The Murder of Farkhunda Malikzada
WARNING: IF YOU GET DISTURBED EASILY ,PLS DON'T READ THIS
Farkhunda Malikzada was a 27-year-old Afghan woman who was publicly slain and beaten by a mob in Kabul on March 19, 2015. A large crowd formed in the streets around Farkhunda when accusers began yelling, announcing her alleged crimes to the public. They claimed that she had burned the Quran, and for that, her accusers announced that she must be killed.
| Farkhunda Malikzada |
More on the attack later,lets get to her background first.
Farkhunda was an observant Muslim who wore a veil (hijab). At the time of the attack, she had just finished a degree in religious studies and was preparing to take a teaching post. Her name means "auspicious" and "jubilation".
Farkhunda had previously been arguing with a mullah named Zainuddin, in front of a mosque where she worked as a religious teacher, about his practice of selling charms at the Shah-Do Shamshira Mosque, the Shrine of the King of Two Swords, a religious shrine in Kabul. During this argument, Zainuddin reportedly accused her of burning the Quran. She responded
"I am a Muslim, and Muslims do not burn the Quran!"
On hearing this accusation by the Mullah,Hundreds of angry civilians flocked to the shrine upon overhearing the mullah's accusation. Police arrived and attempted to lead Farkhunda to a local precinct building one mile away, but she refused, asking for a female police officer to accompany her. The mob was able to drag Farkhunda away into the street where they knocked her to the ground and began beating and kicking her.
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| A still from the actual video [linked below] |
The mob dragged Farkhunda into the street and savagely beat and stomped her. She was bludgeoned with sticks and rocks outside the mosque, then placed into the road and run over with a car, dragging her body 300 feet. Police offered no resistance, and directed traffic around the scene. The mob then dragged her body to the nearby bank of the Kabul River, took turns stoning her and set her on fire; her body was soaked in blood and would not burn, so the crowd ripped off articles of their own clothing to ignite and maintain the fire.
An eyewitness said that the mob was chanting anti-American and anti-democratic slogans while beating Farkhunda. The mob was captured on video accusing of her of working with Americans, and of being a French embassy worker.[video can be found linked below]
Reactions:
Her family members were completely shocked on hearing this news.
Farkhunda's parents said the killing was instigated by the mullah Farkhunda had been speaking to. According to Tolo News he loudly accused her of burning the Quran "in order to save his job and life."
Public reaction in Afghanistan
A number of prominent public officials turned to Facebook immediately after the death to endorse the murder. The official spokesman for the Kabul police Hashmat Stanekzai, for instance, wrote that Farkhunda “thought, like several other unbelievers, that this kind of action and insult will get them U.S. or European citizenship. But before reaching their target, they lost their life.” The Deputy Minister for Culture and Information Simin Ghazal Hasanzada also approved the execution of a woman “working for the infidels.” Zalmai Zabuli, chief of the complaints commission of the upper house of parliament, posted a picture of Farkhunda with this message: “This is the horrible and hated person who was punished by our Muslim compatriots for her action. Thus, they proved to her masters that Afghans want only Islam and cannot tolerate imperialism, apostasy, and spies.”
It was later revealed upon further investigations conducted by higher authorities[ Afghan Ministry of Hajj and Religious Affairs ] that Fakhunda was Innocent and had not burned the Holy Quran.
This sparked national unrest. It turned to shock and anger.
Hundreds of protesters took to the streets of Kabul on 23 March protesting her brutal death. Protesters marched from where the attack began to where Farkhunda was thrown in the river. A number of women on the march wore masks of her bloodied face while others condemned the government for failing to bring security to Afghanistan. Shukria Barakzai, a member of parliament representing Kabul Province and a longtime women’s rights activist, told Al Jazeera that her killing had triggered the city and the rest of the country to think about women's rights. She said: "This is not a male or female issue, this is a human issue and we will not stop until the killers are brought to justice." Roshan Siren, a former member of parliament, said that the murder highlights violence against women in the country, and has become a rallying point for a younger generation of women to campaign for "the protection and progress of women."
The woman's father complained that police could have done more to save Farkhunda.
Protests & Official Response from the Afghan Government:
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| Farkhunda's Justice protest |
On March 23, hundreds of women protested the attack, demanding that the government prosecute those responsible for Farkhunda's death. The protest was organized by Solidarity Party of Afghanistan and residents of Kabul. Farkhunda's death has also become a rallying point for women's rights activists in Afghanistan. On March 24, thousands of people protested the attack in front of the Afghan Ministry of Justice in Kabul. On April 27, actors re-enacted the attack during a protest in Kabul, in what Afghan observers called an unprecedented case of a public theatrical performance commemorating a woman's death.
President Ghani ordered an investigation into the incident and, in a statement released by his office, condemned the "act of extreme violence". He described the killing as "heinous"
Nine men who were seen in the video of Farkhunda's murder on social media were subsequently detained. The Interior Ministry later reported that 28 people were arrested and 13 police officers suspended as part of investigations. Hashmat Stanikzai, a official spokesman for the Kabul police who publicly endorsed the murder, was sacked over comments that he made on social media supporting Farkhunda's killers.
International reaction
The European Union condemned the attack. A spokeswoman for European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said in a statement that "the killing of Ms. Farkhunda... is a tragic reminder of dangers women face from false accusations and the lack of justice in Afghanistan."
Funeral
On March 22, a number of women, dressed in black, carried Farkhunda's coffin from an ambulance to a prayer ground and then to a graveyard in Chaikhana, a northern neighborhood of Kabul. This was a marked departure from tradition, which holds that such funerals are typically only attended by men. At the end of 2015, it was reported that Farkhunda's grave was half-finished.
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There are 49 suspects apprehended. 18 have jail sentences between 10-18 years. 4 were given the death penalty which was later overturned to 10-20 years max in prison.
As of August 12, 2015 an examination of the outcome of the proceedings in the matter by a panel of lawyers appointed by Afghanistan’s president resulted in a planned recommendation to the Afghan Supreme Court that those accused in her death be retried. On March 19, 2016, the Women’s Political Participation Committee, an Afghan civil society organization, called for reevaluation of the Supreme Court’s decisions with more transparency.
Heres the actual video footage of the attack carried out by the mob. These are a mix of all the recordings taken by people in the mob.
The recording by NYTimes can be found HERE
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