“She had every right to live freely and safely”: Aseefa condemns Sana Yousaf’s murder

First Lady and Member of the National Assembly Aseefa Bhutto-Zardari has denounced the killing of 16-year-old social media influencer Sana Yousaf in Islamabad, stressing that such an incident must not silence girls and discourage them from achieving their dreams.

Sana was shot dead at her home in Sector G-13, in front of her mother and aunt. The attacker, initially unidentified, fled the scene but was later apprehended. Police said the suspect, Omar Hayat, was taken into custody within hours and confessed to killing Sana after she repeatedly turned down his friendship advances.

Describing the incident as a painful reminder of the dangers faced by women and girls for simply asserting their autonomy, Aseefa offered condolences to Sana’s family, the Chitral community, and all those affected by the loss.

“Sana was just a girl—with ambition, with dreams, with a life ahead of her,” Aseefa said in a statement.

“She had every right to live freely and safely. What happened to her wasn’t just an act of violence — it was a punishment for saying no. And that should horrify every one of us.”

She emphasised that acts of violence rooted in male entitlement are alarmingly common and must no longer be tolerated as cultural norms or traditions.

“This mindset that a woman’s rejection is an insult, that her choices need to be controlled—it’s old, it’s cruel, and it’s killing our daughters. My mother, Shaheed Benazir Bhutto, broke those walls with her own strength. She didn’t just lead—she opened doors for millions of women to follow. And we owe it to her legacy, and to young women like Sana, to keep those doors open.”

Aseefa also pushed back against the wave of posthumous criticism directed at Sana online, calling it a dangerous justification of violence based on a young woman’s presence on social media.

“There is nothing—no app, no photo, no video—that excuses murder. It’s disturbing to see people using Sana’s TikTok presence to explain away her death. If that’s the logic, are we saying millions of girls across Pakistan are also at risk? This kind of thinking is not just dangerous—it’s inhumane.”

She concluded her message with a powerful call to action for girls across the country, urging them not to be silenced.

“To every girl watching this unfold—don’t let them silence you. You have the right to dream, to speak, to exist without fear. Don’t back down. If you do, they win. But if we keep pushing forward—together—we’ll shape a country where girls aren’t blamed for their own deaths, but celebrated for their lives.”