Author: Mukhtar Mai
Marie-Therese Cuny/
Translator(s)/ Edito: Linda Coverdale
Publisher: Virago Press
Year: 2006
Language: English
Pages: 172
ISBN/UPC (if available): 9781844084098
Description
Mukhtar Mai came to prominence in June 2002, when journalists in Pakistan first learned of her gang rape, punishment for an honour crime allegedly committed by her brother, an offence for which there was never any proof.
After the horrific rape, custom dictated that she would kill herself. But Mai defied custom. In an unprecedented act of courage, she took her rapists to court.
In this rousing and moving account, Mai describes her experiences and readers get a rare look inside a world of ancient tribal justice, rampant illiteracy, poverty, and economic and sexual bondage.
Mukhtar Mai pitted herself against the system with extraordinary courage and strength of purpose. Timely and topical, In the Name of Honour is the inspirational true story of a woman who continues to fight against exceptional odds, since the trial some of the convictions have been overturned, leaving Mai in a decidedly dangerous situation.
Nevertheless, Mukhatar Mai remains in her village where she runs the first ever school for girls-seeded with money awarded to her by the Pakistani government in hr historic settlement-and is an eager pupil there herself.
REVIEWS
It is because of the support of the world that I feel brave.
- Mukhtar Mai
She has taken a sordid story of perennial poverty, gang rape and judicial brutality and inspired us Mukhtar Mai is a hero.
-New York Times
Mai, a 32-year-old Pakistani peasant, was condemned by her village tribal council in 2002 to be gang-raped. The punishment was provoked by an accusation that her younger brother, 12 years old, had seduced an older woman. The accusation was untrue, but it still held the power to destroy the family honor. After her rape by four men, rather than disappear in humiliation or commit suicide--her first impulse--Mai fought to maintain her dignity and to protect other women from abusive traditions. She asserted humanity for herself and other women by suing the council before the supreme court of Pakistan, winning, and using the funds to start a school for girls. In this amazing collaboration with reporter Cuny, who specializes in covering women's issues and who recorded hours of conversation, Mai presents a portrait of determination in overcoming low caste status and stifling tradition. This inspirational story, which attracted international attention, is all the more powerful told in Mai's own words