The emotionally distraught mother of little Farah Khan announced yesterday that she will pursue a legal fight to have her daughter laid to rest in Canada.
Bathed in lights of news cameras, Shahida Jabeen occasionally leaned on the shoulder of her brother, Shaukat Ali. At times during a news conference at a mosque in the city's west end, she wiped her eyes with a tissue.
"Sister Jabeen has decided to pursue legal recourse to establish Farah's rights to be buried here in accordance with Islamic law," said Omar Farouk, president of the International Muslim Organization, in his opening address. "Sister Jabeen is overwhelmed by the support received from the people of Toronto and the Muslim community."
Around 100 people from the Muslim community and a crowd of reporters watched as Ms. Jabeen spoke in Urdu about the loss of her five-year-old daughter.
She looked tired after her more than 20-hour trip from Pakistan on Friday. At the news conference, called by Toronto's Muslim leaders, Ms. Jabeen described the toll the loss of her daughter has taken.
"How can a mother feel?" she said through an Urdu interpreter. "I am really saddened and devastated."
Ms. Jabeen's former husband, Muhammad Arsal Khan, 36, and his wife, Kaneez Fatima, 45, are awaiting trial on charges of first-degree murder in connection with the death of Farah, some of whose body parts were discovered in a waterfront park in December.
Ms. Jabeen, speaking publicly about her ordeal for the first time since she arrived in Canada, sobbed and collapsed into her brother's arms at the end of the news conference. Supporters helped her to her feet and ushered her out of the room.
Ms. Jabeen, who is divorced from Mr. Khan and last saw Farah when she was six months old, gave up custody of her daughter in 1994. Now she wants Farah buried in Canada, where the little girl lived for the last nine months of her life.
Ms. Jabeen suggested yesterday that she never wanted to relinquish custody of Farah, and said she had tried to contact her daughter several times but was unsuccessful.
"I dreamed one day she would come back and be with me," she said. "But she will never be able to meet with me after what has happened."
An application will be made to the Superior Court of Justice in Ontario by Ms. Jabeen for the right to bury Farah in Toronto, said lawyer Khalid Baksh.
Both Ms. Jabeen and Mr. Baksh said that although they do not wish to delay the burial with a legal process, flying the body back to Pakistan would take just as long. Ms. Jabeen avoided questions as to why she wanted Farah buried in Canada.
"Mr. Khan cannot return the body in full, but my request is whatever it is, however many pieces there are, just give them back to me," Ms. Jabeen said through a translator.
Ms. Jabeen's brother, Mr. Ali, 42, said he was grateful for the support shown by the Canadian community.
"Where they found the pieces, people have spread flowers," he said. "This indicates their love and affection. That is what has brought us here."
William Abbott, a family lawyer for the law firm Loopstra Nixon, said yesterday that Ms. Jabeen's chances of winning the right to have her daughter buried in Toronto are favourable.
He said that although Mr. Khan has custody of Farah, Ms. Jabeen can plead her case by saying that the girl died while in Mr. Khan's care.
"The key is what is in the best interest of the child," Mr. Abbott said. "Under Canadian law . . . custody access and support are never final," he said.
Ms. Jabeen can also tell a judge that she has the Muslim community's support, that Farah went to school in Toronto, and has lived in the country for a minimum of six months -- a requirement for a burial in Canada, Mr. Abbott said.
Her chances of winning this legal battle are further strengthened if she has a funeral service already planned in Toronto, as opposed to Mr. Khan, he added.
Muslim community leaders are prepared to have a quick and proper burial for Farah because Islamic law states a child should be buried as soon as possible, Islamic religious leader Dr. Youssef Chebli said.
Pieces of Farah's body began turning up two months ago in garbage bags, buried under rocks, along the shore of a west Toronto park. An autopsy showed that she had been battered before she died. Her torso has not been found.