Rights Watch | September 7th 2020

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Minor girl raped, murdered, and torched in Karachi

Enraged protesters block Main University Road after the burial of 5-year-old Marwah, the whose burnt body was discovered from a trash heap in the Old Sabzi Mandi area on the morning of September 6. The girl was reported missing from the very area two days prior – a post-mortem examination at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center revealed that the girl was raped before being killed with a blow to the head.

Incensed residents took to the streets demanding due justice and punishment to those involved in the abduction, sexual assault, and murder of the minor girl. Meanwhile, police managed to detain a suspect and have sent his DNA sample to the University of Karachi for testing. Results confirming whether or not the suspect was responsible for the crime are currently awaited.

87 jailed for hate speech in Punjab

The Punjab government claimed to have arrested and detained 87 individuals for allegedly spreading hate speech and promoting sectarian violence on social media, according to a twitter post shared by Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar. According to the data, around 4,000 websites stoking sectarian hatred were blocked and due action was taken against their operators. 43 people were detained under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) Act.

A total of 57 persons were detained during Muharram. Activists claim the crackdown on hate speech disproportionately and unfairly affected minority Shias, who are purported to constitute the majority of arrests made.

630 suspected dengue cases in Punjab

630 suspected dengue cases were reported in Punjab on Saturday, September 5 while 9,271 dengue larvae spots were discovered, raising concerns of the resurgence of yet another health crisis in the country. Since January, a total of 51 confirmed cases have been recorded in the province of which 48 have managed to recover. There have been no casualties due to dengue fever so far this year, however numbers may alter as dengue season quickly approaches.

Tribesmen await compensation

Mamozai tribesmen in upper Orakzai, a tribal district and former hub for the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, expressed their distraught over the delay in due compensation for structural damage to houses and shops in the area during the Pakistan Army-Taliban clashes from 2008 to 2015. Around 1,500 buildings were damaged or destroyed during the operation. Around 500 people were awarded checks worth Rs. 20.6 million, however, the remaining 1,000 affectees have yet to receive any monetary compensation.