The Rise of Acid Attacks in the UK: VICE Reports

Masarrat Misbah: A messiah for acid burn victims

In conversation with Masarrat Misbah

“I still remember when a girl walked into my salon in a burqa. Thinking she was a beggar, I told her to come back the next day. It was only after she removed her veil, I saw that she had lost one eye and the nose. Her chin and neck were constricted together,” said Masarrat while talking to DNA.

Masarrat Misbah is Pakistan’s well-known beautician-turned-philanthropist who needs no introduction. She is one of the first beauty experts to introduce the trend of professional beauty salons in the country. She started Depilex Institute, which became one of the biggest beauty training institutes in Pakistan with internationally qualified staff.

With time she got inspired to incorporate the idea of ‘beauty with a cause’ with Depilex Smile Again Foundation after successfully running Depilex for years. She used this initiative to help acid attack victims and remove the stigma attached to it.

“I still remember when a girl walked into my salon in a burqa. Thinking she was a beggar, I told her to come back the next day. It was only after she removed her veil, I saw that she had lost one eye and the nose. Her chin and neck were constricted together,” said Masarrat while talking to DNA.

“I took that girl to the hospital and thought that if I could help one girl, maybe I could help more too. So an advertisement was placed in a few newspapers to report to a hospital on so and so date, for a free medical checkup. To my surprise, 42 girls showed up at Depilex.”

Full article.

Saving Face: Acid attack in Pakistan

Silent Veil a documentary by Depilex Smileagain

Silent Veil a documentary by Depilex Smileagain by depilexsmileagain

Man, 80, accused over acid attack on ex-partner, 20

 

WTF is wrong with these men?! :( 

 

A young care worker has described how she suffered disfiguring burns to her face and neck in an acid attack allegedly orchestrated by her former partner, who was 60 years her senior.

Vikki Horsman, 20, told a jury she screamed in pain and glimpsed her blistering face and neck in a mirror as she stumbled back from the doorstep after the assault before dousing her face with cold water from the kitchen tap.

Horsman said the acid, which she claimed was thrown by a man wearing a hood and a bandana as a mask, caused “instant burning, piercing pain”.

The prosecution claims Horsman’s former partner, 80-year-old Mohammed Rafiq, planned the attack with 25-year-old Steven Holmes, who allegedly carried it out, and a third man, Shannon Heaps, 23. All three deny causing grievous bodily harm with intent.

It is alleged that the assault at a house in Tividale, West Midlands, took place in April after Horsman split up with Rafiq because she saw him as controlling and jealous.

Wolverhampton crown court heard that Horsman began to rely on Rafiq after her parents died. He bought her a car but she said he began to accuse her of cheating on him and put pressure on her to convert to Islam and change her name to Aleena Rafiq. Asked by Anthony Warner, prosecuting, if she had been happy to convert, Horsman replied: “Not particularly.

 Source

Acid victim: Fakhra Yunus laid to rest in Karachi

Fakhra Yunus, acid victim of former MPA Bilal Khar, was laid to rest in Karachi on Sunday after her funeral prayers were held at Edhi Centre.
Her body reached Karachi airport from Italy earlier during the day amid protests led by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM).

Yunus leapt off from the sixth floor of a building on March 17, 2012 in Italy which resulted in her death. She was provided shelter in Italy after being attacked by her husband 12 years back in Karachi.
Female workers of MQM gathered at Jinnah International Airport holding placards and chanting slogans against Khar, who is also the son of former Punjab governor Mustafa Khar.

MQM leader Altaf Hussain has taken immediate notice of the incident and demanded that Khar be ‘severely punished’ for his acts. Other MQM leaders have also demanded action be taken against the former Punjab chief minister and veteran politician Mustafa Khar’s son Bilal Khar.
“There is a termite, which is eating our country from within; it is the feudal system,” remarked MQM leader Khushbakht Shujaat during the protest.
Iconic humanitarian worker Abdul Sattar Edhi was also present at the Karachi airport to receive Yunus’ body.

Edhi also held the prevalent feudal system in the country to be responsible for such incidents. “They still oppress women the way it happened 8,000 years ago… they consider women to be their properties.”
Tehmina Durrani, who had helped Yunus find refuge in Italy, arrived at the airport along with Yunus’ family. Yunus’ son had handed over the funeral responsibilities to Durrani.
Speaking to the media, Durrani said that Yunus had lived her life with courage. In earlier interviews, Yunus had expressed her desire to return to Pakistan to seek justice.

Musarrat Misbah, a veteran beautician and owner of Depilex Smile Again Foundation For Acid Burn Victims was also present at the airport.
Meanwhile, Sindh Home Minister Manzoor Wasan has announced reopening of Yunus case.
The case
In 1998, Yunus was an 18-year-old resident of Napier Road’s Bulbul Bazar, Karachi’s red light district, when she met the then Muzaffargarh MPA Bilal Khar.
Shortly after the marriage, Yunus faced both physical and mental abuse by Khar, which lasted for three years before she eventually escaped and moved in with her mother.

An infuriated Khar allegedly took ‘revenge’ by pouring acid over her on May 14, 2000, as her five year old son watched. The attack left her severely burned, particularly her face. She, however, survived the attack but not before spending three months in intensive care.
Khar used his political influence to evade arrest and absconded, while Yunus’s family faced difficulty in registering an FIR against him.
On October 31, 2002, Khar was eventually arrested, but released in 2003 on Rs 200,000 bail.

source