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Pakistan 'brothel woman' released | Pakistan 'brothel woman' released |
(about 1 hour later) | |
A woman seized and held captive by Pakistani religious students after being accused of running a brothel has been freed unharmed. | |
Her daughter and daughter-in-law, who had been abducted by students from the Islamabad madrassa, were also released, as were two policemen. | |
Before her release, the alleged brothel owner read a statement confessing she had committed immoral acts. | Before her release, the alleged brothel owner read a statement confessing she had committed immoral acts. |
Girls from the Jamia Hafsa madrassa say they have won a victory over liberals. | Girls from the Jamia Hafsa madrassa say they have won a victory over liberals. |
'Moral policing' | |
In a statement on her release, the woman, clad in a burqa, said she repented of her actions. | |
"I apologise for my past wrongdoing and I promise in the name of God that in future I will live like a pious person," she said before reporters. | |
But she refused to admit she had been running a brothel. | |
The Associated Press news agency reported that she had "threatened to become a Christian" over her treatment by the students. | |
"I don't think Islam allows anyone to beat a woman and drag her through the streets like a dog," it quoted her as saying said. | |
Religious students from Jamia Hafsa raided the house on Tuesday night, demanding that the owner close down the premises. | Religious students from Jamia Hafsa raided the house on Tuesday night, demanding that the owner close down the premises. |
When she refused, she and two of her family members were forcibly taken away to the madrassa. | |
Later men from the madrassa kidnapped two policemen after the arrest of four teachers. They were freed ealier on Thursday. | |
Beaten up | |
Abdul Rashid Ghazi, Jamia Hafsa's administrator, had earlier said the school had no personal problem with the woman. | |
President Musharraf has kept a hands-off policy on the issue | |
"We only want her to refrain from spreading obscenity in future." | |
Jamia Hafsa and its adjoining madarassa, Jamia Faradia, are part of the Lal Masjid (red mosque) complex. | |
Lal Masjid has long been a problem for the capital city administration and Pakistan's President General Musharraf. | |
It has often criticised his policies in the "war on terror" and called for Islamic law to be enforced in Pakistan. | |
The brothel incident comes amid concerns over the increasing "Talebanisation" of parts of Pakistan. |