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Killing of Zohra Shah

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Zohra Shah
زہرہ شاہ
Born
Died1 June 2020
Cause of deathBeating
NationalityPakistani
Known forMurder victim

Zohra Shah (Urdu: زہرہ شاہ) was an eight-year-old Pakistani domestic slave of a married couple, Hassan Siddiqui and Umme Kulsoom.[1] She was tortured and killed for mistakenly releasing her masters' parrots in Bahria Town, Rawalpindi on 1 June 2020.[2][3][4] Her death caused an outcry in Pakistan and led to legislative changes which outlawed child domestic labour in the country.[5]

Early life

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She was from Basti Maso Shah in Muzaffargarh District of southern Punjab approximately 580 kilometres (360 mi) from the capital, Islamabad.

Murder

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Allegedly, she was murdered for releasing valuable parrots from their cages.[6] Evidence such as 'older scars and marks'[1] suggest Shah had been repeatedly abused while working for Siddiqui and Kulsoom, and 'wounds on her thighs' were 'consistent with sexual assault'.[1]

Aftermath

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Siddiqui and Kulsoom were arrested and put on judicial remand.[1]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d Xari Jalil (12 June 2020). "Pakistan: 8-Year-Old Zohra Shah, a Caged Soul Killed for Setting Birds Free". The Wire. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  2. ^ "Pakistan: Seven-year-old domestic worker beaten to death for freeing birds, tweeps demand #JusticeForZohraShah". Gulf News. 3 June 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
  3. ^ Tribune, EMEA (5 June 2020). "Zohra Shah 8 Years old Minor Girl Killed For Releasing Parrots from Cage". EMEA Tribune. Archived from the original on 5 October 2020. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
  4. ^ "Zohra Shah: Pakistani girl, 8, killed after freeing expensive parrots from cage". The National (Abu Dhabi). 3 June 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
  5. ^ Jamal, Sana (5 August 2020). "Islamabad: Child domestic labour banned following outrage over murder of eight-year-old Zohra Shah". Gulf News. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
  6. ^ "'We need justice': Zohra Shah's family breaks silence over murder of girl, 8". The National (Abu Dhabi). 9 June 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2020.