Daily Times

Each year on November 25th, we commemorate the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women because it is, unfortunately, one of the most widespread and devastating human rights violations globally. For 16 days, we mobilize against gender violence as governments, organizations and individuals around the world cooperate and invite attention to the urgent need to end violence against women and girls.

Gender-based violence (GBV) is both a cause and a consequence of gender inequality.

It can take many different forms: including intimate partner violence, sexual harassment, online abuse and’so-called’ honour related violence ultimately leading to femicide,which are crimes often committed within families and cut across all socio-economic barriers.

Violence against women exists at an alarming level inPakistan, it ought to have no place here or anywhere else in the world. A particularly heinous form of gender-based violence (GBV) is that of so-called “honour killings”. An estimated 1000 plus women are murdered under the pretext of “honour” in Pakistan each year.

This inhumane practice continues to take place despite the enactment of stringent legislation, including the existing honour killing law of 2016, which mandates life imprisonment for convicted murderers and restricts the power of pardon by the family of perpetrators of such crimes.

It is our collective responsibility as the European Union and Pakistan, to keep our commitment to preventing, openly reject and condemn’honourkillings’ and to prescribe more informed methods of implementation of anti-honour killing laws.It is also our duty to create a system whereby perpetrators of this crime are brought to justice. The EU is dedicated to working with our partners to strengthen legal frameworks and institutions, supporting development and education, improving services for survivors, addressing the root causes of violence and promotion women empowerment.

The European Union is actively supporting the effort of the government of Pakistan in addressing this problem through women’s empowerment programs, the promotion of girl’s education, as well as through human rights programs. Fighting Violence Against Women (VAW) is an ongoing job and this is why, in the framework of 16 days of activism against Gender-based Violence, EU’sopening of Human Rights Reel Film Festival also puts a spotlight on the issue of women journalists and the crippling effects of cyber harassment on their lives.Promotion of gender equality is a significant focus of our current 7-year programing cycle of 600+ M euro portfolio of projects.

An event we collectively organized took place on the 25th of November to launch #TimeForRealHonour campaign in order to help create a narrative of a wider campaign against “honour killing” in Pakistan. The Federal Ministry of Law and Justice, in collaboration with the European Union Delegation to Pakistan endeavored a multi-stakeholder discussion and dialogue against this heinous crime and screened two short films highlighting the existing legislative framework against ‘honour killings’.

In an effort to engage with the public about the practice of ‘honour killing’, the first film, a Public Service Message [PSA], focused on highlighting the issue: A story of a neighborhood in a town, where the father of a young adolescent girl believes that his daughter has brought dis-honour to their family. He is stopped by the people of his neighborhood, telling him the consequences of his actions and how he would be the one bringing shame and dis-honour to their community. The tragedy then follows when he realizes that he got his acts wrong. The second film, titled Aagahi, highlighted the legislative laws against ‘honour killing’ according to the Constitution of Pakistan: The animated short film shows is a step-by-step guide about the laws and the resources available for survivors and their families.

The Federal Ministry of Law and Justice and The European Union Delegation to Pakistan, as part of #TimeForRealHonour, is further collaborating with SOC Films for their Mobile Cinema Project where we will be taking the two films to screen it in different cities, towns and villages across Pakistan, with an aim to educating not just the families and individuals, but also the law enforcement agencies, about the legal rights and legal procedures. This is all with the hope of sparking debate on this issue. This is an opportunity to sensitize the larger segments of society and change attitudes to prevent it.

We have marked the International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Women, but our work doesn’t end there, so our efforts to prevent it must continue and increase every day. One way of doing this is to increase the awareness and implementation of Pakistan’s laws against honour killings. If more women and men knew about the existing legal framework, more could claim safety and support mechanisms that the law guarantees them.

But ending ‘honour killings’ requires a firm and sustained commitment not only at an institutional level; it also requires a broad involvement of all government institutions, civil society at large, and most of all both men and women. It is all about attempting to change attitudes, which will require an overarching and relentless holistic effort.

The EU Delegation to Pakistan, The Federal Ministry of Law and Justice have joined hands to promote women’s awareness and access to justice.

The writers are European Union Ambassador to Pakistan / Federal Minister for Law and Justice