8/21/2019 Study Finds Honor Killings a Major Portion of Pakistan

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Study Finds Honor Killings a

Major Portion of Pakistans

HomicidesBYADMIN April 6, 2009 at 7:45 PM EST

Woman in Pakistan; Flickr user matthewlees

In-depth coverage: Global Health Watch

Considered a form of domestic and gender-based violence, honor killings often involve

women murdered by family members to avenge shame brought by infidelity or other

culturally unacceptable behaviors.

Its a very unique kind of violence, because usually domestic violence is caused by

husbands or partners, but this is often conducted by brothers or fathers, said Dr.

Muazzam Nasrullah, who ran the study while at the Aga Khan University in Pakistan.

Now working as an Epidemic Intelligence Service officer with the Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention, Nasrullah said the report is the first statistical study that attempts

to quantify the problem since data about the practice are so difficult to collect. Nasrullah

used local and national newspaper reports systematically compiled by the Human Rights

Commission of Pakistan as the basis for his study.

Other sources of data, such as death certificates, often do not include specific enough

information on the circumstances of the death, Nasrullah said.

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A total of 1,957 incidents of honor killings were recorded over four years, the study

reported. The majority occurred in response to alleged extramarital relations.

But Nasrullah said he is confident the results were lower than the actual number because

not every event makes it into the media.

The problem is much more than what is depicted in my paper, said Nasrullah.

Honor killings are not unique to Pakistan, and the World Health Organization estimates

about 5,000 women are murdered by family members in the name of honor each year

worldwide.

Dr. Claudia Garcia-Moreno, an adviser on gender violence at the World Health

Organization, said honor killings are an extreme form of violence against women which

we see primarily in the Middle East and in parts of Asia, but in many ways they are not

very different than some of the murders that are being documented in other places.

Womens sexuality and the cultural norms surrounding it are part of patterns of violence

throughout the world, she said.

From the public health perspective, we have been looking at: how do you stop some of

these different forms of violence from happening in the first place? said Garcia-Moreno.

But addressing these issues requires action on multiple levels, including having strong,

enforced laws, as well as social messages that make it clear these types of violence are

not acceptablea difficult task when a practice is ingrained in a society.

Having reliable data about honor killings is an important starting point, said Garcia-

Moreno, because many types of domestic violence are kept hidden by both perpetrators

and victims.

There is a saying that in order to make something count you have to count it, Garcia-

Moreno said.

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Until relatively recently, some of these issues have been invisible. Issues of domestic

violence were considered private, so in some ways part of the culture change is to start to

name and to count what is happening.

One of the biggest challenges in trying to halt honor killings is their long tradition of

being seen as a way of upholding the moral values of society, said T. Kumar, advocacy

director for the Asia and Pacific region at Amnesty International.

Any lasting shift in how honor killings are viewed would have to come from the

community itself, said Kumar. The pressure to maintain the practice is so great that in

some instances, family members may feel they have no other options, despite not wanting

to harm their child or sister, he said.

Their respect in the community was tarnished by that family member so they want to

regain that, said Kumar. If you dont do it then you have been laughed upon.

While honor killings are illegal and considered murder in Pakistan, there are loopholes

that often prevent full punishment for the crime. The family of the victim can decide to

pardon someone convicted of a crime, Kumar said. In the case of honor killings, the

accused is usually part of that family.

Progress on this issue will be slow, Kumar said. It boils down to whats the definition of

honor and changing that.

Nasrullah said the most important conclusion of his study is that more research needs to

be done on honor killings to reveal more about the causes and scope of the problem. His

hope, expressed in the published study is that clear knowledge about the extent and the

brutal consequences of [honor killings] may serve to alter traditional practices.

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