Actress Amna Ilyas has said that she does not feel safe in Pakistan, stressing the need for strict punishment of rapists and harassers.

“We women, me as well I don’t feel safe,” she told Aaj News when asked about her reaction to the cases of rape and harassment in the country and region.

“I feel if God forbid, if anything happens to me and another party turns out to be powerful, so the law is just for the poor, not for those who are powerful.”

Ilyas, known for being vocal about women’s empowerment, played a lead role in her new movie Mastaani. The romantic-comedy movie directed by Usman Rizvi was released on Friday. The film also marks the debut of Affan Waheed, known for roles in dramas.

Amna’s character Aliya in the movie also tackles taboos and women’s issues related to freedom and choice of marriage.

Pakistan is ranked 145th out of 146 on the gender equality index. Up to 6,624 rape cases were registered in Punjab in 2023, meaning that one woman was raped every 45 minutes, according to Sustainable Social Development Organisation’s report. It was released on International Women’s Day this year.

Amna went on to add that the law has nothing to do with men or women. “Unfortunately, our system is such that it is not happening,” she said and vowed to speak out for women.

“I am not afraid to say this and our system, government, and law have to rise to take serious steps to control this tamasha [rape and harassment].”

In her response, the Zinda Bhagg actress said that she felt sorry for all those women who went through such an ordeal and lost their lives. While describing it as a universal issue, she called for strict punishment of offenders and making an example of them.

Amna mentioned the Noor Mukadam case and lamented that the harasser was “comfortably” sitting in jail. “Our judiciary really needs to step up.”

Noor’s murder is one of the high-profile cases in Pakistan. The 27-year-old woman was found murdered at Zahir Jaffar’s residence in Islamabad’s upscale Sector F-7/4 on July 20, 2021. The culprit was sentenced to death in 2022. Later, the IHC not only upheld the death sentence but also converted his 25-year jail term into another death penalty.

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Last year, Zahir filed an appeal in the Supreme Court against the court’s decision to uphold his death sentence.

When asked, she said that Mastaani is a “must-watch” for children and women as the movie discusses societal issues.