Pakistani lawmakers on Thursday passed a law that stiffens the penalty for convicted “honor” killers and closed a loophole that often allowed them to go free, in a move aimed at stemming the growing number of such killings.
The bill was passed after a raucous debate that lasted nearly four hours, with some of the loudest opposition coming from hardline Islamist lawmakers. They wanted the Islamic Ideology Council, a body of conservative Muslim clerics, to weigh in on it before becoming law.
Supporters of the bill flatly refused, saying the council, which once ruled it was permissible for a man to “lightly” beat his wife, routinely vetoes legislation aimed at protecting women.
“Honor killings are a cancer in our society. This law is being presented against this cancer,” said Naveed Qamar, a member of the opposition Pakistan People’s Party.
More than 1,000 women were killed last year in so-called honor killings, often by fathers, brothers or husbands. Such killings are bound up with longtime traditions by which a woman’s chastity is vital to the family’s honor.
However, those who carry out such killings are almost never punished. In accordance with Islamic Shariah law, Pakistani law allows the families of victims to forgive the killer. Since the killers in these cases are usually close relatives, the family almost always forgives them.
The new law gives a mandatory 25 years in prison to anyone convicted of killing in the name of honor and no longer allows family members to forgive such killers.
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