Tom Watson, along with a host of other bloggers, is fighting the good fight by supporting Nicholas Kristof’s attempt to save the life of Pakistani activist Mukhtaran Bibi.
I imagine that most people are now aware of Bibi’s plight, but if you’re not, here’s a summary from Kristof’s column:
Ms. Mukhtaran was supposed to have committed suicide. Instead, with the backing of a local Islamic leader, she fought back and testified against her persecutors. Six were convicted.
Then Ms. Mukhtaran, who believed that the best way to overcome such abuses was through better education, used her compensation money to start two schools in her village, one for boys and the other for girls. She went out of her way to enroll the children of her attackers in the schools, showing that she bore no grudges.
[snip]
On Thursday, the authorities put Ms. Mukhtaran under house arrest - to stop her from speaking out. In phone conversations in the last few days, she said that when she tried to step outside, police pointed their guns at her. To silence her, the police cut off her land line.
[snip]
Asma Jahangir, a Pakistani lawyer who is head of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, said she had learned that Ms. Mukhtaran was taken to Islamabad, furiously berated and told that President Pervez Musharraf was very angry with her. She was led sobbing to detention at a secret location. She is barred from contacting anyone, including her lawyer.
“She’s in their custody, in illegal custody,” Ms. Jahangir said. “They have gone completely crazy.”
I urge you to read up on this issue on Tom’s blog, and to take the steps that he recommends. Although recent efforts have helped spring Bibi from captivity, she is still in danger.
One Comment on "Doing God’s Work"
Tom Watson:
Blogs to the Rescue
In less than 24 48 72 hours, you’ve mobilized a small army on behalf of Mukhtaran Bibi, my personal hero and a symbl of courage to many millions. I’ll continue to update the main post below, but I wanted to
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