What happens when you don’t teach young boys how to handle rejection from a young age? It’s a natural thing to do to teach your children to expect they’ll win, that they’ll get what they want. And that if things go wrong, their family, their parents, will protect them. But what about failures and rejection? What does happen when a boy doesn’t learn how to handle those things? When he becomes a man, a man with autonomy, power, and strength
Khadija Siddiqi went to pick her little sister up from school and was stabbed 23 times, in broad daylight, in front of her sister, who also got injured in the process.
Why did this inhumane event occur?Khadija rejected one of her classmate’s Facebook friend request. There has to be more subtext right? That doesn’t make sense? It doesn’t. But it’s the reality of the situation
So Let’s talk about entitlement.
When a person feels like they’re entitled to act however they want to, at the cost of whoever they want to, we create a society of blind, vicious people because of the lack of accountability. Where does entitlement come from? I believe it comes from privilege. The privilege of being able to escape accountability, that is.
Shah Hussain was able to stab an innocent girl 23 times because he wasn’t afraid of consequences. When there are witnesses, proof of her injuries, and there’s DNA evidence. Yet, our lawmakers decide to acquit this person after reducing his sentence from 8 years to 5 years to nothing. The resultant situation is exactly why the perpetrator was able to do what he did, he, a student of law, who knew just how flawed our system is.
And now they’ve let him go. Khadija Siddiqi is a law student herself, was fighting alongside Jibran Nasir way before her own case for the innocent in this country. Unfortunately, the offender’s father is also an acclaimed lawyer who threatened Khadija’s family to shut down the case and when the likes of Tehmina Durrani, who initially supported Khadija ask her to step down and close the case. With that kind of apathy, there’s not much hope. When the justice system decides to free a violent monster, where can a person go for justice?
How is that we as a nation allow this to happen?
We who talk about our women as our “behnain” and “betiyan“. We who associate our “Honour” with our women. The truth is our establishment and our lawmakers hold power over justice and that is why we hear statements like “Pakistan is a failing state”. Maybe we wouldn’t have to hear that if we don’t fail our honor.
People have been writing emails to the Supreme Court to support Khadija and here’s their contact information for anyone who wants to do that. Write to them, use your voice, every single person in this country has a voice and it matters, stand for things that matter, be better, do better by your women Pakistan.
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Ayza Malik, 22. Self taught artist.
