Life in a remote corner of Pakistan. Two women killed in “honor” killings.
On the condition of anonymity, one villager confirmed the news that the girl was attacked by her brother and killed – the brother believed that his sister had developed an illicit relation with another man, and the brother caught them in an ‘objectionable situation’. With anger, he killed his sister while the man succeeded in running away.
…
In a second incident of honor killing in another remote location of same Kachho area – Taluka Johi, district Dadu, an uncle (Mama) killed his niece in the pretext of [h]onor killing. Sources closed to victim family revealed this story but never shared name of the woman. They described the woman as married and alleged that she was also caught in an ‘objectionable stiuation’.
Well there you go. Two sluts, both found in an ‘objectionable stiuation,’ both killed by heroic male relatives; honor restored. That’s that then.
They are not “honor” killings. They are dishonorable murders, and should be called such. Just as it should never be reported that any group “claimed responsibility” for some atrocity or other, the media should instead state that the group “admitted culpability” for it.
Ophelia, thank you for continuing this sad litany of revelation.
(Because “out of sight, out of mind” is a sad truism)
We really need a better word than “honor killing.” “Control freak murder” would be much closer.
Seriously, if we could somehow agree on a more accurate term and get it into general use, it would help a bit. At least a bit.
Macho murder
Sister slaughter
Maiden murder
Penis rage…
I would call this an example of hate crime against women.
Why not just murder? Why dignify what these slimeballs are doing over any other stupid crime of equal seriousness. These creeps killed people for no good reason, and are no better than someone who shoots someone while trying to take their wallet.
davidjanes,
Recognizing this as a crime that targets women for who they are is not giving murderers any special credit, it is recognizing a problem and a driving force behind their crimes.
If we are looking for a name to call this crime, perhaps “misogynistic religious murder” would do. There are, of course, other misogynistic crimes prompted by religion, such as misogynistic social sequestration, misogynistic genital mutilation, misogynistic religious subordination (as in Islam, many forms of Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, etc), misogynistic control of women’s bodies, and other misogynistic religious acts. What is central is the marginalisation of women, and it is this that needs to be opposed. Religions will never allow women to play their full part, though subgrounps within religions may. That is one of the reasons why religions must be defeated, and we will only defeat them if we make it clear the moral failings that are inherent to the religions.
Why not just “hate crime”?
“Misogynistic hate crime” or “anti-woman hate crime” if you want to be specific.
What’s wrong with “honor killing”? Honor isn’t a good thing. Honor is meaningless macho bullshit designed to make insecure assholes feel like they’re better than they are for doing arbitrarily defined meaningless activities. It is a concept with no value and a shitty reason to do anything.
Calling something an “honor killing” already recognizes that it was an awful thing done for bad reasons. Calling something an “honor killing” only legitimizes it if you still believe that “honor” is an idea that’s worth something.
Remember how FOX Nuisance tried to create a trend and rename suicide bombers as “homicide bombers”?
Too bad that FOX Nuisance lacks the decency to rename these as dishonourable killings. Then again, just look at their attitudes towards women to see why they don’t. Nuisance and its viewers would like to see “honour killings” in the US, of women who have abortions or certain people who “don’t know their place”.
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/09/14/aceh-teen-s-suicide-linked-sharia-practice.html
These types of things are far more common in islamic countries than people think. Women here are treated horrifically.
Imagine the power religious fervor must have that can actually undermine one of out most basic and primal instincts to protect and love our closest relatives.
What’s wrong with “honor killing” is that the word “honor” means very different things in different contexts. Growing up in the U.S. as a child of the offspring of Northern European immigrants, “honor” to me was always presented as personal integrity. I was taught that it mattered a lot. No one but yourself could damage your own honor, and you did it by not keeping faith with your promises, telling lies, and misrepresenting others.
As a result, I can’t quite get a handle on what “honor” means to these butchers. But I’m really reluctant to cede the word to them.