Dying for the Family Honor
By Vanessa Lesnie
Why would a father, husband, or brother kill his daughter, wife, or sister? In some parts of the world, including Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Brazil, Uganda, and many countries in the Middle East, when a woman's family believes that her behavior has threatened the "family honor," killing her is seen as the only alternative. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan estimates that more than 1,000 Pakistani women die for honor every year; Jordanian authorities estimate that approximately one-quarter of all homicides occur for this reason; and in Yemen, university surveys estimate that, in 1997, 400 women were killed for honor. Since many "honor" crimes go unreported, these frightening numbers may actually underestimate the size of the problem.
What type of behavior could be so serious as to lead a family to take such an extreme measure? Anything to do with a woman's sexuality is reason enough. Ghazala's family burned her to death because they suspected that she was having an illicit relationship with her neighbor. Her charred body was left in the street for two hours because nobody wanted anything to do with it. Gonul Aslan's family tried to drown her in the river Euphrates when she ran away with her boyfriend. She had refused to marry the man arranged by her family. Sixteen-year-old Hacer Felhan's thirteen-year-old brother shot her dead in her home because someone dedicated a song to her on the radio. The family suspected that the dedication came from a boyfriend. Arbab Khatoon's family murdered her seven hours after she went to the police to report that she had been raped by three men.
In cultures where these so-called honor killings take place, a family's reputation rests on a woman's chastity, fidelity, and obedience. If there is any suggestion at all that those values have been compromised then that woman's family will be ostracized from society. The only way to cure the "harm" is to kill the offending woman. It doesn't matter whether there is proof of the transgression, mere gossip is sufficient to bring shame on the family-a radio dedication is enough. It doesn't matter whether the sexual activity is consensual; regardless of whether a woman has been raped or voluntarily consented to sex, she has lost her virginity or committed adultery and, thereby, has brought her family into disrepute.
In these societies, a woman who marries without her father's permission is considered to have dishonored her family, as is a woman who seeks a divorce, and a woman who has an adulterous affair. Likewise, a woman who is seen at the movies with a man, or who goes out alone at night, or who spends "too much" time with a male cousin may have violated the family honor. And the "remedies" for these alleged transgressions are all variations on the theme of death: shooting, beheading, dismembering, flogging, burning by acid or fire, strangling, drowning, forced suicide.
How do they get away with it, these fathers, brothers, husbands, and other male relatives? In some countries, killing for adultery is authorized by the State. For example, article 548 of the Syrian Penal Code reads:
1. He who catches his wife or one of his ascendants, descendants or sister committing adultery (flagrante delicto) or illegitimate sexual acts with another and he killed or injured one or both of them benefits from an exemption of penalty.
2. He who catches his wife or one of his ascendants, descendants or sister in a "suspicious" state with another (attitude equivoque) benefits from a reduction of penalty. (Emphasis added.)
Jordan's law is almost identical. In Egypt, a man who kills his wife because of adultery will, instead of being sentenced to death, be punished by a prison term ranging from twenty-four hours to three years. Not surprisingly, a woman who kills under the same circumstances does not enjoy the same forgiveness.
In other countries, honor killings may not be specifically authorized, but the penalties for murder "in the family" are such that they effectively amount to an endorsement of the practice. For example, in Pakistan, a person who is the heir of the victim is usually given the opportunity to forgive the accused or accept compensation (diyat) rather than submit the offender to imprisonment. So if a father killed his daughter, the killer's grandson could either accept token compensation (which would, of course, stay in the family) or forgive his grandfather completely. Since most honor killings occur with the complicity of the entire family, this law effectively amounts to an acceptance and tolerance of the practice of honor killings. Even if the law of diyat did not apply, the maximum penalty for a murder that takes place when the heir of the victim is a descendant of the offender is fourteen years' imprisonment, as opposed to the death penalty, which is the penalty for any other type of murder.
Even where there is no specific law protecting honor killers, they often go unpunished. Because a man who kills a woman for honor is killing to protect society from her alleged immoral acts, the community rallies around the murderer to protect him from any State punishment. As a result, the crime often goes unreported; the local police frequently ignore any reports they do get (especially if submitted by a woman); prosecutors do not pursue offenders; and it is common for judges to give very lenient sentences.
At first glance, it is hard to understand how some of these societies can punish murder between strangers with the brutality of the death penalty, yet turn a deliberate blind eye to murders within the family. However, what we are seeing in these societies is really just an extreme version of the problems that are facing women everywhere in the world, including in the United States. It was not that long ago that it was legal in this country for a husband to rape his wife because he "owned" her sexuality. Activists here are still fighting for laws and practices that eliminate domestic violence and bring equality into the household. Honor killings are an extreme form of domestic violence; the societies in which honor killings occur are just much further behind in their struggle for equality.
Fortunately, honor killings are beginning to receive increased attention from international bodies, international non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and local groups, and this, in turn, is putting increased pressure on governments to take action to stop the practice. The UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary, or arbitrary executions, Asma Jahangir, has highlighted the practice in her report to the March 2000 UN Human Rights Commission, and the Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, Radhika Coomaraswamy, has also called attention to the issue in her reports. (See interview on p. 12 and the article on p. 13 for more on Asma Jahingar.)
International NGOs are increasingly researching the problem and issuing reports, which are creating some media interest and generating some pressure at the international level. Even more importantly, local groups are organizing and making strong demands on their governments. In Pakistan, an active NGO movement appears to be making inroads. Just last month, the military ruler of Pakistan, General Pervez Musharaff, stated that "[k]illing in the name of honor is murder, and it will be treated as such." A meeting in Jordan in June 1999 brought together women's human rights groups working in the region to assess the best strategy to prevent honor crimes and it appears that the Jordanian government is set to reform its law as a result.
It is hard to be optimistic about the speedy elimination of this horrific practice. Honor crimes are steeped in a long cultural tradition aimed at controlling women by whatever means necessary. However, while local and international activists continue to work with other countries to eradicate honor killings, we in the United States also have work to do. Frequently, U.S. asylum law is currently often interpreted in a way that does not recognize gender-based persecution. This must change. Until the problem of gender-based persecution is solved at its source, we must ensure that its victims are granted their right to a safe place to stay.
Vanessa Lesnie is the International Advocacy Coordinator for the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights in New York.
