"Pakistan police stood by as pregnant woman beaten to death, husband says - Reuters Thursday, May 29, 2014
ISLAMABAD - Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has demanded to know why police apparently stood by while a pregnant woman was stoned and beaten to death by her family in front of one of the country's top courts, his spokesman said on Thursday.
Farzana Iqbal, 25, was attacked on Tuesday, police said, because she had married the man she loved.
In parts of Pakistan, a largely Muslim nation of 180 million people, women are expected to agree to arranged marriages and refusal can mean an "honour killing".
Many Pakistani families think it dishonourable for a woman to fall in love and choose her own husband.
Sharif had taken notice of the "brutal killing" in the presence of police, his press office said in a statement, adding that a "totally unacceptable" crime had to be dealt with promptly by law. "I am directing the chief minister to take immediate action and a report must be submitted by this evening to my office," it said, quoting Sharif.
All the suspects, except the father, who has been detained, have disappeared. A police officer on Tuesday quoted the father as saying it had been an honour killing.
Honour killings are common in Pakistan, but the brutality of this case caused outrage around the world.
Police said her father, two brothers and a former fiance were among the attackers.
While a member of Iqbal's party wrestled the gun away, a female cousin grabbed a brick and hit Farzana with it, he said. "She was screaming and crying 'don't kill me, we will give you money'," said Iqbal. He said he tried to save her but the mob of more than 20 beat him back.
At one point, six people were beating her with bricks as she screamed, he said, and he and his stepson begged police to help.
Finally she stopped screaming.
The attack happened near the gate of the heavily guarded court, the two men said, on one of the busiest roads in Lahore.
The couple had been due to testify there that morning that their marriage was genuine in response to a false charge of kidnapping brought by Farzana's family.
It was not the first time her family had tried to kill the woman, said her lawyer, Rai Ghulan Mustafa.
GLOBAL OUTRAGE, LOCAL SILENCE
On May 12, seven of her relatives had tried to force their way into his office, where she was sitting, he said, but his colleagues had fought them off.
Later they attacked her near a police station. Officers intervened and held the attackers for an hour before releasing them without charge, he said. "She was afraid of being killed," Mustafa said.
Most national media outlets gave little attention to the story. Honour killings are so common they usually only rate a paragraph or two.
Women have been mutilated and killed for wearing jeans, looking out of windows, singing or giving birth to girls.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said there were 869 such attacks reported in the media last year - several a day. But the true figure is probably much higher since many cases are never reported.
A small editorial in the national daily the Express Tribune denounced the killing and noted a case in New York where a 75-year-old Pakistani immigrant beat his wife to death this month for serving him a vegetarian meal. "The great tragedy for the nation, alongside the murder of yet another Pakistani woman, is that the man's lawyer claimed the man acted on his cultural upbringing where beating women is customary," the writer said.
Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, a senior minister of state in the British government and of Pakistani origin, said she was appalled by the killing. "Perpetrators must be brought to justice," she said in a tweet."
Sorry I leave most of the reporting in tact as I find it traumatic as well as intriguing WHY would the perpetrators BELIEVE that they are doing the 'Honourable' killing? Even the FEMALE members did that against this PREGNANT victim??
Lessons for me are:
1. she was SAVED from bring KILLED twice! Once by her husband's colleagues and once by the police near the police station. WHY did the POLICE at the HIGH COURT came to her aids the 3rd time? The HIGH COURT! A court HEVILY guarded!! WHY? Did those policemen got paid off? Did they agree that the pregnant woman deserve to be 'honourably' KILLED? This is MIND BOGGLING! WHY???? Could they have stood by and watched the butchering IF she is their SISTER? Maybe if they are as BLINDED as these savages that killed her!!;
2. the murderers called it: 'honour killing'. Killing an unarmed woman, much less a PRGNANT and unarmed woman, can NEVER EVER be called a 'honour killing'. Whoever tried to use this as an EXCUSE should be put to death without question. It is better to ride of someone with such a warped mind then to allow him or her to KILL again!! It is 'mentally sick and twisted!' Killing ANYONE is already a big sin. Killing a PREGNANT woman is one of the gravest and despicable cowardly act. Period. The murderers MUST be brought to justice swiftly after a fair and open trial;
3. The news report did mention that 'in some parts of Pakistan', such a killing is still, twistedly perceived to be an honourable act. 'Some parts'. Thankfully. At the same time, EVEN if ONE life is lost due to this 'brutal killing' instead of 'honour killing', it is ONE LIFE too many!!
I have written about such brutal killing before. It saddened me that I continue to read and write about such brutal killing again as it is embedded in the 'values and culture' of these people.
It SHOWS the power of 'culture and deep rooted values'. It is a destructive force if the 'culture and values' are wrong or NOT-in-step with the world's progress. Even when the LAWS expressly prohibit such behaviours, some people STILL do it willingly and 'passionately'!!
It shows that we have to recognise this FORCE. It is nurtured from young, reinforced throughout one's living existence UNTIL the actions and behaviours SIMPLY reflect: 'I am RIGHT to do this!'
