Five cases of violence against women in Chitral in three months

PESHAWAR: As many as 261 cases of violence against women were reported in the NWFP from July to September 2008, said a report released by civil society organisations. Five of them were registered with the Chitral police.

The quarterly report on violence against women was compiled by Aurat Foundation and Violence against Women Watch Group in collaboration with Trocaire. The data has been collected from newspaper reports, hospitals (medico-legal reports) and two women crisis centres. Aurat Foundation resident director Shabina Ayaz said out of a total of 261 cases, 97 were reported in Peshawar district, 39 in Mardan, 21 in Charsadda, 13 in Nowshera, 12 in Swat, 11 each in Mansehra and Swabi, nine in Buner, six each in Abbottabad and Dera Ismail Khan, five each in Chitral, Kohat, Haripur and Malakand, four in Upper Dir, two each in Tank and Lower Dir, one each in Karak, Batagram, Kohistan, Shangla, Bannu district, and Mohmand and Bajaur agencies. She said the nature of violence was murder, head and body injuries, kidnapping, honour killing, suicide, customary practices (Vanni) and domestic violence. According to the quarterly report, total number of victims in 261 cases is 312 out of whom 265 are women and 47 men. The reasons for violence are family and property disputes, refusal to marriage proposals, illicit relationship, spying against Taliban, poverty, dispute with in laws, forced marriages, domestic violence, ransom and several unknown reasons. Out of 261 cases, 210 were registered with the police (first information reports), 27 unregistered and there is no information about 24 cases whether they were registered or not. It has been observed that most of the violence cases reported from Peshawar are from Urmar, Mathra and Tehkal, villages adjacent to the provincial capital.