The husband of a British woman who was killed in Pakistan called for the UK and Pakistani governments to ensure his wife received justice Thursday, as he sought to keep the spotlight on so-called honour killings.
Mukhtar Kazam presented a copy of the post-mortem report into his wife Samia Shahid’s death — seen by media — at an emotional press conference, which said the 28-year-old had marks on her neck and suggested she had been strangled.
Kazam has branded her death an “honour killing”, a near daily occurrence in Pakistan in which a relative is murdered by another for bringing the family “dishonour”. The practice was dragged into the international spotlight earlier this month with the killing of Qandeel Baloch, a polarising Pakistani social media star. Her brother has confessed to the murder, saying his sister’s behaviour had been “intolerable”.
Kazam sought to keep international attention on “honour” killings when he spoke to media assembled in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, close to the capital Islamabad Thursday. “I request the British and Pakistani governments to conduct a fair trial,” he said.
Kazam and Shahid, both British-Pakistani dual citizens, had been married for two years and were living in Dubai, police told media, adding that it was Shahid’s second marriage.
Read more: Parents, ex-husband arrested for killing British woman for ‘honour’
Kazam said his wife converted to Shia, his sect, before their wedding, which had irked her parents.
In a complaint to police, he has claimed she was murdered during a visit to her family in their village in Punjab province on July 20.
Shahid’s father has denied the charges and said he did not want an investigation, claiming his daughter died of natural causes.
The victims of “honour” killings are overwhelmingly women, with hundreds killed each year. They have long polarised Pakistan, with progressives calling for tough legislation against them and conservatives resisting.
But the murder of Qandeel Baloch appears to have spurred politicians to take action. Last week the law minister announced that bills aimed at tackling loopholes that facilitate “honour” killings would soon be voted on by parliament.
Rights groups and politicians have for years called for tougher laws to tackle perpetrators of violence against women in Pakistan.
Read more: British woman was strangled to death: Autopsy report
HELLFIRE AND BRIMSTONE'S!
There is absolutely no justification in Islam for "honour killing" of women or men. Those who commit these crimes can expect hellfire as their punishment, in addition to the wrath and anger of God, as the previous verse from the holy Quran describes. These types of killings are quite simply murder crimes, and should be prosecuted as such. ..
There is no historical background in Islam for "honour killing". No verse in the holy Quran and no saying of Prophet Mohammad sanctions such crimes. …
Islam does prescribe strict and sometimes even severe punishments for certain crimes, such as adultery and robbery. However, Islam places a great burden of proof on the accuser to prove their accusations. …
Islam has prescribed these punishments as a deterrent, and as a way to demonstrate to people how ugly these crimes are and how hated they are in the sight of God. …
Therefore, although Islam does prescribe 100 lashes for fornication (sexual relations between unmarried people), and death by stoning for adultery (married people who have sexual relations outside of marriage), these punishments are not really meant to be performed as much as they are meant to make these crimes hated in the eyes of the society in order to minimize their occurrence. ..
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