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The shame isn't ours, say Pakistani celebs as they share sexual abuse experiences

The shame isn't ours, say Pakistani celebs as they share sexual abuse experiences

Nadia Jamil, Frieha Altaf and more have come forward with their own stories of enduring child sexual abuse
14 Jan, 2018

The rape and murder of six-year-old Zainab has outraged Pakistan and with the ongoing conversation about the need to provide a safer environment for our children, celebrities like actor Nadia Jamil and PR maven Frieha Altaf have come forward with their own childhood experiences of sexual abuse.

By sharing their stories, they hope to highlight that Pakistani society is rife with child sexual abuse and that our culture of silencing and shaming the survivors needs to stop.

Sharing the abuse she suffered at various points in her life, Nadia Jamil shared, "My family still wants me to stay silent. But the shame IS NOT MINE!"

Frieha Altaf also touched on her silencing: "My parents took action but everyone remained silent as if it was my shame."

Designer Maheen Khan shared her story as well:

Comments

WM Jan 14, 2018 09:28pm
More then 90% Pakistanis have been abused at the age of 6 to 20
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P.R.Koduri Jan 14, 2018 10:04pm
Hats-off to these women in helping raise awareness of child sexual abuse. Parents might wake up to the reality of child sexual abuse and take steps to take care of their little ones. Awareness is half the solution.
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Papa Johns Jan 14, 2018 10:19pm
@WM you one of em?
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Dv1936 Jan 14, 2018 10:43pm
Please make it easier for victims to seek help in such cases. The fear created by the criminals forces to keep silent but the scars remain for life. Some awareness program is needed to check the menace
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Asif Jan 14, 2018 11:04pm
Most of these ladies have been abused by their relative or their maulvi. So is there any place to hide.
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Asad Alam Jan 14, 2018 11:28pm
Brave women. Agreed, shame is NOT yours.
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ZA Jan 15, 2018 12:34am
We do not speak the truth. Therefore there is no hope for reform. Until we are free in mind and spirit to confront the abusers there will not be any change. I salute these brave people. The abuse in Islamic countries is very high indeed.
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jay tuli Jan 15, 2018 12:50am
VERY BOLD. I respectfully salute these Devis (goddesses) or their courage.
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Aimal Jan 15, 2018 01:33am
It’s rampant, me too
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Random Jan 15, 2018 04:05am
I am a man and I was sexually harassed back when I was a kid.
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Zak Jan 15, 2018 05:35am
@WM not that many, but about 15-20%
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N abidi Jan 15, 2018 09:38am
Respect to all these brave women coming forward to prevent future children from being abused , is commandable. High time , media , schools, parents educate them selves ,and learn the skills to prevent the abuse,by being proactive, Pakistani needs to stop being a reactionist ! learn the safety skills, above all shame is on the abusers! People should form pressure groups to make sure the abusers are punished !
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Annonymous Jan 15, 2018 10:29am
I have said it before and i will say it now. As a woman in Pakistan, I have fallen victim to physical abuse as a child and as an adult. All females of my acquaintance have been through the same thing. It still makes us feel uncomfortable in our own skin and altered our lives in different ways. We all have nightmares about those times when someone we knew or a stranger crossed the line and hurt us beyond recover.
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ali Jan 15, 2018 11:40am
Child abuse is rampant in pakistan. People need to hang the abusers.
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Zak Jan 15, 2018 12:56pm
Really sorry to learn this. Hope they still catch the perpetrators.
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shakeel Mahota Jan 15, 2018 01:36pm
While it is good to hear celebs sharing their childhood experiences relating to abuse, but why only showbiz celebs are bold enough and not people from other walks of life i.e. bureaucrats, politicians, professionals, people from civil society, world of sports etc. We should walk clear of giving an impression that only showbiz personalities have had such experiences.
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Sabeen Jan 15, 2018 02:02pm
Now it's high time to teach our children what must to tell .though it will create fear in them for all but what to do else?
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bkt Jan 15, 2018 03:33pm
The lesson is that abuse begets abuse. This part is coomon across society. The sexual predators were frequently abused themselves and no one minded or came to their aid. Whether the abuse is physical violence, sexual or emotional abuse or a combination of elements, the abused become abusers. Ours is an abusive society and this may be what leads to such close ties between people as they come together to protect themselves from what are frequently themselves. The question is how do we stop it?
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Invisible Jan 15, 2018 03:37pm
:( I have been sexually abused when I Was a kid as a boy I didn't know what it was and why this is happening to me , my friend father was very nice but then what happened to him ? going into college I was stuck in board office and a police officers who was a guard that time in the year 1998 tried to abuse me but I managed to come out unharmed by just talking and told him my uncle is SP in policy and he is the one who caught criminals who broke into Zaheer Abaas Cricketers house . That police officer then got off from me and I ran away but all this traumatise me and I felt like as if I am guilty to be in these places and all these years I have kept all that inside me and Hatts of to these women's that I got the courage to speak about it and I writing this . I know this might have been a very normal thing but for me it took me 25 years to get it out of my chest . I can breath now
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Tariq, Lahore Jan 15, 2018 04:19pm
This problem is quite vast but our society want to brush it under the carpet and live in denial! We will never begin to eradicate it unless the society acknowledge it that it exists, talk about it and condemn it publically. It is scourge even in the developed countries but they are willing to tackle it by enacting laws and punish those abuse the under age,
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RationalBabu Jan 15, 2018 04:43pm
@shakeel Mahota : Because they have an effective platform due to their status. Nobody is suggesting only they have been though such experiences. It simply reinforces the fact that an ordinary person has got no voice in a society where it’s all about stigma and ‘honour’!
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kabeelakhan Jan 16, 2018 02:13pm
Agreed shame is not theirs, but how these confessions can help curb these instances.
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Nasir Soomro Jan 17, 2018 12:38pm
Its not only womenfolk who are subjected to such kind of assaults,small toddlers are victims too.
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Tayyaba Jan 18, 2018 12:01am
Hats off to these brave women who have shared their anguish n sufferings for da restoration of our morally decaying society
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Iqbal Jan 18, 2018 01:08am
Hats off to these brave women to speak about their horrible experiences of their childhood. I hope it will encourage other abused women to come forward and shame the abusers!
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Mad at Papa Johns Jan 18, 2018 05:11am
@Papa Johns you think sexual abuse is a joke ! ?
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