Maybe Singapore needs to work on OUR Culture and Values to make sure that they are NOT warped but something POSITIVE. Like: to respect all fellow human beings' lives as sacred!
Farzana Iqbal, 25, was attacked on Tuesday, police said, because she had married the man she loved.
In parts of Pakistan, a largely Muslim nation of 180 million people, women are expected to agree to arranged marriages and refusal can mean an "honour killing".
Many Pakistani families think it dishonourable for a woman to fall in love and choose her own husband.
Sharif had taken notice of the "brutal killing" in the presence of police, his press office said in a statement, adding that a "totally unacceptable" crime had to be dealt with promptly by law. "I am directing the chief minister to take immediate action and a report must be submitted by this evening to my office," it said, quoting Sharif.
All the suspects, except the father, who has been detained, have disappeared. A police officer on Tuesday quoted the father as saying it had been an honour killing.
Honour killings are common in Pakistan, but the brutality of this case caused outrage around the world.
Police said her father, two brothers and a former fiance were among the attackers.
While a member of Iqbal's party wrestled the gun away, a female cousin grabbed a brick and hit Farzana with it, he said. "She was screaming and crying 'don't kill me, we will give you money'," said Iqbal. He said he tried to save her but the mob of more than 20 beat him back.
At one point, six people were beating her with bricks as she screamed, he said, and he and his stepson begged police to help.
Finally she stopped screaming.
The attack happened near the gate of the heavily guarded court, the two men said, on one of the busiest roads in Lahore.
The couple had been due to testify there that morning that their marriage was genuine in response to a false charge of kidnapping brought by Farzana's family.
It was not the first time her family had tried to kill the woman, said her lawyer, Rai Ghulan Mustafa.
GLOBAL OUTRAGE, LOCAL SILENCE
On May 12, seven of her relatives had tried to force their way into his office, where she was sitting, he said, but his colleagues had fought them off.
Later they attacked her near a police station. Officers intervened and held the attackers for an hour before releasing them without charge, he said. "She was afraid of being killed," Mustafa said.
Most national media outlets gave little attention to the story. Honour killings are so common they usually only rate a paragraph or two.
Women have been mutilated and killed for wearing jeans, looking out of windows, singing or giving birth to girls.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said there were 869 such attacks reported in the media last year - several a day. But the true figure is probably much higher since many cases are never reported.
A small editorial in the national daily the Express Tribune denounced the killing and noted a case in New York where a 75-year-old Pakistani immigrant beat his wife to death this month for serving him a vegetarian meal. "The great tragedy for the nation, alongside the murder of yet another Pakistani woman, is that the man's lawyer claimed the man acted on his cultural upbringing where beating women is customary," the writer said.
Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, a senior minister of state in the British government and of Pakistani origin, said she was appalled by the killing. "Perpetrators must be brought to justice," she said in a tweet."
Sorry I leave most of the reporting in tact as I find it traumatic as well as intriguing WHY would the perpetrators BELIEVE that they are doing the 'Honourable' killing? Even the FEMALE members did that against this PREGNANT victim??
Lessons for me are:
1. she was SAVED from bring KILLED twice! Once by her husband's colleagues and once by the police near the police station. WHY did the POLICE at the HIGH COURT came to her aids the 3rd time? The HIGH COURT! A court HEVILY guarded!! WHY? Did those policemen got paid off? Did they agree that the pregnant woman deserve to be 'honourably' KILLED? This is MIND BOGGLING! WHY???? Could they have stood by and watched the butchering IF she is their SISTER? Maybe if they are as BLINDED as these savages that killed her!!;
2. the murderers called it: 'honour killing'. Killing an unarmed woman, much less a PRGNANT and unarmed woman, can NEVER EVER be called a 'honour killing'. Whoever tried to use this as an EXCUSE should be put to death without question. It is better to ride of someone with such a warped mind then to allow him or her to KILL again!! It is 'mentally sick and twisted!' Killing ANYONE is already a big sin. Killing a PREGNANT woman is one of the gravest and despicable cowardly act. Period. The murderers MUST be brought to justice swiftly after a fair and open trial;
3. The news report did mention that 'in some parts of Pakistan', such a killing is still, twistedly perceived to be an honourable act. 'Some parts'. Thankfully. At the same time, EVEN if ONE life is lost due to this 'brutal killing' instead of 'honour killing', it is ONE LIFE too many!!
I have written about such brutal killing before. It saddened me that I continue to read and write about such brutal killing again as it is embedded in the 'values and culture' of these people.
It SHOWS the power of 'culture and deep rooted values'. It is a destructive force if the 'culture and values' are wrong or NOT-in-step with the world's progress. Even when the LAWS expressly prohibit such behaviours, some people STILL do it willingly and 'passionately'!!
It shows that we have to recognise this FORCE. It is nurtured from young, reinforced throughout one's living existence UNTIL the actions and behaviours SIMPLY reflect: 'I am RIGHT to do this!'
Maybe Singapore needs to work on OUR Culture and Values to make sure that they are NOT warped but something POSITIVE. Like: to respect all fellow human beings' lives as sacred!
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