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ISLAMABAD : A suspected Islamic militant on Tuesday shot dead a Pakistani female provincial minister and supporter of President Pervez Musharraf because she was not wearing Muslim clothing, officials said.
Zilla Huma Usman, 35, the Punjab province minister for social welfare, was known as a women's rights activist and had previously promoted a mini-marathon involving female runners that sparked riots in 2005.
"She was shot dead by a fanatic when she was meeting with party workers" at her political office in the central city of Gujranwala, provincial law minister Raja Basharat told AFP.
Police said the bearded attacker in his 40s, wearing a cloak, approached Huma as party activists threw rose petals at her then took out his pistol and shot her in the temple in cold blood.
"He killed her because she was not observing the Islamic code of dress. She was also campaigning for emancipation of women," local police officer Nazir Ahmad said.
"The suspect is an extremist and he has a history of targeting woman whom he believed to be immoral."
Huma died in hospital while her killer, a stonemason, was arrested.
The man, who was not named, was arrested by police in 2002 for killing two women who were prostitutes but he was acquitted due to lack of evidence, Ahmad said.
"He did not represent any militant organisation but he was a fanatic on his own."
Officials said Huma had joined the pro-Musharraf Pakistan Muslim League party after being elected in 2002 and backed the pro-US ruler's policy of "enlightened moderation" designed to tackle extremism.
Musharraf's government has made some progress on women's rights, including introducing a bill in parliament this month seeking to end the forced marriage of women and girls and allowing females to inherit property, officials said.
She encouraged the holding of a mini-marathon involving female competitors in Gujranwala, some 250 kilometres (155 miles) southeast of Islamabad, in April 2005.
Riots erupted when police stopped armed Islamic activists from disrupting the race.
She worked as parliamentary secretary for planning and development from August 2003 to November 2006 and had been appointed to her current post in December 1, 2006, according to her government biography. - AFP/ms
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