Honour Killing

Pakistani man charged in 'honour killings' of 4 daughters
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2005/12/29/honour-killing051229.html

Honour killing is a murder of a family member, usually a woman, who are believed to have brought "shame" to the family. Women are be target for: refusing an arrange marriage, seeking a divorce, or even talking to another man. Human Rights Watch defines honour killing as "acts of violence, usually murder, committed by male family members against female family members, who are held to have brought dishonour upon the family. A woman can be targeted by (individuals within) her family for a variety of reasons, including: refusing to enter into an arranged marriage, being the victim of a sexual assault, seeking a divorce—even from an abusive husband—or (allegedly) committing adultery. The mere perception that a woman has behaved in a way that "dishonours" her family is sufficient to trigger an attack on her life."

Honour killing occurs in many places in the world, including: Egypt, Jordan, Iran, Lebanon, Morocco, Pakistan, Turkey, and other Mediterranean countries. Honour killing has also occurred in developed countries including: France, Germany, United States, and Canada. In 2007, Dr. Amin Muhammad did a study and wrote, "When people come and settle in Canada they can bring their traditions and forcefully follow them. In some cultures, people feel some boundaries are never to be crossed, and if someone would violate those practices or go against it, then murder is justified to them."

Some people believe honour killing occurs because of race, and people make racial comments about certain groups such as Islamics and Muslims, but it occurs because of tradition and culture. In the article, it states "...the younger children were killed because of fears they would follow in her footsteps." In the Islamic and Muslim tradition, the men tend to seek control and power, and the family is a property and asset to them. Because of this belief, even women support killing one of their own.
Muslim and Islamic men show power and control over women by honour killing and other abuses. In developed countries, men also seek power and control, but in a less brutal way. Muslim and Islamic men follow tradition and do not receive the education like in developed countries. Therefore, they do not realize the brutality and inhumanity of honour killing. Also, there has been studies proving that in a male dominate country, violence against women occurs more because inferior men try to regain authority and power by abusing women. To stop honour killing, these men must be educated. These abuses will continue to occur, because men are physically stronger than women, but lives will not be at stake.





Du’a Khalil Aswad, 17, was stoned to death in an honour killing in 2007 after being seen with a Muslim boy.
http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/05/18/iraq.honorkilling/
*Warning: This video contains extremely disturbing images.