Recently, in Pakistan’s most heavily populated province, Karachi, virginity tests on sexual assault victims have finally been outlawed. Although it is banned in neighboring countries such as India, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan, the practice has continued to occur in Pakistan and more than a dozen other countries (NYT). These tests are used to measure a woman’s ‘virtue’ and ‘trustworthiness”. According to the New York Times, “If two fingers can be easily inserted into the vagina, supporters of the practice say, it shows that a woman is not a virgin, and thus lacks moral authority to make an assault or rape accusation”.
Lahore’s high court deemed that this virginity test has no basis in terms of legality and “offends the personal dignity of the female victim”(the guardian). These tests could be performed for reasons ranging from sexual assault cases to assessing employment eligibility. Pakistan is known for placing strict societal restraints upon its people as premarital sex, carried out by either a man or woman, is a crime with a five-year prison sentence.
The UN explains this practice indicating that “It is mostly performed by doctors, police officers, or community leaders on women and girls in order to assess their virtue, honour or social value. In some regions, it is common practice for health professionals to perform virginity testing on victims of rape, supposedly to ascertain whether or not rape occurred". Even though there have been efforts carried out by many UN agencies, this practice has been documented in at least 20 different countries (including the US).
Did you know about this practice going on in the world? If you would like more information on this pressing issue click here.
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