Fatemeh from Muslimah Media Watch writes about the video of the whipping of a Pakistani girl.

The recent release of a video showing the flogging of a girl by the Taliban in Pakistan has created a stir across the web. Various articles have been published about it, both on mainstream news sites and blogs.  The reason for the whipping remains unclear: media outlets report intercourse before marriage, rejection of a marriage proposal, and going outside without a male escort as the possible reasons for the flogging. Whatever the Taliban’s reasoning for the flogging, the video itself presents a host of issues and concerns, not only for the government of Pakistan (which has to deal with the consequences of a recent deal with the Taliban in the Swat region) but for women in the region, especially in regard to how to organize grassroots movements.

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What was really disturbing about the video, even more than the flogging itself, was the spectator aspect of it. We see a group of men standing all around the woman, seemingly unaffected by her cries for mercy. They’re literally spectators to the whipping, making it seem like any other mundane public event instead of a violent beating. It shows how desensitized we have become to violence, especially violence against women. The flogging almost appears to be a form of entertainment for the spectators. The video was sent to many people, not just Samar Minallah. Did the recorder of the video shoot it to shame the Taliban or was the recorder sympathetic with the Taliban and hence saw nothing wrong with their actions? If the recorder was the former, then the motivation for recording the video seems to be obvious. However, if the recorder is the latter description, then why would he record the flogging? Was it part of the spectator aspect of witnessing the event?

Are videos like this effective in changing the conditions under which women live?

Who are we, the spectators, and what are our obligations after seeing this.

In some ways have we made her pain and humiliation a spectacle?

Is there any other way to change the conditions under which women live other than by making their lives and pain spectacle for the North American and European eyes?

Does raising awareness actually create effective change?  Or is that what we tell ourselves to justify our gaze?