Details

Technical Note

Educator Copy

A Note on The Role of The Law and The Police in Perpetuating Honour Killings in Pakistan

Sikander Shah


INDUSTRY : Police

AREA : Corporate Law

ORGANIZATION : Seed

LENGTH : 15

LUMS No : 10-003-2005-2

PUBLICATION YEAR : 2005

DESCRIPTION

KEYWORDS:

Law,Police,Perpetuating Honour Killings,Pakistan,Hudood Ordinance,Culture,Religion


DESCRIPTION:

Since the inception of Pakistan in August 1947, the principle of mitigation in common law has often been manipulated to promote honour killings, but with the Islamization of the laws in Pakistan in the 1980s, Islamic law has also been utilized to perpetuate honour killings. Before the Hudood Ordinance, although promiscuity was regarded as a grave religious and cultural wrong, it was not considered a crime. With the enactment of the Hudood Ordinance, sex outside marriage has become a distinct criminal offence punishable by Rajm or stoning to death. The Hudood Ordinance has adversely and holistically impacted women in Pakistan, specifically in the context of honour killings. The Ordinance has provided convenient means in the tribal and rural communities to justify acts of honour killings. This note examines the role of the law and the police in perpetuating the murder of countless women in the name of so-called honour for allegedly committing Zina. 


LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

N/A


SUBJECTS COVERED:

Law, Islamic Law