‘Pakistan Girl’ to fight corrupt cops and abuse

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s newest female superhero has vowed to battle venal officials and protect battered women, as her creator tries to inspire the next generation to fight injustice in a deeply patriarchal society.

The new Pakistan Girl comic series is based on Sarah, a normal teenager with a pet cat who discovers she has superhuman powers after waking from a coma caused by a blast in her village.

Donning a green cape, Pakistan’s national colour, the protagonist whips a man beating a woman in a market and saves a young girl taken hostage by a bribe-seeking police officer in the series’ first comic book released this summer.

The creator of the Englishlanguage comic says he hopes the superhero will give young girls across Pakistan a role model and embolden them to fight corruption and violence in a country where crime is rife in major cities and corruption is the norm.

“There’s a huge shortage of female role models and superhe- roes in the mainstream media here,” author Hassan Siddiqui said.

“We wanted to create a strong female character for girls and even the young boys in Pakistan they can look up to.”

Women in Pakistan have fought for their rights for decades, in a country where so-called “honour killings” and other violence against women remain commonplace.

Netizens have welcomed the comic, writing largely positive reviews online and calling for more superhero stories.