Pakistan, a nation of over 240 million people, is no stranger to instability, violence, and crime—realities often seen in countries still grappling with the lingering effects of colonialism. Yet, even amid this turmoil, there are incidents so horrific that they shock the nation’s collective conscience.
It is in such moments that Pakistan must stand united in ensuring that justice is served, reaffirming that the country upholds morality and is not ruled by the lawless and the cruel. Recently, reports emerged from Rawalpindi of a 12-year-old girl, employed as a domestic worker in a house in the city who was subjected to brutal torture over something as trivial as a missing chocolate. She had been working in that household for two years, earning a mere 8,000 rupees a month, enduring routine abuse at the hands of her heartless employers.
Yesterday, she succumbed to her injuries—dying a lonely, senseless death after being treated as a slave and tortured in the most sadistic ways imaginable. Reports reveal that this child was beaten, her bones broken, tied up, starved, and kept in solitary confinement over the alleged disappearance of a chocolate. When her injuries became too severe, the same individuals who inflicted them attempted to cover up their crime with deceit and lies. These perpetrators represent the worst of humanity—those who exploit their power in the most barbaric ways. Now, the state must act decisively to protect the weakest and most vulnerable. Maryam Nawaz must ensure that such heinous crimes against children in her province do not go unpunished.
These individuals must be publicly named, shamed, and punished to the fullest extent of the law. There can be no leniency, no mercy—for what they did was an act of pure evil, one that demands swift and unforgiving justice.
