Naval El Sadawi a physician of Egypt was jailed for her research. Fatima Mernissi a social scientist from Morocco was physically assaulted by a male "scholar" from Pakistan in a conference in Malaysia (21). Ayaan Hirsi, a Somali born Dutch parliamentarian had to go into hiding after murder of Van Gogh, the film maker's movie "submission" on the abuse of Muslim women. She had written the script (22).
Socio-historical links:
During the early centuries of Islam, misinterpretation of the institutions of veiling, physical segregation, polygamous marriage and concubinage had a very negative impact on Muslim women's status. Historians tell us that during the period of the prophet and the first four caliphs the concept of veil, segregation and exclusion of women from out door social and economic activities did not exist. (The prophet's first wife continued her business and his last wife Ayesha led an army).
Veiling as a device of social exclusion of women emerged in the latter period of Umayyad rule (AD 661-750). It was due to increasing profligacy, rampant polygamy, ownership of concubines (slave girls brought from conquered lands), which led to male jealousy and prudery in concealing their women from the eyes of other men.
By the advent of Abbasids (AD 749-1258) veiling and segregation of women had trickled down to middle classes (23).
The medieval Muslims never questioned the Harem as Clerics convinced them of its Islamic sanction. They also justified polygamy, slavery, and concubinage as Islamic institutions.
Turkish regions in the south of the country in which honor crimes are frequent are still in the grip of feudalism and tribalism (24).
Honor related violence among non-Muslims:
Such violence among Hindus is related to caste system ordained by religion. Feminists have traced historic roots of culture of virginity in Hindu religion- one should marry a virgin, younger than oneself (25). In the Christian community in Pakistan it serves as preservation of religious boundaries. According to Rahul Verma a caste Punchayat distinct from legal Punchayat hands out death punishment for transgressing women in Punjab and Haryana in India (26). In the UP India, Muzzafargarh is the worst affected district.
Australian penal code allows sexual provocation as a cultural defense to murder (13). In Latin America it is related to machismo (manliness) and verguenza (sexual purity of women). In Cuba it is used as defense against mixed race marriages. In Spain pure blood and sexual purity of women are important notions in theological, literary and legal texts (27).
M. Asano-Tamanoi studied the concept of shame, family and state in Japan. The state constructs a moral universe with family and households as its center. Women have defined roles which control their sexuality (28).
Passion
Passion crimes are defined by Abu-Odeh as a private relationship between a man and a woman as opposed to a collective one between a woman and several male relatives engaged in defending their masculinity (29). It is less (or more) a matter of castrated masculinity than passionate jealousy.
Brazil leads in the crime.
Hillary Charlesworth quotes from Women's Rights Project of America Watch that defense of honor in cases of wife murder was successful in 80% of cases (30). Very rarely would a woman get a reduced sentence if she murders her husband in a fit of jealous anger.
For a husband there is a ready non-violent remedy-divorce. For a brother or a father no such practice is available.
Western feminists and media label wife murder in the West as crime of passion, but apply the term honor crime when it occurs in the East (It may not be subconscious discrimination. Honor in the West is not associated with infidelity).
Honor:
A young unmarried female with whom men relatives are barred by society and religion to have sexual interaction with (fathers, brothers, sons and uncles) is the usual victim. It is not a fit of jealous anger, but a matter of control over and defiance and rebellion of the victim. The women's crime is assertion of sexual rights and demand for a divorce or refusal to marry some one of the family's choice.
Honor crimes are predominantly in Asian-African countries, and mainly among Muslims. Arranged marriage is the only so called respectable way.
In the West men are not obsessed with the idea of marrying a pure and virgin girl.
Islam broke the back bone of tribalism and the focus of honor shifted to the family (31).
According to Dr Khan honor and shame are dialectical terms; both are male attributes and by remaining silent and obedient a woman maintains a state of honor (32). The question of honor and shame is directly related to her body.
Direct actors are the perpetrators who are directly involved in the crime. Members of the community who goad perpetrators to the crime and protect them after the crime and linked are the lawyers and judges who defend and acquit or give light sentences to criminals on the pleas of passion-honor are indirectly though equally involved.
Mothers in the East play overt/covert role in oppression of their daughters either because they are afraid or because they have been so socialized.
One never hears of a father/mother killing a son. It has an economic basis, that of inheritance to legitimate children. Women are socialized to obey the existing misogynist norms. Older women become enforcers. To keep property in the family feudal families in Pakistan marry females to the Quran (33).
Gender bias has resulted in imbalance between the two sexes (discovered by Ultra-Sound technology, female fetuses are aborted. In India it is 10 males to 9.2 females and ironically has revived the practice of polyandry (34).
Consensus of the community on the victim is "she deserved it".
Irrespective of class, caste, creed ethnicity or religion, community members develop a common mindset towards women's moral conduct. Community pressure is such that even if men do not want to kill their women, social coercion makes them do it.
In rural Sindh Kari (shamed women) are buried in a separate grave yard. Karo, the male offender can be buried in any graveyard.
Economically dispossessed men tend to uphold social possessions more strongly as that is all they have. They sometimes black mail richer men to cash in, or may kill both and put the bodies together and hope to get lighter sentence on the plea of provocation. This is a common practice in rural/semi rural areas of Punjab and Sindh.
Dr. S. Akhtar Ehtisham
(607) 776-3336
P.O. Box 469,
Bath NY 14810
USA
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