In 2002, the world erupted in condemnation of an alleged gang-rape of a Pakistani village woman, reportedly on the orders of an informal tribal council, to atone for a crime her teenage brother was accused of. Before any investigation, the Pakistan government paid the woman more than 8000 dollars in compensation and fast-tracked her trial. Within three months of the incident, six men were sentenced to hang.
The High court later acquitted five of the men and upheld the conviction of one. But as worldwide wrath again engulfed Pakistan, they were thrown back into jail three days later. Eight other freed at the original trial were also sought out and imprisoned. More than five years since the alleged crime, 13 men acquitted by the courts remain behind bars. The 14th man in jail is the only one who had been found guilty.
For the first time, the evidence underlying the case that shook the world is scrutinized by Pakistan-based journalist Bronwyn Curran, one of the first to report on the alleged gang-rape when the compelling tale first emerged. Into The Mirror explores the ways of the tribes as it weaves through Pakistan’s medieval rural belt, recondtructing both sides of the story to unearth what really happened on June 21, 2002 in a remote village of illiterate labourers and farmers on the banks of the Indus River.
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