Pakistani Girl aged 14 raped by Uncle dies during Abortion

A 14-year-old girl from the city of Okara in Punjab, Pakistan has died following a failed abortion procedure.

The victim, named as Uzma by local media, died in hospital on October 10, 2020. Police have accused her uncle, Ghulam Anwar of repeatedly raping her during a 6-month ordeal.

The continued sexual assaults resulted in her becoming pregnant, for which she was then forced to undergo a termination procedure.

Following the death, Uzma’s father registered a complaint with Okara police, who arrested the uncle and his spouse, Sajida Bibi.

The girl had been living with them at their house, following the separation of her parents.

When the couple found out the minor was pregnant, they forced Uzma to undergo a termination when she was six-months pregnant.

Due to the late stage of the operation, Uzma developed complications which resulted in her untimely death.

Abortion can only take place in Pakistan after six months for life-saving reasons. As of yet, it remains unknown whether the termination was performed by medical professionals.

Both Ghulam Anwar and the girl’s maternal aunt Sajida will face further police investigation.

Last month, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan called for severe punishment for the nation’s worst sex offenders.

This came after a woman was dragged from her car which broke down and was gang-raped at gunpoint in front of her two children.

Imran Khan demanded “exemplary sentences” for the woman’s rapists. He also added the culprits deserve to be hanged at the site of the brutal attack on the Lahore motorway.

According to a report by Tribune, Prime Minister Imran Khan said:

“I personally think paedophiles and rapists must be hanged publicly but I’m told that we have international repercussions.”

“EU’s GSP status for trade with Pakistan will be affected by public hangings. Hence, I think chemical castration must be conducted on those criminals.”

He added:

“Abid Ali, the main culprit in (the) Motorway incident, was caught in a gang rape case back in 2013. Hence it’s needed that we chemically castrate them and maintain registries of such criminals.”

This latest development will surely strengthen Prime Minister Imran Khan’s resolve.

Again, media attention has been drawn to the problem of rape convictions in Pakistan. According to the Karachi-based War Against Rape (WAR) organisation, the rate falls below 3%.

Commenting on the same, Shehraz Ahmed, program coordinator at the non-governmental organisation WAR, said:

“Unfortunately, rape and sexual assault is still a taboo subject in Pakistan. Cases of rape are underreported and conviction is even lower, under 3%, across the country.”