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LAHORE: The Punjab government has notified abolition of an old practice called two-finger test (TFT) for examination of women rape survivors following a challenge made in two public-interest petitions heard by the Lahore High Court (LHC).
“The competent authority has been pleased to notify the revised guidelines and proforma for medico-legal examination of female survivors/victims of sexual assault for implementation in all public sector hospitals/institutions in Punjab with immediate effect,” states a notification issued by the Specialised Healthcare and Medical Education Department.
Additional Advocate General Jawad Yaqoob submitted the notification before the court along with the new guidelines set for the examination of the women victims of rape.
The guidelines issued to the medicolegal surgeons say the two-finger test must not be performed and the examination of a victim should be undertaken only on the judicial order as per Women Protection Act 2006 and with the written consent of the victim, if adult, and from the guardian, in case of a minor victim.
The examination is to be conducted by an authorised woman medical officer (WMO) or board as per Section 299 of Pakistan Penal Code. The survivor or in case of a minor, the guardian, can refuse either a medico-legal examination or collection of evidence or both and the refusal will not be used to deny treatment to the survivor after the sexual violence.
The set of the guidelines requires the surgeons to detail local examination in lithotomy position, including inspection, bilateral digital traction and spectrum examination.
“Inspection should be both with naked eye, magnifying lens and by use of Glaister Keen glass rod. Two finger test must not be performed,” maintains the department in its instructions.
Justice Ayesha A Malik has already reserved her verdict on the petitions after closing the hearing on Nov 10.
A petition was filed by PML-N MNA Shaista Pervez Malik. Women rights activists, academics, journalists and advocates were petitioners in the other petition. They include Sadaf Aziz, Farida Shaheed, Farieha Aziz, Farah Zia, Sarah Zaman, Maliha Zia Lari, Dr Aisha Babar and Zainab Husain.
The petitions mainly pleaded the intrusive and demeaning practice whereby medicolegal officers perform a hymen test and the ‘two-finger test’ as part of medical evaluation of women victims was unreliable and unnecessary and had no scientific basis.
The petitions explained that the TFT usually involved inserting two fingers into vagina and was based on the flawed assumption that a woman ‘habituated to sexual intercourse’ was less likely to have been raped. The test is usually used in Pakistan despite calls for its revocation by the healthcare professionals and human rights organisations world over.
Published in Dawn, November 14th, 2020
The two-finger test is a violation of the constitutional rights of the people of Pakistan, the Ministry of Human Rights said in its reply in the petition challenging virginity tests in Pakistan.
In Pakistan, virginity tests are conducted on rape survivors to check if they have had sexual intercourse before. The petition, which was filed on March 12, argues that tests such as the ‘two-finger test’ and examination of the hymen are medically incorrect and should be banned.
“Pakistan is a signatory to the UN Convention of the Elimination against Discrimination against Women Rights and is committed to upholding and protecting the rights of women including their right to dignity and life,” the ministry said in its reply submitted on Tuesday.
“The express reference to the TFT does not find mention in the law, however, the practice is upheld through jurisprudence developed over the years by the courts,” the ministry added. “Most countries across the world have abolished the TFT. Reliance for evidence is now placed on DNA testing, forensic evidence collected from the place of occurrence of the offenses as well as the victim’s person (but not involving the TFT).”
The MOHR agrees that the “TFT is a violation of the constitutional right to dignity of women guaranteed by Article 14 and right to be protected from discrimination, and considers it to be a form of violence on women as stated by Guidelines for the Medico-legal Care for Victims of Sexual Violence issued by the World Health Organization.”
The ministry further said that it does not support the use of phrases such as “habitual to sexual act” or “woman of easy virtue” while referring to women in medical reports.
The case will be heard by Justice Ayesha A Malik of the Lahore High Court on October 14.
“The premise of the tests is flawed because of the underlying assumption that only the overt use of force can result in a lack of consent to a sexual encounter and [women] who have suffered as a result of covert use of force should be presumed to have consented,” the petition states.
The World Health Organisation has clearly said that there is no medical basis for such tests, says the petition.
“Neither the size of the vaginal opening, nor the ease with which the fingers can be admitted, or the state of the hymen are medically sound indications of prior sexual activity,” it adds. Such tests are banned in India and Bangladesh.
The survivors are “either completely unaware or not informed in enough detail with sufficient sensitivity,” it says. They are not informed that they have the right to refuse to consent to these tests. They don’t realise that they have “consented to the disclosure of the results of these tests to third parties”.
“Instead of punishing violence against women, the reliance of the justice system on such tests actually results in a far more insidious form of violence upon women inflicted by the State itself,” the petition adds.
www.samaa.tv
“The competent authority has been pleased to notify the revised guidelines and proforma for medico-legal examination of female survivors/victims of sexual assault for implementation in all public sector hospitals/institutions in Punjab with immediate effect,” states a notification issued by the Specialised Healthcare and Medical Education Department.
