Resumo de Is Honor Linked Only To Women In Pakistan?

Is honor linked only to Women in Pakistan?
In May 2004, a 13-year-old Sindhi girl in Pakistan was killed by her father and brothers for dishonoring her family name by financially helping a distant male cousin in need. Her uncle spotted her while she was talking to her cousin. The matter was reported to the jirga (village court) and immediately she was labelled Kari and was shot dead. Such is the case of many men and women in rural Pakistan. Honour is the right of every man and woman, but unfortunately in our part of the world honour is only associated with men.

Here, it seems that protecting the honour of the family is only the responsibility of the women and so it is necessary to protect them and lock them away so that they don?t stray.Unfortunatley women in our country are also punished for crimes committed by the men of their family.

Not so long ago, in the year 2003, a woman named Mukhtaran Mai was raped by a gang of men, as a punishment. The punishment was ordered by the panchayat, (village court) because Mukhtaran Mai?s brother had an affair with a girl from another village.

In our country, a woman is held responsible for a man?s crime. Many women in the rural areas are kept uneducated and in purdah (veil), because their parents believe that if they allow their daughters to be educated and given freedom to move around without their veils, they would disgrace the family name, while no such restrictions are put on their sons. This kind of treatment is not only prevalent among the lower classes but also among the rich and famous feudal lords.

Powerful feudal lords don?t allow their daughters to go outside their villages and they are given only the basic religious education, while their sons are educated in the cities like Karachi and Lahore and are allowed to party, drink and womanize. They beat their wives if they are seen talking to any man while they themselves flirt openly with other women and sometimes other men?s wives.

Discrimination against women, violation of their rights and honour only being associated with men is not only prevalent among rural/lower classes but also among the urban, educated, westernized elite. Although these people educate their daughters and let them dress in latest European fashions such as jeans, short skirts and tank tops, their thinking is backward. They have no problems with their sons going to late night parties or having girlfriends or drinking and smoking, but they cannot stand their daughters keeping boyfriends or wanting to stay at their friend?s house late at night. So no matter how westernized and modernized we become, we can never progress unless we change our basic thinking that only daughters carry the honour of the family name and realize that it is also the responsibility of the sons.

Another menace in our society is an act called ?Eve-teasing?, it is when men whistle and sing vulgar, lurid songs when women pass and try to touch them. This activity usually takes place with women going to work places and colleges when using public transport. Such an act reinforces the Pakistani male mentality that any woman who steps out of her chadar and chaar divari (veil and home) is of bad character and free for all.

When girls complain of this activity they are usually blamed. Their elders and authorities claim that many young girls call for Eve-teasing themselves by dressing too provocatively, like wearing lipstick, tight jeans and sleeveless tops. But is it not up to men to control themselves and act decently in the presence of women. Is this activity not degrading a woman?s honour? When these girls take matters to the authorities, they are sent home. Authorities just laugh off the matter saying that ?boys will be boys?. When these girls take matters into their own hands by slapping these men, then the men start harassing these girls and their families. While authorities continue to claim that such girls bring these problems on themselves, many feminists have now started indulginng in another activity called ?Adam-teasing?.

I would like to conclude that honour is not only linked to men but also to women. Women are to be respected and honoured rather than being dishonoured. Killing women, saying that they have dishonoured the clan or the family name is not correct. Unless we, as a society, do not change our mind set, we can never succeed as a nation, because behind every successful man is a woman and behind every successful nation are its women.

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