Introduction to the Violence against Women Forum, NWFP

In early 2000, UNICEF Peshawar invited a select group of NGOs and officials to a discussion meeting on violence against women in NWFP.  This group was invited on basis of their involvement in issues relating to violence against women. The participants were agreed that violence against women was a great problem in the province and a leading and most violent manifestation of this was murder in the name of “honour, ” the so-called honor killing.   

In another meeting a month later, it was agreed that the group should come together in a formalized way and develop a structure and modus operandi for itself. Thus the idea of a VAW Forum took shape. The following Terms of Reference were formulated in terms of the goal and scope of work of the Forum.

Terms of Reference of VAW Forum:

Goal:  

To serve as a Forum for discussion on issues regarding VAW, and foster group and independent action by NGOs and Government with in an agreed framework.

Scope of Operation/Objectives:

·        To share views and experiences on matters relating to issues of VAW in NWFP.

·        To Identify course of action, plan specific activities (advocacy, capacity building and fact-finding) to be undertaken by Government/NGO members of the Forum.

·        To provide oversight over implementation of activities.

·        To develop plan for monitoring of specific activities and/or situation in the field by Forum members.

·        To identify and pool resources for some key activities for fact finding and specific agreed and planned activities.

·        To establish linkages with concerned Government Department for developing partnerships and consensus on divergent views/positions.

1.      UNREPORTED CASES

The VAW Forum placed a great deal of significance on the unreported cases, knowing that many of the honor killing cases are hushed and never make it to newspapers or to police records. The checklist devised for the VAW Forum for information collection on the unreported cases happening in the communities is attached as Annex 2. The agreed period for the fact finding was 1998 and 1999 and the information was to be presented on basis of the following variables:

1.      Age group of the victim

2.      Marital status of the victim

3.      The socio-economic class to which victim belonged

4.      The perpetrator of the crime and relationship of perpetrator of crime to the victim

5.      Views of the perpetrator on reason for the crime

6.      Views of others on the reasons for the crime

7.      Reason for not registering case with the police

1.1              Fact finding in Swabi

RISE was able to gather information on cases for years beyond the agreed period, a measure of the seriousness and commitment they brought to the task. Thus they were able to collect the highest number of cases, i.e. a total of 46 cases for the period of 1996 to 2000.

The greater percentage of the victims, i.e. 32.6%, were very young girls in the age bracket of 13-18 years. More than fifty percent of the victims were married young women.

Most cases belong to the middle class throughout the period under review, confirming what is generally referred to as “middle class morality.”  The values attributed to this class are a strong sense of honor, adherence to age bound cultural and social norms. I may be noted that the categorization of the classes was based on the surveyor’s judgment and not on any standard provided.

The most used method of killing was the use of firearms, with surprisingly a large number of cases of poisoning.

There is a varied pattern regarding the perpetrators of the crime, ranging from the husband, brother, and father to brother-in-law and cousins. But the leading persons are the husband, brother and father. 

The reasons for the crime from the perpetrator’s point of view are listed below. Not surprisingly, the main reason quoted was adultery or affair with someone.

Very much in keeping with widely held observations, the main reason for killing was put forth as the victim having illicit relations or someone of loose character. The pattern emerging from the community responses regarding the crime was primarily a casual one, the person deserved her fate, a deserved fate because honor had been compromised, loose character, and private matter. 

Views of others were also sought. These included neighbors, relatives, parents and people of the village. A comparison is given below of the views expressed by the killers and the other persons. In some cases, a murder was concealed in the name of honor killing. In this comparison also, the casual attitude of the community towards the crime and the condoning of the act stand out.

The above comparison reveals interesting differences in a large number of cases in the reasons given by the perpetrator for a death/killing and views expressed by others in the community.

2.         REVIEW OF POLICE RECORD

Police Record for information on women killed and recorded as honor killing. Information was collected for 1999 . The information collected was consolidated as follows:

·        Number of cases by district

·        Marital status of women

·        Reason for murder

·        Relations between the offender and victim

·        Apprehension of offender or otherwise

·        Cases in Court

·        Sentence to offender

A total of 17 districts reported cases of honor killing in 1999. There were a total number of 73 cases of both married and unmarried women killed. Of these, 23 were married and 50 unmarried women. District wise break up at these murders is given in Table 1.

The number of offenders who surrendered voluntarily to the police, those caught by the police, and those still at large is given in the Table below:

Table 1.           District-wise Number of Women Murdered with Marital Status

The reasons for murder follow the usual pattern of illicit relations, suspicion of illicit relations, abductions, elopement etc. By far the highest number being illicit relations and/or suspicion of this.

Table II:         Reason for Murder

The facts in this case of fact finding reveal the brother and father as the offenders or perpetrators in over 50% of the cases, a generally held observation now confirmed by facts.

Table III: Relation between the offender and victim

An interesting aspect confirmed was the light sentence for the killer, or no sentence at all. The tables that follow provide an insight into the matter. Not surprising in the culture of NWFP, 34 in73 cases absconded and are still at large.