Additional Advocate General Jawad Yaqoob submitted the notification before the court along with the new guidelines set for the examination of the women victims of rape.
The guidelines issued to the medicolegal surgeons say the two-finger test must not be performed and the examination of a victim should be undertaken only on the judicial order as per Women Protection Act 2006 and with the written consent of the victim, if adult, and from the guardian, in case of a minor victim.
The examination is to be conducted by an authorised woman medical officer (WMO) or board as per Section 299 of Pakistan Penal Code. The survivor or in case of a minor, the guardian, can refuse either a medico-legal examination or collection of evidence or both and the refusal will not be used to deny treatment to the survivor after the sexual violence.
The set of the guidelines requires the surgeons to detail local examination in lithotomy position, including inspection, bilateral digital traction and spectrum examination.
“Inspection should be both with naked eye, magnifying lens and by use of Glaister Keen glass rod. Two finger test must not be performed,” maintains the department in its instructions.
Justice Ayesha A Malik has already reserved her verdict on the petitions after closing the hearing on Nov 10.
A petition was filed by PML-N MNA Shaista Pervez Malik. Women rights activists, academics, journalists and advocates were petitioners in the other petition. They include Sadaf Aziz, Farida Shaheed, Farieha Aziz, Farah Zia, Sarah Zaman, Maliha Zia Lari, Dr Aisha Babar and Zainab Husain.
The petitions mainly pleaded the intrusive and demeaning practice whereby medicolegal officers perform a hymen test and the ‘two-finger test’ as part of medical evaluation of women victims was unreliable and unnecessary and had no scientific basis.
The petitions explained that the TFT usually involved inserting two fingers into vagina and was based on the flawed assumption that a woman ‘habituated to sexual intercourse’ was less likely to have been raped. The test is usually used in Pakistan despite calls for its revocation by the healthcare professionals and human rights organisations world over.
Published in Dawn, November 14th, 2020
Punjab notifies abolition of two-finger test
New guidelines say the examination of a victim should be undertaken only on the judicial order and with her consent.
www.dawn.com
The two-finger test is a violation of the constitutional rights of the people of Pakistan, the Ministry of Human Rights said in its reply in the petition challenging virginity tests in Pakistan.
In Pakistan, virginity tests are conducted on rape survivors to check if they have had sexual intercourse before. The petition, which was filed on March 12, argues that tests such as the ‘two-finger test’ and examination of the hymen are medically incorrect and should be banned.
“Pakistan is a signatory to the UN Convention of the Elimination against Discrimination against Women Rights and is committed to upholding and protecting the rights of women including their right to dignity and life,” the ministry said in its reply submitted on Tuesday.
“The express reference to the TFT does not find mention in the law, however, the practice is upheld through jurisprudence developed over the years by the courts,” the ministry added. “Most countries across the world have abolished the TFT. Reliance for evidence is now placed on DNA testing, forensic evidence collected from the place of occurrence of the offenses as well as the victim’s person (but not involving the TFT).”
The MOHR agrees that the “TFT is a violation of the constitutional right to dignity of women guaranteed by Article 14 and right to be protected from discrimination, and considers it to be a form of violence on women as stated by Guidelines for the Medico-legal Care for Victims of Sexual Violence issued by the World Health Organization.”
The ministry further said that it does not support the use of phrases such as “habitual to sexual act” or “woman of easy virtue” while referring to women in medical reports.
The case will be heard by Justice Ayesha A Malik of the Lahore High Court on October 14.
What are virginity tests?
Virginity tests are commonly performed on rape survivors in Pakistan. There are two ways in which they are conducted:- Inspection of the hymen
- Two-finger test
“The premise of the tests is flawed because of the underlying assumption that only the overt use of force can result in a lack of consent to a sexual encounter and [women] who have suffered as a result of covert use of force should be presumed to have consented,” the petition states.
The World Health Organisation has clearly said that there is no medical basis for such tests, says the petition.
“Neither the size of the vaginal opening, nor the ease with which the fingers can be admitted, or the state of the hymen are medically sound indications of prior sexual activity,” it adds. Such tests are banned in India and Bangladesh.
Why the virginity tests are problematic
In Pakistan, the ways through which the authorities get the consent of rape survivors for these tests is questionable, says the petition.The survivors are “either completely unaware or not informed in enough detail with sufficient sensitivity,” it says. They are not informed that they have the right to refuse to consent to these tests. They don’t realise that they have “consented to the disclosure of the results of these tests to third parties”.
“Instead of punishing violence against women, the reliance of the justice system on such tests actually results in a far more insidious form of violence upon women inflicted by the State itself,” the petition adds.
Two-finger test violates constitutional rights: MOHR tells court | SAMAA
The two-finger test is a violation of the constitutional rights of the people of Pakistan, the Ministry of Human Rights said in its reply in the petition challenging virginity tests in Pakistan. In Pakistan, virginity tests are conducted on rape survivors to check if they have had sexual...
www.samaa.tv
