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Mukhtaran Bibi
Origin: Meerwala, Pakistan
(c. 1972)
Heroic Values: Achievement, Caring, Courage, Integrity, Perseverance, Selflessness, Tolerance, Vision
Background
Mukhtaran Bibi's twelve year old brother was raped by a group of men from a tribe in a higher social circle. To protect themselves from being prosecuted they accused him of holding hands with a girl from their tribe - a crime. The tribal council's sentece was that the boy's sister would be gang raped. Mukhtaran was that sister. After the rape she was forced to walk home naked.After such a punishment women are expected to commit suicide to protect their family from shame. Mukhtaran Bibi refused to do so. She went to the authorities to have the men arrested.
The courts convicted six of the men and Bibi was awarded a financial payment. She used that money to build two schools in her village - one for boys and one for girls. She hoped that education would change the way women are treated in Pakistan. Her story has attracted donors from around the world and she has created a foundation to provide shelter and legal help for people, often women, who are victims of violence or injustice.
Sources
Wikipedia
The online encyclopedia
The Time 100 of 2006
Bibi's hero page
123 Explore
Biography research guide