Honour killings or plain murder? :

As women,we stand for ourselves and for each other

by Mesha Madhubhani

“..Love me or hate me, I do not care... If you love me, I will stay in your heart... if you hate me, I will stay in your mind...”

Fauzia Azeem, Pakistan’s first ever social media celebrity who appeared in social media, as, ‘Qandeel Baloch’, was strangled to death by her older brother, recently, in the city of Multan, in the province of Punjab, in an act of what the police calls, a case of ‘honour killing’.

The brother (Azhar Akram) was arrested, after he confessed his crime and clearly stated it was done by him out of his sole respect for the family name and its honour, and that he has no regrets in doing so.

The 26-year-old social media celebrity, who was both adored, and reviled for her conduct was constantly and continuously accused and threatened by many religious extremists for her controversial images and videos that she posted online.

But, at the same time, she was celebrated by many feminists and legal activists as a character who pushed the so-called boundaries in her society.

Her videos and posts do not seem any different from other celebrity videos or posts, but according to the culture which prevails in Pakistan, it is a grave crime (punishable by death, at the discretion of the males in the family) for a woman to behave in such ways.

Enraged

The whole world weeps for her death and is now enraged by her brother, stating he has ‘absolutely no regrets’. The brother had been continuously opposed to her postings online, and at the cumulative point of his anger, she was strangled to death in her family home, last Friday.

It is not the time yet, to predict the decision of the judiciary on his act, and the world will be vigilant about the decision.

But, these so called ‘honour killings’ are a daily practice in many countries. Qandeel’s story captured everyone’s attention, but how many Qandeels die silently, unheard and unseen? Who pays attention to their stories?

Sadly, many girls and women are still being killed in the name of the so called family honour, not to forget the fact that boys are killed too.

Girls are killed by their families (including their own mothers, sad to say) if they simply refuse to marry the proposed groom, or if they elope with another boy who does not gain the approval of the family. Women are murdered on the mere suspicion of adultery, while boys engaging in homosexual relationships are killed as well, as it is considered a grave crime that defames a family.

Methods

The methods of killing are nonetheless brutal and cold blooded. Strangling to death, shooting, drowning in water, burning alive and even beating to death, are among these methods.

The so-called ‘honour killings’ are seen today, mostly in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, within the south Asian region.

Also, countries such as Syria, Iraq, Iran and Saudi Arabia as well as the northern African countries still practise such killings. Disappointingly, it is evident that it is not only among Muslims, but, Christianity, Jewism, Hinduism and Sikh religions also seem to encourage such killings in the name of a so called honour of a family or religion.

One may think, given the fact that we currently live in a highly globalized technological era, such practices do not occur so abundantly, but it is not so.The number of honour killings do not seem to have reduced, and continue, regardless of the social and legal pressure rising worldwide.

The reason why such pressure does not discourage or deter these practices is because of the extremist attitude inculcated within the people of these societies since time immemorial.

Anyone who rises against these stereotyped attitudes are immediately rejected and eliminated from society.

Qandeel was able to raise her voice through social media, her music video named ‘BAN’ that criticized all the practices she was banned from, went viral over the internet, overnight. Even after her death, she is celebrated by feminists, legal activists and many more. My sympathy and love are in my heart for her bravery, but what about the thousands of innocent girls, boys and women who have not had the opportunity to stand against the social stigma?

Need for change

The Universal Declaration on Human Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women and many more international treaties and declarations have been long ratified, but they do not seem to achieve gender justice, or answer the questions of extreme gender disparity within certain regions of the world.

It does not seem that a legally binding enforcement would be sufficient to change the statusquo.

The need for change in attitudes is of great importance. It is imperative that the religious leaders and clergy take the initiative to interpret the religious texts and preachings in ways that do not do injustice to the innocent.

On a final note, it must be remembered that Qandeel had been constantly complaining to the Pakistani authorities about the life threats she faced, which went unheard and were not responded to, till one day, when she breathed no more.

It is the responsibility of the state and the state authorities to make amendments to the laws and regulations in such a way that they pay attention to those who faced injustice and pave the way for them to be heard.

For the sake of the thousands of unheard Qandeels, leaving this world, merely due to the fact they were born female, let us remember what she fought for, and was brave enough to say out loud and clear, in a highly stigmatized, male dominated society.

“.. My journey from a girl to a self independent woman was not easy. I believe I’m a modern day feminist, and I believe in equality. I do not think there is any need to label ourselves for the sake of society. As women we must stand up for ourselves, as women we must stand up for each other..”

“..I am a fighter, and I will come back to inspire women who have been dominated by society..”