Table 1V: Status of Offender

As far as the status of the cases is concerned, 31 (79%) are under trial and only 8 (21 %) have been decided. The sentence to the killers in the eight decided cases was 1-5 year imprisonment to four persons and honorable acquittal of the other four.

Conclusions:

• The majority of the 73 reported cases were from Peshawar, Mardan and Charsadda districts.
• Far-flung districts, very conservative, reported a much lower number of cases presumably because such cases tend to be not reported to the police.
• Majority of the victims (67%) were unmarried women.
• The killer has invariably been a male member of the family and violence has been perpetrated on basis of suspicion of illicit relations of the victim with someone in 67 % of the cases.
• In 56% of the cases the killer was either a brother or father of the victim.
• In 38% of cases the killer surrendered voluntarily to the police. While in 47% of cases the killer is still at large even after two years.
• Only 21% of the total cases in the court were decided in the last one and a half years.
• In 50% of the cases the killer (presented by the police) was honorably acquitted. While in the rest of the cases the offender was given a light sentence of 1-5 years of imprisonment.

3.      REVIEW OF LOCAL NEWSPAPERS

Reviewing 5 local Urdu and English newspapers to collect news items on VAW cases and analyze the information in terms of number of cases reported and in which manner were the cases reported. The names of the newspapers reviewed are:

Ø      The News

Ø      The Frontier Post

Ø      The Khabrian

Ø      The Mashriq

Ø      The Aaj

The 143 cases are reporting events involving violence against women occurred during the stated period of review of three months.  In this, 97 cases could be categorized under Violence against Women (VAW) because the issue of honor violation was not involved here. The remaining 46 cases were actually murders in the name of honor and thus clearly falling in the category of honor killing. The majority of the cases happened because of very bad relations between the spouses, psychological problems, or due to violation of honor such as elopement, rape, adultery or just doubt.

 Cases by Newspapers

Along with the number of reporting events, the newspaper review had the important element of the manner in which the event was reported. In most cases, the coverage of events of honor killing or violence against women was in neutral language (60/143) and the stance was objective reporting. Others tried to sensationalize the news and exaggerated the event and presentation (23/143). Some newspaper published the event in such a way that an explicit judgment was evident as to honor killing a justified and correct action (25/143) in the situation. Some newspapers condemned the act and conveyed the message that violence against women should be discouraged (35/143). This is shown below;

The above table shows which are published repeatedly in two or three papers.

Repetition of Events

Summary and Conclusions:

·        The review of newspapers shows that VAW (Violence against Women) is a frequent occurrence in NWFP. The total of 143 cases in three months is a very high figure by all counts. 

·        The majority of the victims are married and the husband the main perpetrator in such cases. 

·        The use of firearms (shooting the victim) is the most common method. This is indicative of the culture of use and easy availability of automatic weapon like the Kalashnikov. Unlike Punjab were the larger number of cases are from burning.  

·        Majority of the cases (21) happened in different areas of Peshawar district with Mardan ranking second with 17 cases. This is probably due to the convenience in reporting events taking place in and around Peshawar District where most of the head offices of the newspapers are located.

4.       Review of Teaching Hospital Records

The review of Teaching Hospital records was to follow the type of cases that make their way to hospitals, the condition they are brought in and the treatment they get. Two Tertiary level hospitals, Lady Reading Hospital Peshawar and Hayat Shaheed Teaching Hospital, were covered to find out the frequency of VAW cases handled by them over a three months period in 2000.

The concerned hospital authorities were contacted and the background and purpose of data collection was communicated to them. Access to police records was initially problematic but they cooperated ultimately. The process was carried out and completed after initial problems with maximum access to all relevant information.

The hospital review was conducted on a daily basis. The police officers on duty as well as the medical staff were involved in reaching out for required information. Many of the victims and/or their relatives were also interviewed. However, it was difficult to extract any relevant information from them. General observation and analytical overview of the situation were relied upon to come to the conclusions mentioned in the report. The police personnel at these hospitals maintain a Medico-legal register to record these cases with the basic information like:

·        Date of occurrence

·        Name of victim

·        Police station referred

·        Brief description of the matter

·        Reference to sections of CPC / PPC

A Questionnaire was used to collect information and included information such as name of patient, address, date of admission in hospital and discharge, diagnosis/treatment received. Additionally, observations were also recorded in each case relating to the social background, nature of injury and attitude of the Police and medical staff on duty. 

The categories of reported cases included Accidents, Murder, Stray Bullets, Family Brawls, Suicide, Domestic Violence, House Breaking and Burns. The nature of injuries included burns, bruises, head/ face/limbs injuries, and internal injuries.

