Maid in hell

The unsettling video of Kinza Bashir, an 11-year-old child maid who was reportedly tortured by her employees, draws attention to a problem that has plagued our social fabric. Over the years, a large number of cases have surfaced in the media about domestic workers being tortured by their employers.

As expected, this particular incident has drawn criticism, with people blaming the government for the weak implementation of laws. It is particularly disturbing that people from seemingly educated families are involved in these cases. In 2017, 10-year-old Tayyaba was subjected to torture at the hands of an additional district and sessions court judge and his wife. Kinza was tortured by a doctor and his family. We tend to ascribe such barbaric acts to people who aren’t educated. While laws should be strictly implemented, it seems that the fear of getting convicted in a crime doesn’t deter people from committing inhuman acts. This suggests that in addition to laws that are duly enforced, we need to focus on where we have gone wrong. If we fail to assess our own failure in allowing such practices to persist, no laws will be able to have the desired effect.

Vasdev

Tharparkar