Civilian Deaths

Civilian Deaths

Civilian Deaths

Introduction

Intimate killings or killings over dowry, honor or domestic violence, infanticide all lie under the Civilian deaths which are avoidable. The natures of such crimes vary to as from a simple reason to a major setback but the fact remains quotient that these crimes constitute in unnecessary public killings. The paper has presented the two issues of female killing throughout the world. the first one is the killing women in the name of honor have been a practice not just in the conservative patriarchal societies of the world but in relatively educated communities also. Be it the West or the East, the surveys conducted under different human rights organization tells tales beyond expectation. The widely reported cases of honor killings are witnessed in South Asian countries especially India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Brazil, Iran, Iraq, and Afghanistan along with the Middle East and European countries. The west too is no exception in this regard with reported number of honor killing cases experiencing a significant increase in the US and Canada. The second inhumane practice with the females is infanticide killing.

Discussion

Honor Killings

Killing in the name of honor is no other than one of the filthiest practices enjoyed in most parts of the under developed world. The basic concept of honor killing revolves around the belief with roots that it makes a man attempt inhumanly acts. These so called beliefs of defaming family name blind sight a man resulting in atrocities of thousands of innocents.

Women in these societies are considered as the repository of family honor which hold the responsibility of maintaining it. If a girl is suspected for dishonor or accused of being engaged in any behavior which may spoil the family name; she is subjected to vicious reactions from the male family members who often end up taking her life

Causes of Honor Killings

Regional influence matters in shaping the nature of the factors. Generally the male members of the family become the source of such violent acts. Their victims vary from wives, to sisters, daughters and in the rural parts of Pakistan and India even mothers are responsible for defaming the family in the name of honor. Regardless of the age, these crimes occur in every society and usually condoned. Seen from a perpetrator's perspective, the basic reasons of honor killing are the perceived violations of the family or social norms as set by the patriarchs of the community.

Women being considered as a man's personal property are not allowed to disobey the norms as set by him for her. However, the factors are varied which range from gender discrimination to violence of family norms leading to self administered justice by these chauvinists. Although it is an issue of paramount importance, but very little have been done to address the plight of the victims who sustained assaults in the name of honor. It has been seen that the law enforcement agencies fail to take any actions against the ridiculous practice. International Human Rights Foundations describes the reason for these ...