Islamabad, September 28: Traditional Islamic values in Pakistan are under attack by a sassy brunette known as Veena Malik.
In her socially conservative country, moralizing against figures like Malik — an actress, model, and reality TV star — can seem as routine as the call to prayer. All the more reason, then, for shock when she responded to religious critics by taking on Muslim clerics themselves, some of whom she said “rape the children they teach in their mosques, and do so much more,” adding, “Since you have set up a court here, I demand that the court dispense justice.”
But this was no courtroom. The venue was a TV studio in Lahore, where a shouting match erupted between the brazen 27-year-old and a respected white-haired cleric named Mufti Abdul Qavi.
Moments earlier, Qavi had admonished Malik to examine her conscience for her behavior on a popular Indian reality TV show, telling her she had “disgraced Pakistan, as well as Islam.” Qavi later admitted he had never watched Malik’s show.
WATCH: Veena Malik and Mufti Abdul Qavi trade accusations and counteraccusations on Pakistani television:
The debate over Malik’s moral obligations had millions of Pakistanis glued to their television sets. The sheer audacity of an actress openly challenging a religious figure left many thunderstruck.
Divisive Figure
Veena (real name Zahida) Malik is a tremendously polarizing figure in Pakistan.
Her supporters praise her as a trailblazer, a young Muslim who stands for an emerging strain of progressive Islam committed to women’s’ rights.
Her detractors — a coalition of conservative religious figures, nationalists, Taliban loyalists, and a 13,000-strong “I hate Veena Malik” Facebook page — question her moral credentials.
Malik’s recent participation in the hit reality show “Big Boss 4,” the Indian equivalent of “Big Brother,” has been plagued by rumors of illicit behavior.
These rumors were used by Qavi to upbraid Malik, leading to a showdown that made television history in Pakistan.
Mariyam Ali, a producer for the Express News television channel that broadcast the March debate, says her opinion of the controversial actress changed after seeing Malik confront the cleric. “She’s not a hypocrite, at least,” she wrote in an e-mail interview, adding that Malik’s decision took some serious “guts and courage.” Speaking for herself and her circle of friends, however, the 25-year-old said that while they “may not dislike her,” they “don’t look up to her either!”
‘Thinking For Themselves’
Malik ranks among a small but diverse group of defiant women in Pakistan. They range from assassinated former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto to the young and still relatively unknown Shehrbano Taseer, daughter of slain former Governor Salmeer Taseer, a vocal supporter of the rights of religious minorities. Taseer recently came out in support of her father’s work, vowing to continue in his footsteps even if it put her in danger.
For her part, Malik says, “you won’t believe the kind of huge response I have received from the women of Pakistan, even the women who wear the burqa and all.” She quotes messages from girls who say things like, “you have given us hope, to stand up.”
She thinks things have “already started” to change in Pakistan. But with Islamabad mired in political infighting and the country confronted with growing insurgent violence, she says the time has come for women to “think for themselves…. Because no one else is going to give a damn [about them] in Pakistan.”
Weeks after the debate’s airing, Malik was injured in a suspicious road accident. She was hospitalized and has since sought refuge in Dubai, where she continues working for “Voice of Women,” a nonprofit organization she founded to help female victims of domestic violence and other abuse throughout Asia.
Violence against women is a widespread problem in Pakistan. Some 1,000 women die in honor killings every year. Reports suggest that as many as four in five women are subject to abuse in their own households.
–Agencies