By Hira Nafees Shah
Acid throwing, also called an acid attack, is a form of violent assault defined as the act of throwing acid onto the body of another with intent to disfigure, maim, torture, or kill. It’s a horrific crime with lifelong consequences, and the victims are almost always women. In Pakistan, the Acid Survivors Foundation (ASF) predicts that more than 150 acid attacks occur each year.
One activist and U.S. exchange program alumnus Syed Irfan Haider—a 2013 International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) participant—hopes to lower those statistics. As director of operations for the Acid Survivors Foundation, Haider and the ASF team advocate for improved medical care and support for survivors, who often require long term surgical treatment, as well as psychological counseling.
“It is a time to celebrate the passage of the bill against acid violence, but it is also a time of reflection, as only 50 percent of the victims have been reached so far,” Haider says, while stressing the need to work on improving the implementation of the bill.
The Pakistani government passed a Criminal Law Amendment Act in 2011 to criminalize acid violence and proposed a minimum sentence of 14 years in prison for the accused. But registration of cases under the new law were few and far between, because police officers were unaware of the new amendment’s provisions. To fill the gap, the Acid Survivors Foundation stepped in to educate law enforcement officers and lawyers, to ensure proper registration of cases.
At a panel discussion organized by the foundation on April 14, 2014, ASF presented a report that reviewed the bill’s progress and shared best practices related to its implementation. ASF also recognized more than 30 police officers, lawyers and doctors for their meritorious services in registering proper cases related to gender based violence and extending treatment to the acid survivors free of cost.
“The majority of the acid victims are women who are mostly poor, live in rural areas, survive on less than two dollars a day and are largely illiterate,” said Valerie Khan, chairperson of the Acid Survivors Foundation.
She said 519 out of 949 reported cases between 2007 till 2013 were of women and most of the cases were reported in Punjab (56%). Southern Punjab—known as the cotton belt—had the highest prevalence of acid attacks, because of the ready availability of corrosive substances used in agriculture in the area.
“Only one percent of FIRs were registered under the Criminal Law Amendment Act in 2012,” Khan said. “With the intervention of Australian Aid, knowledge was transferred to police, lawyers and medical officers, due to which FIRs registered under the right law jumped to 71 percent in 2013.”
She added that from January to March this year, 49 cases have been reported so far. Before 2011, the average conviction rate was of 6 to 11 years imprisonment for the perpetrator, but after the passage of the bill, it increased to 20 years in 2013. Overall seven convictions took place last year, whereas before the victims had to wait for three to four years to get justice.
Khan stressed that a national campaign was needed to change the mindset that leads to acid violence and there is also a need to promote gender equality. PML-N MNA Marvi Memon, Australian High Commissioner Peter Hayward and National Commission on the Status of Women Chairperson Khawar Mumtaz were some of the chief guests at the occasion, among others.
The Chairman of the Provincial Commission for the Status of Women Neelum Toru highlighted the need to formulate a comprehensive description of corrosive substances that are used in the household. She also said that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government was planning to table its own version of the Acid Crime Prevention Bill, which proposed harsher punishments for the crime, such as the death penalty or up to 25 years of imprisonment for the culprits.
“We have come a long way in addressing acid violence but still there is a long way to go,” said Memon, while addressing the ceremony. She tabled the Criminal Law Amendment Act in 2011 in parliament, after promising an acid victim she would take action in her capacity as an MNA.
Haider agrees. He cites his U.S. exchange experience as a great benefit in helping to improve his data collection and monitoring skills as director operations at the Acid Survivors Foundation, but more awareness and advocacy efforts among the general public are needed to end acid attacks for good.
Learn how you can get involved at http://acidsurvivorspakistan.org/.
