education and Training (SACHET) last year say; out of 1,249 under trial women prisoners, about 745 were in Punjab, 236 in the NWFP, 236 in Sindh, 19 in Balochistan, one in the Northern Areas and 12 in Azad Jammu Kashmir.

The study further adds that out of a total of 421 convicted women prisoners, 269 were in Punjab, 98 in the NWFP, 22 in Balochistan and one in AJK.

Over 1,500 women remained in jails across the country as the year closed and most were kept in extremely poor conditions. Final report indicates that of the special committee on the Hadood Ordinance constituted by National Commission for the Status of Women (NCSW) to repeal or amend the controversial law, 88 per cent of the women prisoners in the country were in jails as a result of ambiguities in the Zina Ordinance.

Epidemics


Women prisoners in Adiala jail have been reported to be suffering from tuberculosis and other life-threatening health conditions. The barracks in the jails with the capacity of 50 inmates have been housed with 151 women and 26 children.

A study conducted by the social work department of the Punjab University early this year said that 62 per cent of the 108 women prisoners in Kot Lakhpat Jail were illiterate. Their average age was 33 and 80 per cent of them were suffering from worse health conditions.

About 47 per cent of the prisoners complained about stinking food and broken toilets, while it was also found that medicines supplied to them were often expired.

Last year, during a visit to a jail in Larkana, the group members of the District Public Safety Commission found that no medicines were available for women prisoners.

The press reports say that in 2003, 33 per cent of the interned under-trial women were not produced in courts in Karachi for periods of three months or longer


Detail of the Jails in Pakistan
Post by Aneeza Alvi
Detail of the Jails in Pakistan
Laws Involved:

•The Offence of Zina (Enforcement of Hudood Ordinance VII of 1979)
Sections: 7,10,11,13,14,16,19
•The Offence Against Property (Enforcement of Hudood Ordinance VI of 1979)
Sections: 4,5,9,15,17,18
•Pakistan Penal Code (XLV of 1860)
Sections: 34, 295-B, 302, 324, 337-F, 363, 379, 380, 420

Detail of ages of the women prisoners :

•Minimum: 13 years
•Maximum: 70 years
•Age between 13-25 years: 117 women (48%)

Professions

•House wife: 167 (68%)
•Working Women: 79 (32%)
i.e. Factory workers, Farmers, Beauticians, Tailors, Handicraft sellers, midwives, beggars, Stage Dancers, Trainer in Vocational Institutes, Government Servant
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