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No Honour in Murder: Femicide and Honour Killing Cases in Pakistan | Ep 11 | Dear Body
17 Plays9 days ago
What kills women in Pakistan isn’t always a weapon. Sometimes, it’s the silence that surrounds them. In this deeply personal and reflective episode, Sarosh speaks about the harrowing realities of femicide and honour killings in Pakistan — where women are murdered for speaking up, for dreaming, for choosing.
Through the stories of Humaira Asghar, Qandeel Baloch, Noor Mukadam, and countless unnamed victims, this episode explores the systemic violence that justifies a woman’s death in the name of honour. It questions why society remains silent until after a woman’s body is found — and why her life was never considered sacred to begin with.
From legal loopholes to social apathy, this episode of Dear Body asks: What is the cost of a woman’s freedom in this country? And who decides which dreams are worth dying for?
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Transcript
The Mysterious Death of Humera Asghar
00:00:00
Speaker
What kills women in this country isn't always a weapon. Sometimes it's the silence around them. A Pakistani actor, model and theatre artist, Humera Asghar was found eight months after her death.
00:00:14
Speaker
During these months, no one left her a sea of messages when she did not respond. No one knocked on the door to her apartment. The value of a woman's body in the eyes of her family, colleagues and friends was determined when she experienced a spectacle of doubt and worry only after her passing.
00:00:34
Speaker
What happens when a young woman aims for this guy? Are her dreams supported? Or does she face complete isolation until it starts weighing heavily on her? What is the cost of a woman's aspirations in Pakistan?
Introducing the Fight Against Societal Sexism
00:00:52
Speaker
Hello everyone, my name is Sirosh and you are listening to Dear Body. to Today's episode will be a moment of self-reflection for every woman who has had to fight for her dreams. We have countless examples of women in real and real life who have had to chase their dreams and that meant standing in the face of deeply rooted values that were sexist.
Honor Killings and Legal Reforms in Pakistan
00:01:15
Speaker
my first exposure to this ugly reality for women who are vocal about their dreams was after kandil balot's passing i was one of the many who would actively watch her facebook videos and share them with my friends i was there when the news of her murder took over every national and international media outlet that was also the first time i took an interest in the word honour killing women were killed to protect the honour of the family what justifies the killing of these women refusal to marry a man of the family's liking
00:01:52
Speaker
choosing to flee the home that disapproves of their personal and professional decisions after kandil was drugged and strangled by her brother for dishonouring the family's name the national assembly enacted the anti-honour killing law under the law, the perpetrator is refused freedom or forgiveness, even after the victim's family forgives the murderer. To this day, this case remains fresh in my memory, as if it all happened yesterday. Despite the existence of laws to protect women, many cases go unnoticed or unreported.
00:02:28
Speaker
families are silenced corruption is rampant many families disapprove of the attention received online it takes a lot of mental and physical strength to fight for justice for the victims in this country one of the more recent cases that required willpower amidst severe grieving was noor muqaddam's case This was one of the few cases that had gripped the entire country, particularly during the trial of Zahir Jaffer, the man behind Noor's ruthless murder by decapitation.
00:03:02
Speaker
There are several reasons why these cases have never left our minds and hearts. Both murders, despite visible differences when it came to the cause, the backgrounds and the consequences, point to one everyday reality.
00:03:18
Speaker
A woman's murder was justified in court and online. Gandil's videos online, in her attire commonly unacceptable, were posed as a justifiable reason for her murder.
00:03:31
Speaker
Her clothing, her expose of a cleric's hypocrisy, made her a justifiable target. A woman was corrupting her family's name, so she deserved to die.
00:03:43
Speaker
Her nationwide fame was tarnishing the country's reputation. The family's name, the country's pride, isn't questioned when graves are dug out and necrophilia is committed, or when the relatives sexually assault the children at home, or when a man beats up his wife using her as a punching bag for his hardships in life, or when corruption is committed at a political level, when videos of clerics sexually assaulting children in a mosque are circulated online.
Society's Hypocrisy and Gender-Based Violence
00:04:13
Speaker
when animals are tortured and left to die on the streets. Why is it that our moral compass points to a woman and her everyday decisions? Our consciousness dies or goes into a deep slumber state when cases outside a woman's affair are reported daily?
00:04:31
Speaker
Was the answer to put a complete end to Kandil's life justified? What will people say? Is this reality more important for us to maintain than the safety and support our sisters, our daughters, our wives, our mothers, our friends need?
00:04:48
Speaker
We live in the digital age, and every day you must have come across stories of a girl's life put to an end because it did not restrict her mobility. Let's look at some of the recent headlines.
00:05:01
Speaker
a pakistani man suspected of killing his u s born fifteen-year-old daughter in queta after she refused to stop sharing videos on tiktok four suspects who raped and killed an eleven-year-old girl on march twenty four were her relatives with two of them her maternal uncles two pakistani-origined spanish sisters aruj abbas and anisa abbas were tortured and shot dead in the gujarat district for refusing to take their husbands cousins from forced marriages to spain syra nineteen and her husband lost their lives in an alleged honor killing incident in karachi's orangi town
00:05:41
Speaker
the suspect saira's brother was arrested for allegedly shooting the couple who had married a month earlier against the family's wishes a mother of five was brutally killed in faisalabad by her husband and younger brother allegedly to protect the family's honour accused of having an affair the victim was attacked at home with bricks leading to fatal injuries Her body was later dumped in a nala through a donkey cart.
