Wednesday, February 1, 2012

There is No Honour in Killing

The long prison sentences awarded to Shafia family of Afghan origin should serve as an example to all those who have a warped view of killing for the sake of honour. There is no such thing as honour killing, it is murder.

The Kingston, Ontario jury found Mohammad Shafia, his wife Tooba Yahya and their son Hamed Shafia, all guilty of first degree murder of three girls and their mother on four counts each and sentenced them to life. They will not have a chance to apply for parole for for 25 years.

On surface, prosecution's case was rather weak and circumstantial, but contradictions in testimony of the accused led the jury to this decision. Appeals are being filed, but reversal of guilty verdicts seem unlikely.

The warped sense of honour having been damaged by Shafia girls and their mother, modernized in Canadian society is no cause to commit murder. Honour killing is wrong anywhere is the world as it is plain and simple murder.

Families like Shafia want to hold on to their cultural values and when these are tested in a different setting, they feel damaged. The question is, why do they bring their families to Canada or to the West, if they do not wish to adopt to their new environment? They should stay back in their countries of origin, so they can feel secure in their archaic mindsets. However, it does not mean that they can practice honour killings in their societies. Killing is killing and there is no excuse for it whatsoever.

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