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| Honor killings are executed for instances of rape, infidelity , flirting or any other instance perceived as disgracing the family's honor. |
Every year, hundreds of women and girls are "honorably" killed in the Middle East by male family members. The "honor killing" is athorny socialand political issue. Palestinian activists campaigning for equality find it difficult to stop the killings altogether. Legitimacy for such murders stems from a complex code of honor ingrained in the consciousness of some sectors of Palestinian society.
 What is "honor killing"?
As you may well know, there are certain unfortunate countries, such as Jordan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Egypt & others where -- girls and women are murdered by male family members each year in the name of family honor.
Honor killings are executed for instances of rape,infidelity, flirting or any other instance perceived as disgracing the family's honor, and the woman is then killed by a male relative to restore the family's name in the community. Many women are killed based on suspicions of a family member and are not given the chance to defend themselves. The allegation alone is enough to defile a man's or family's honor and is therefore enough to justify the killing of the woman. The men who commit the murder typically go unpunished or receive reduced sentences.
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| Every year, hundreds of women and girls are "honorably" killed in the Middle East by male family members. |
Honor killings have been reported in Bangladesh, Brazil, Ecuador, Egypt, India, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Morocco, Pakistan, Sweden, Turkey, Uganda and the United Kingdom. Honor killings tend to be prevalent in countries with a majority Muslim population, but many Islamic leaders and scholars condemn the practice and deny that it is based on religious doctrine. Honor killing is actually a pre-Islamic, tribal custom stemming from the patriarchal society's interest in keeping strict control over familial power structures.
Current status of "honor killings"
Many people find the practice of honor killings to be unacceptable, but the practice still continues. In some countries such as Jordan, Morocco and Syria, "honor crimes" arelegally sanctionedand defense of the family honor is considered a mitigating factor.
Article 340 of the Penal Code of Jordan used to contain an exemption from penalty if a man killed his wife or female relative after finding her "committing adultery with another." This Article has since been repealed, but there are other Articles that allow for a reduced sentence if the men were "provoked" into performing the murder. Article 548 of the Penal Code of Syria also provides an exemption from penalty if a man kills or injures his wife or female after finding her committing adultery or other "illegitimate sexual acts with another."
"Honor killings" in the news
 Sixteen-year-old Hsehu Yones was stabbed to death by her father, Abdullah Jones, on October 12, 2002, for having a Christian boyfriend and becoming "Westernized". According to Scotland yard, the stabbing is believed to be among 12 honor killings in the UK last year. On September 29th, 2003 Abdullah Jones was given a life sentence for his crime, showing the intolerance of honor killings in the UK.
Public awareness
Two young Berlin Turks protested publicly against so-called honor killings in January, 2006. Besides positive reactions and media interest, they also reaped tense responses from family members and schoolmates.
Journalist Güner Y. Balciinitiateda postcard campaign against so-called "honor killings" in the Berlin girls' club "MaDonna," in early 2005, after a young Turkish woman was killed on the streets of Berlin by her brother. Balci asked young people to let themselves be photographed for it. Seventeen-year-old Sinan and his one year younger friend Saithan immediately agreed.
They thought it was important to publicly set an example against violence and repression. "Honor is fighting for my sister's freedom!" read the slogan on the postcard, of which 20,000 were printed and circulated last year.
Background
在巴基斯坦，每年都有数百名妇女被“荣誉杀害”。据巴基斯坦人权委员会统计，2002年，巴基斯坦约有700名妇女死于“荣誉杀害”，2003年则有450多名妇女死于“荣誉杀害”。
根据联合国最新公布的统计数字，全世界每年至少有5000名女子被"荣誉杀害"。联合国人权委员会发表的一份报告称，这类谋杀案至少在14个国家发生过，这些国家包括印度、巴基斯坦、孟加拉国、土耳其、约旦、摩洛哥、埃及、以色列、乌干达、厄瓜多尔、巴西、英国、意大利、瑞典。此外，还有一些国家，如阿富汗、伊朗、伊拉克等，没有向联合国人权委员会提交这方面的报告。不过，在这些国家，"荣誉杀害"也是公开存在的。
近年来，南亚、非洲和中东地区的移民大量涌入英国等欧洲国家，“荣誉杀害”这一陋习也被带到了欧洲。目前，联合国妇女发展基金会已与联合国其他机构、各国政府和数以千计的民间组织紧密合作，开展了“16日行动”。16日是指从11月25日“国际消除对妇女的暴力日”到12月10日“国际人权日”之间的16天。在此期间，世界各地掀起消除针对妇女的暴力的活动高潮，其中一个斗争重点就是消除“荣誉杀害”现象。
(英语点津陈蓓编辑）
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