Hudood Ordinance - Law Code

Law Code

For married Muslims, the maximum punishment for zina is death by stoning. For unmarried couples or non-Muslims, it is 100 lashes. Some contend that in practice, only imprisonment has ever been enforced because the maximum punishment require four eyewitnesses as above.

The maximum punishment for drinking alcohol is 80 lashes.

Theft carries a maximum punishment of amputation of the right hand.

Kidnapping a woman with intent to commit a sexual crime against her carries the death penalty.

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Thumping a fat red statute book, the white-bearded judge who convicted her, Anwar Ali Khan, said he had simply followed the letter of the Qoran-based law, known as hudood, that mandates punishments.

"The illegitimate child is not disowned by her and therefore is proof of zina," he said, referring to laws that forbid any sexual contact outside marriage. Furthermore, he said, in accusing her brother-in-law of raping her, Ms. Zafran had confessed to her crime.

However, Mufti Taqi Usmani, an instrumental figure in making the law, has stated:

If anyone says that she was punished because of Qazaf (false accusation of rape) then Qazaf Ordinance, Clause no. 3, Exemption no. 2 clearly states that if someone approaches the legal authorities with a rape complaint, she cannot be punished in case she is unable to present 4 witnesses. No court of law can be in its right mind to award such a punishment.

A number of international and Pakistani human rights organizations still campaign for the law's repeal. Some argue that it goes beyond what is required by Sharia. They are opposed by conservative religious parties, who accuse them of departing from Islamic values. The governments of Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif both set up commissions to investigate the Hudood Ordinance. Both commissions recommended amending certain aspects of the law, but neither government followed through.