00:06:10
Speaker
What do these stories have in common? These women were subjected to honour killings. Their lives were ended brutally based on gender, what we call femicide.
00:06:23
Speaker
Let's break down these terms one by one so we understand the seriousness of the violence women are subjected to and on what basis do the perpetrators get away with it. femicide involves ending a woman's life simply based on gender women and girls are subjected to domestic violence sexual harassment sex trafficking and much more all of which come under femicide commonly partners or family members including fathers uncles and brothers are behind these gender-based killings a woman raped burnt alive tortured and left to die decapitated poisoned all of which come under femicide
00:07:07
Speaker
another harrowing reality about femicide is how so many cases are not given the attention they deserve partly due to the geography class and social circumstances surrounding the crime you may wonder why the reasoning will be much more straightforward once we understand the word honour killing commonly girls and women honour killing is an unjustifiable act committed by family members upon victims who are said to have brought dishonour upon the family what counts as dishonour in the eyes of the perpetrator a woman speaking for her right to receive education rejecting a marriage proposal seeking a partner of her choice for marriage demanding divorce and speaking up against domestic violence
00:07:56
Speaker
calling such acts dishonorable is a mere subjective approach and is not embedded in facts no religion forces marriage refuses the right to education or demands tolerating violence either mental or physical So who decides such a harrowing fate for women?
00:08:16
Speaker
When societies view women as a burden, as property to be sold off to the highest bidder, it ultimately increases the risk of violence against women.
00:08:28
Speaker
Individuals who inflict violence upon women or girls simply look at them as lifeless bodies who can be moulded, used and thrown to their venomous liking.
Cultural Restrictions on Women's Rights
00:08:40
Speaker
in a patriarchal society when a woman decides to speak up for her right to education right to marry the man of her liking work before or after marriage she is stripped of her bodily rights the right to mobilize outside the four walls of her house the right to choose whom she wishes to spend the rest of her life with in some cases the most extreme measures are taken to save the family's honor a woman's life carries no meaning in front of the members who justify killing in the name of religion i do not intend to address the subject of religion giving it sensitivity particularly in our country being a woman who has the privilege to speak for the women who are silenced i feel it is our responsibility to use our voice to speak for our fundamental rights sensibly
00:09:34
Speaker
How unfortunate that the most basic rights women deserve as citizens, as humans, some have to fight for them. But amidst all this, there are glimmers of what a different future could look like, even on our television screens.
Challenging Traditional Narratives in Media
00:09:49
Speaker
Currently, am watching a Pakistani drama series called Parvirish, which translates to upbringing in Urdu. a teenage girl falls for a young boy who is living with a stranger trying to stand on his own two feet and make it as a musician in pakistan the young girl's parents visibly worried for their child's future are concerned as she communicates her wish to marry him setting aside the reality that both children are making such big decisions at such a tender age what struck me was one conversation between the girl's parents instead of restricting the girl to forget the boy and marrying him off to a financially sound man of her parents liking the father expresses the harsh reality of youth forced to commit to a life carved out of their parents wishes
00:10:39
Speaker
either they run away from their respective homes or they end their lives typically our pakistani drama series are full of weeping women women being dragged handcuffed belittled and forced into marriage very rarely are there accounts of a healthy understanding of parent-child relationships When was the last time you witnessed a drama representing a secure future ensured by the girls' as parents and their family members?
00:11:07
Speaker
In a media landscape dominated by the suffering of women, Parvarish feels radical, simply because it shows a father listening to his daughter.
Reflecting on Women's Autonomy and Silent Voices
00:11:17
Speaker
if media can normalize control it can also normalize compassion you must be wondering how all of this is linked to humera's case according to the latest news report her passing will likely be declared a natural death however the circumstances under which she was found paint a bitter reality for women No one checked on her in the past eight months as she lay lifeless at her residence.
00:11:44
Speaker
No phone calls or messages from her parents, siblings or friends. Isolation killed Homera. That is the reality for women and girls whose families disapprove of a woman's decision to make choices for her life independently.
00:12:02
Speaker
choosing to distance yourself from your loved ones can have mental consequences for both parties for homera it meant complete desertion moments of self-doubt and ultimately losing her will-power to carry on all by herself even after her passing her last rites became a spectacle online multiple stories are circulating online currently as the case is so recent therefore delving into the complexities of it would likely distract us from the main subject of to- today's episode kandil was silenced
00:12:38
Speaker
Noor was isolated. Homera was forgotten. Each of them wanted a life of their choosing, and for that they were left alone. Women in this country deserve the right to mobilize and make choices for their bodies and minds.
00:12:53
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If you have a voice to speak for the women who are silenced, this is your chance to reflect.