Daily Times

In our unfortunate society, the enforcers of ethical standards are so resolute in their beliefs that they overlook the hypocrisy of their family-oriented notions when becoming the law unto themselves and tearing those values to shreds. It was the bizarre sense of impunity that empowered a man in Arifwala to calmly sit beside the dead body of his niece after axing his niece to death in her sleep.

Although arrested by the local police, he did not show any sign of remorse, confident in having done his due share of duty to the society. After all, how could a forsaken divorcee think of love or a fresh start? In a country where the apex court, overwhelmed by the seemingly neverending stream of honour killings, laments the crime as cancer, eroding its foundation, just the whiff of an affair was rendered sufficient for an “honourable” man in Kabirwala to shoot his three sisters and even his mother.

Elsewhere in Hafizabad, the disgust felt by the parents of a girl who had chosen a partner of her own choosing surfaced when they were tracked by the local police, carrying her dead body to the graveyard. These episodes would continue no matter how many legislations are celebrated as “revolutionary” or “historic” unless a dedicated effort is shown to improve their implementation.

Even conservative estimates suggest that around 1000 women are murdered annually in Pakistan in honour killings. Hardly a day goes by when these crimes do not appear on television screens or are mentioned in newspapers. Of course, the actual number would be much, much higher because only a fraction of the incidents are reported to the authorities out of societal taboos and fears of a family’s reputation.

Those who do manage to sneak into the limelight then become victims of the glaring flaws in the criminal justice system. Isn’t it an outright tragedy that when cases are filed against the male relatives of these women, they are often forgiven, allowing them to escape punishment? Preventing violence may be difficult but still possible if there’s a political will to ensure the security of our women, their happiness and their freedom to choose their future. *