FIR registered on domestic worker torture issue

RAWALPINDI: Police have registered FIR on an incident regarding 11-year-old domestic worker Kinza Bashir allegedly tortured by her employers.

City Police Officer (CPO) Rawalpindi Abbas Ahsen said during a press conference here on Sunday that higher authorities of the Pakistan Army have been informed about this incident. He said it was necessary to inform higher authorities of the Army because a serving officer was involved in this incident.

The CPO said that according to Kinza’s statement, she was employed as a domestic worker at the residence of Ammara Riaz, a Major in the Pakistan Army, and her husband Mohsin Riaz, who is a doctor by profession, tortured her. He said the police has registered FIR of the incident under Child Protection Act (CPA).

The CPO said he has suspended an ASI who did not take action in the case. “After initial investigation, we have seen that police was informed about the incident through a telephone call, but an ASI did not take timely action,” he said. Abbas said police will never spare anybody involved in the incident. The CPO appreciated the role of Faisalabad Police in the case.

“Kinza was in a hospital where she was receiving medical treatment. After a complete medical report, we will proceed further,” the CPO said. The case, a grim reminder of the infamous Tayyaba torture case of 2016, came to light through a series of videos shared on Twitter in which the girl can be seen narrating her ordeal.

Kinza said she was employed as a domestic worker at the residence of Ammara Riaz. The house is located in Wilayat Colony, Scheme III, Chaklala. The girl, who managed to escape the house, accuses her employers of starving her and torturing her with wires, belts and ropes for over a year. She further said she is kicked and stomped on while she sleeps.

When asked by the videographer to describe how she has been mistreated, she explained that she was not fed properly by the family she lived with, and when she stole food out of hunger, she was administered inhumane beatings.

In the video, Kinza showed injuries that she has sustained, including her bloodshot, black eyes as well as multiple wound marks on her arms, neck and head.

Minister for Human Rights Dr Shireen Mazari took notice of the case and said the ministry is "keeping a close eye (on the matter) to ensure justice for the little girl". The medical report confirmed torture on Kinza.