Notions of false honour have prevailed in society for far too long, and are yet another way of perpetuating the feelings of insecurity in people. PHOTO: FILE
In yet another case, in Sadiqabad, a man has been accused of killing his sister on suspicion of having an affair. In a particularly brutal killing, he allegedly hit his sister several times with a butcher’s cleaver. In both cases, the police are looking for the alleged culprits who appear to have disappeared. That these men should be caught, and if found guilty put on trial, be severely punished, indeed be made an example out of, cannot be stressed enough. Notions of false honour have prevailed in society for far too long, and are yet another way of perpetuating the feelings of insecurity in people, as well as curtailing their basic freedoms, such as whom to wed. Furthermore, the panchayats usually set up to deliver verdicts on the charged, act as parallel courts and undermine the country’s judicial system. It is only the implementation of strong laws against honour killings and a decisive effort to educate the people that can put an end to this. Until this happens, tribal customs and false notions of honour will prevail, undermining humanity, as well as the state, which ultimately is responsible for the security of its citizens.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 22nd, 2013.
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People in the rural areas don't have faith in the judiciary, because cases take many years to be decided. The jirga system is popular because it is able to deliver swift justice, even though sometimes the punishment is not as severe as it should be. Usually, the sister of the accused murderer is handed over to the victim's family, with the accused having to pay a fine. It is not clear why the women of the tribe have to pay for the sins of the males in their families. Even in religious matters, our illiterate mullahs issue fatwas which make women suffer. If a man makes a mistake (like taking part in the funeral prayer of a person of another sect), he is supposed to be automatically divorced from his wife and she has to spend four and a half months away from him, marry another man, get divorced by him, spend another four and a half months alone, then get married to her first husband.
This is not the first editorial about honour killings in Tribune and will not b the last, as the problem will not just disappear. It makes you wonder how primitive the society has become, although it is not only in Pakistan that such things do happen. Only today I saw Asma Jahangir honored in Germany for fighting for women's rights in Pakistan. The exact number of honour murders remains unknown, since many crimes are camouflaged as accidents. The fact is that In Pakistan hundreds of women are killed each year by relations as a result of "illegitimate" sexual relations. The girls, if they run away, are tracked down and killed - stabbed, shot or drenched in petrol and set alight, drowned, run over (by male family members) or poisoned (by their mother or mother in law). Being banished from the family seldom suffices. Sometimes "dishonored" girls are remarried quickly. However if the young woman's "loss of honour" is known, the chances of marriage becomes slim. It all boils down to conservative attitudes. The only way to eradicate this inhuman and unacceptable behavior is to treat women equally and make laws which are exemplary and strict. It appears so easy to say this than see it work.