Pak National Assembly rejects Bill seeking public hanging of rape convicts

Islamabad [Pakistan]: Pakistan's upper house of the National Assembly on Tuesday rejected a Bill seeking public execution of sex offenders and rapists to prevent such heinous crimes, The Express Tribune reported.

According to the report, Senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan of the JI tabled the Bill during the Senate's farewell session, chaired by Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani, on Monday.

Senator Khan said in the Assembly that 1,122 cases of rape were reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) province alone in the last five years.

He added that following these incidents, the police arrested 581 individuals, of whom 494 were acquitted and only 87 were convicted.

He stated further that 341 of the suspects were booked for raping women, but only 23 were sentenced, according to the report.

According to the Express Tribune, Senator Mushtaq said 152 people accused of raping children were acquitted while courts sentenced only 64 of them.

"According to one report, in the first six months of 2023, 12 children were targeted for sexual assault every month," the Express Tribune quoted him as saying.

"Let just four such public executions be held, and this crime will end. Don't be afraid of America and Europe; strict punishments are necessary to control crime," he added.

Senator Kamil Ali Agha of the PML-Q supported the Bill, citing the practice in America where authorities release videos of lethal injections being administered to convicts.

"In Saudi Arabia, public executions are carried out. If we are Muslims, our stance should be correct. What is happening in the world is not important; what Islam says is important," Agha said.

Senator Humayun Mohmand of the PTI also voiced support for the public hanging of rape convicts, saying, "In countries where public executions are carried out, crime rates are low. Where hands are cut off, theft is also minimal", according to Express Tribune.

PPP's Senator Sherry Rehman, however, opposed the Bill, stating that public hanging foments barbarism. She mentioned that the PPP had opposed the death penalty for rape and emphasized the need for improving policing rather than focusing solely on death penalty laws, The Express Tribune reported.

"Pakistan ranks fifth in the world in terms of the death penalty. Public hanging does not suit a society of the 21st century. Public hanging will not stop crime," Rehman said.

Senator Irfan Siddiqui of the PML-N also opposed the Bill on public hanging, saying that hanging should be confined to the gallows. PML-N's Senator Ishaq Dar said since the death penalty is already part of the law, they are against public hanging.

Notably, Barrister Ali Zafar, who also belongs to the PTI, opposed the Bill.

"We support the current law which includes the death penalty. However, we oppose public hanging. Instead of public executions and hangings on the streets, efforts should be made to improve the justice system," he said.

Further, according to the Express Tribune, when Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani conducted a vote on the Bill, 14 members voted in favor while 24 members voted against it. Consequently, the chairman rejected the motion to present the Bill for approval.

During the session, PTI members surrounded the chairman's dais, protesting vehemently against alleged election rigging. The protest ended after the chairman assured them of a detailed discussion on alleged election rigging on Tuesday.