Jirga system
A Jirga in Orangi Town sentenced them to death for marrying of their free will
Less than a month ago, the much-debated word ‘honour’ resurfaced in the country’s mainstream media after a teenage girl was paraded naked on the streets in Dera Ismail Khan in the name of honour. As the issue is still in vogue with investigations underway, another case of honour this time involving the murder of a couple in Karachi has been reported. A Jirga in Orangi Town, where the two adults hailed from, sentenced them to death for marrying of their free will. So far nine relatives suspected of secretly burying the dead bodies have been arrested, but the main accused — the brother and the father of the deceased girl — are still on the run.
Honour killing cases in Pakistan are rampant irrespective of the Anti-Honour Killing Bill being passed. However, many of them are often reported from rural areas and citizens are often quick to snub the issue as something that is only prevalent in the countryside. Resultantly, policies are only formulated keeping in mind the orthodox mindset of these conservative areas. But with fresh waves of cases being reported from areas that make up the urban metropolitan cities, it is evident that there is much more in place than a rural conservative mindset.
First and foremost, the prevalence of a Jirga system is in question. Why has the sate let a parallel system of justice that is solely based on a misogynistic mindset to prevail, especially in Sindh where it was banned in 2004? This is not the first time an honour-killing case has been reported in Karachi. A teenage couple who tried to elope was electrocuted to death on the orders of a Jirga in August, even when the families of the victims had pleaded for mercy. Though it is commendable that the Sindh chief minister has ordered the police to arrest all perpetrators, including the members of the Jirga, it is important that any such existing systems must be rendered ineffective immediately, lest we continue to lose more innocent lives.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 30th, 2017.
Honour killing cases in Pakistan are rampant irrespective of the Anti-Honour Killing Bill being passed. However, many of them are often reported from rural areas and citizens are often quick to snub the issue as something that is only prevalent in the countryside. Resultantly, policies are only formulated keeping in mind the orthodox mindset of these conservative areas. But with fresh waves of cases being reported from areas that make up the urban metropolitan cities, it is evident that there is much more in place than a rural conservative mindset.
First and foremost, the prevalence of a Jirga system is in question. Why has the sate let a parallel system of justice that is solely based on a misogynistic mindset to prevail, especially in Sindh where it was banned in 2004? This is not the first time an honour-killing case has been reported in Karachi. A teenage couple who tried to elope was electrocuted to death on the orders of a Jirga in August, even when the families of the victims had pleaded for mercy. Though it is commendable that the Sindh chief minister has ordered the police to arrest all perpetrators, including the members of the Jirga, it is important that any such existing systems must be rendered ineffective immediately, lest we continue to lose more innocent lives.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 30th, 2017.