Karo Kari

Ayesha:

Welcome!

Ana/cheeso:


make no mistake
karo kari and honor killings
and chattel trading will continue
we are not only corrupt to the core
we are morally bankrupt too
forget spine, we don’t have vertebras
all we are left with are words
meaningless, empty, fading, decaying words
once they meant something to someone
today they are murder weapons
in the hands of bearded murderers
and with no spine, we cannot stand up
or stand up to
we cannot yell, we whimper

curse me, hug me, cry with me
am a decaying not-yet-dead muslim

...t

Romair...

[The only solution is to dictatorially get rid of them (which I would support). However, that would violate the Constitution.]

...since when constitution has become sacred to your kind of people? for you the poet says very succicntly...

shahr talab kare agar tum se ilaaj e teergi
sahab e akhtiaar ho aag laga diya karo

i could sense the tension in this throughout until the end, and as cheese says, yes, to think this actually does happen. . .and i would add. . .is an abomination and a larger than large `dhabba` on our communities and societies in pakistan.

but the responses baffle me. what difference does it make what party the author of this piece votes for? why democratically speaking, should any kind of killing, let alone honor killing be allowed? even if there was a progressive party in pakistan that we could (or should i say you could, unless the voting laws have changed, and i can`t recall) vote for, will that stop honor killings? i wonder.

and i don`t see this as following any sort of bollywoodish, or lollywoodish for that matter, plot. . .i think ayesha has depicted this quite well. . .as for turning issues such as honor killings into fiction, there is something to be said about fiction vs. history (or cold facts), because fiction goes where history or cold facts will not, to the heart of the matter. read Elie Wiesel`s `Night` for example (which is fiction based on fact) and tell me that Wiesel was wrong for having so starkly depicted in fictional terms an abomination. leave it to so-called educated people to turn this too (gawd, isn`t everything on chowk) into an india vs. pakistan slinging match. . .

jay #1

Yaar leave those poor Pakistanis alone. We can feel good about India without having to run other people down. Have some faith man.

Honor killings in Pakistan, invariably, occur in areas which are ruled by PPP and PML. The core of the top leadership of PPP comes from landed Sind area. And the core of the top leadership of PML comes from landed Punjab. Two areas which are the hub of honor killings. Look at any honor killing (or similar events) and the MNA, under whose jurisdiction it was carried out, will be from these two parties (or from a tribal jirga party).

What is sad is that these two parties are still projected as the, “liberal” alternative in Pakistan. There are individuals on this site, who willingly join them, and try to portray them as the solution. While simultaneously trying to speak out against honor killings. This is a double-standard.

Based on this, I would like to ask the author, whether she votes for any of these parties?

The other part is that Pakistanis need to decide their priorities about democracy. Democratically speaking, honor killings should be allowed in Pakistan. They are subtly, but fully, supported by the National Assembly of Pakistan. The elected legislature of Pakistan will not even hear bills against it, what to talk of voting against it. Specifically, because the Assembly is always dominated by PPP and PML feudals, who are the main cause of these killings to begin with.

An MQM dominated, or PTI dominated or even an MMA dominated Assembly will get rid of honor killings, but a PPP and/or PML dominated assembly never will (nor will a PPP/PML- dominated Assembly get rid of things like marrying one`s female relatives to the Quran).

The only solution is to dictatorially get rid of them (which I would support). However, that would violate the Constitution.

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Ayesha,

This is the last kind of articles that the man kind needs to stop honour killings. You have made this into a bollywood plot, a rewrite of the narkali. No, there is no need for abstracting the reality, many in pakistan have seen it in life and a lot of blood.

What pakistanis need is to identify the fundamental reason for this, it nothing much to do with the rural sind that you are romanticising about, it has everything to do with the educated of pakistan, the likes of tahmed and ylh.
For years together these two have maintained that it is some ``rural sindh`` affair, as you claim, but the fact is that killing is not a crime in pakistan, it has to be simply compensated for. This is the fundamnetal problem, and if you are against honour killing, post on the chowk the wording of the exact legislation that legalises this.

Tell the YLh and tahmed that it is the leagal system of pakistan that is murdering the women, not only in ``rural sindh`` as you claim, but in lahore in the offices of legal professionals.

It is pathetic that you will not dare to address the issue, but turn it into a fiction based on facts. This is really and truly pathetic from an educated pakistani woman.

to think this actually happens

Being a prolific writer at ndtv, I was hoping to see you here sooner, Ayesha.
what took you so long?
Compared to your contributions there, this is so stark.
Keep contributing.
Regards.

A harsh reality.. an evil to be taken immediate notice of… education, land reforms, end of feudalism & Jirga system might help in curbing such disgusting rituals.