Pakistan: Civil society activists voice concern over surge in 'honour-killing' cases

Dawn News reported, quoting data that showed 142 people have been killed in Sindh this year (till September) under the pretext of karo-kari (honour killing), of whom 105 victims were women.

Data compiled by police reveals that in many of these cases, the perpetrators were the victims’ own family members, the Pakistani newspaper reported.

Rights activists demanded implementation of strict measures to curb the rising honour killings.

Talking to Dawn, rights activist Anis Haroon said there were already sufficient laws to curb “honour killings” but the issue lay in their implementation.

It was the responsibility of the state to enforce those laws, but the state “neglects its duties due to political expediency,” said Haroon.

Mehnaz Rehman, a member of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, told Dawn News that in honour killing cases, men often managed to escape punishment, while women were the ones who ended up being killed.

“I believe that karo-kari has become a kind of industry,” she said. “It involves blood money, compensation, and even the exchange of women through jirgas as part of settlements,” she said.

“Low literacy levels and ignorance are among the chief reasons behind such killings. An educated man would not commit such acts. Therefore, we need to educate people more and more on this issue,” she concluded.