Rights activist accuses police of tearing her clothes

The government's action against the peaceful mixed run on Saturday has exposed the truth about its claims of being liberal, said a woman's rights activist.

"It is obvious now. The government and the Shabab-e-Milli [the youth wing of the Jamaat-e-Islami] are one. They are the ones who backed the attacks on liberal citizens," Asma Jehangir, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan chairperson, told Gulf News yesterday.

Asma, a Supreme Court lawyer, also plans to lodge a case against policemen who assaulted her and tore her clothes.

"The government and police have stooped to the lowest level by shamelessly tearing off women's clothes and debasing them public," said the women's rights activist.

"The police targeted my clothes. A lady police officer told me they had orders to be strict and to tear off the participant's clothes," said Jehangir. "The HRCP will hold a meeting soon to plan our strategy."

Jehangir vowed to hold another protest run next Saturday. "Our women activists were pulled by the hair. They were dragged along the road. They were beaten up severely. Their clothes were torn. They are all innocent people," she said.

"We are planning to stage another symbolic marathon next Saturday."

Police denied abusing the detainees and said officers had protected the protesters from being attacked by members of an Islamic religious group who had gathered to oppose the run.

"We put them into protective custody. We did not torture them," said Lahore police officer Aftab Cheema.

A senior government official in Lahore, speaking on condition of anonymity, said authorities would decide later in the week whether they would allow next Saturday's rally to take place.

Others also condemned the government's highhandedness and police brutality.

Farouq Haider Maudodi, the son of the Jamaat-e-Islami founder, who has since developed huge differences with the party, also participated in the mixed run with his wife and condemned the police brutality.

Among those arrested on Saturday was Danyal Ali Hassan of the New York-based Human Right Watch, who had been doing research on human rights in Pakistan. He said he was also beaten by police while in custody.