The trial of a Pakistani-American man accused of raping and beheading his partner, a case that has shocked Pakistan, began on Wednesday in Islamabad.
The violent death on July 20 of Nur Mukadam, 27, the daughter of a former diplomat, sparked a nationwide wave of protests, with protesters calling on authorities to change the law on violence against them. women.
Zahir Jafar, 30, the son of a wealthy industrial family, denies killing the young woman.
“The trial has officially begun,” Shah Kawar, a lawyer for the prosecution, told AFP in front of the court.
“Our first witness testified today and we will present five more at the next hearing,” he added.
The young woman was attacked after she refused a marriage proposal and repeatedly tried to leave Zahir Jafar’s luxury residence, located in a wealthy Islamabad district, in a confrontation with domestic staff, according to the research report she compiled. the police.
Jaffer raped and tortured her with a dusting feather before beheading her with “a sharp gun,” the report said, which was presented at a previous hearing and that “her life could have been saved if the accomplices had acted differently.” .
Charges have been brought against 11 other people, including members of Zahir Jafar’s staff, his parents and people who hid evidence.
The death of Nur Mukadam, whose father served as Pakistan’s ambassador to South Korea and Kazakhstan, has shocked Pakistan, a country where the women’s rights movement has been growing since its inception. Victims of violence are often discouraged from filing a lawsuit and their testimonies are called into question.
According to a government poll conducted in 2017-2018, 28% of women aged 15-49 had been physically abused in Pakistan. A number which experts consider to be underestimated due to the fact that these incidents are not reported.