Reasons why most cases are not reported:

§         Domestic pressure

§         Fear of reprisal by aggrieved women’s family

§         Fear of not being accepted by husband’s family

§         Fear of tarnishing family’s name

§         Fear of Police harassment

§         Fear of Litigation, and the hassle and costs involved 

The month-wise details of the cases admitted at Lady Reading Hospital are given in the Table below; 

Table 1:          Record of Cases involving Women, Lady Reading Hospital

The month-wise details of the cases admitted at Hayat Shaheed Teaching Hospital are given below:

Table 2:          Record of Cases involving Women, HSTH

 Combined Cases from the Two Hospitals:

The total number of cases from both hospitals was 92, with 55 cases from Lady Reading and 37 cases from Hayat Shaheed Teaching Hospital. In the total cases, 12 % were those of domestic violence as shown below:

The names of Police stations where the 55 cases were reported and the numbers of cases by Police stations are listed below:

Table 2:          Concerned Police Stations for LRH

Table 2:Concerned Police Stations for HSTS:

Observations and Conclusions:

·        Records show an overwhelming number of cases of women (42%) admitted in hospitals for injuries in accidents.  

·        While the cases of domestic violence were recorded as only 12% in the four months under review, the actual figure was much higher. As mentioned above, there are a number of reasons why the family is loath to report a case as one of domestic violence. From observations made, it could be concluded that the categories of family brawl, suicides, burns, murder and even some cases of bullet injuries are manifestations of violence against women in most cases. This collectively forms about one-fourth of the total cases recorded. 

·        The decision of referring these cases to the police is taken by the doctor after examining the victim and in consultation with the relatives of the victim. Families normally want to hide domestic violence. 

·        The  ‘domestic violence’ victims are mostly married women.  

·        It was observed that there are cases of a husband bringing his wife to be treated at the hospital who openly acknowledging that he had beaten her. Most of these cases are not brought on police record. 

·        Injury is mostly inflicted to the face, head and limbs. Instances were observed where a person was treated for injuries many times, indicating subjection to repeated violence at home. 

·        Lady Reading Hospital was noticed to have a much higher volume of such cases. The cases came from area including the inner city, the suburbs and far-flung districts of the province. To conclude, the cases seen at LRH are primarily from the low- income group. Hayat Shaheed Teaching Hospital seems to attract clientele from the cantonment, University, Hayatabad and surrounding villages of the ring road. Thus, HSTH serves the low- income group alongside of middle and upper income groups. 

·        No reported cases of victims from the upper income group. As it is hard to believe that cases of violence do not occur in the upper income class, it is presumed that these may be getting referred and treated at private medical institutions to avoid police investigations.

 4.     Forensic Reports

Fifteen cases during November and December coming to Khyber Medical College, Peshawar were analyzed  

i)          Cases in November, 2000

In the month of November total 58 autopsies (dead bodies) were brought to the Department of Forensic and Medicine Khyber Medical College Peshawar. Out of this seven were females.  Two cases were not considered as VAW cases because they were road accident case.  A brief detail of the 5 cases is as follow.

Case No.1

Name:                                      Rabia D/O Hidayat Ullah

Address:                                   Peshawar

Age:                                         22years

Date of incidence:                     4/11/2000

Firearm entry wound:                On the left side of the chest 2cm from midline & 9cm below the clavicle.

Cause of Death:                        Injury to lungs.

Causative Agent:                       Firearm.

Case No. 2

Name:                                      Mrs. Nargis, w/o Zakrya

Address:                                   Kabli

Age:                                          30

Date of incidence:                    10-11-2000

Firearm entry wound:                Front of chest 5cm above the nipples and 9cm from the midline.

Cause of Death:                        Due to injury to lungs and pleurae.

Causative Agent:                       Firearm.

Case No 3

Name:                                      Nargis w/o Zikriya

Age:                                         30 years

Address:                         Kabli gate, Peshawar

Date          :     10/11/2000

Description of wound:               On the front of chest 5 cm above the nipple and 9 cm from                                                        the midline.

Firearm exit wound:                  Not exit wound found bullet was recovered from the body.

Cause of Death:                        Death occurred due to injury to lungs and pleurae.

Causative Agents:                     Firearm

Case No.4

Name:                                      Mrs. Fozia d/o Hidayatullah

Address:                                   Mathi (Peshawar)

Age:                                         -

Date of incidence:                 19-11-2000

Firearm entry wound:           

Cause of Death:                        Injury to structure in abdomen and bleeding from the wound

Causative Agent:                       Firearm.

Case No.5

Name:                                      Dilshad w/o Salman

Age:                                         29

Address:                                   Dabgari (Peshawar)

Date:                                       24-04/2000

Description of wound:

1)         A large wound is present on the head i.e. 4*3 cm in size, bleed profusely.

2)                  A bruise on the left knee.

3)                  Abrasions on the ankle joints.

4)                  Multiple small traces of injury on the whole body.

5)                  A fracture of left hip joint was also present.

Condition of the body:

Head:               Lacerated

Face:                Bruised

Muscle:            No injury

Joints:               Left hip joint fractured

Limbs:              Bruises and abrasions in both the limbs were present.

Cause of death:             It is due to brain damage due to road accident.

Causative Agent:                       Heavy vehicle

Case No.6

Name:                                      Mrs. Shandana d/o Zubi Shah

Address:                                   Distt.Swabi

Age:                                         20

Date of incidence:                     21-11-2000

Firearm entry wound:           

Cause of Death:                        Road accident case

Causative Agent:                       Vehicle

Case No. 7

Name:                                      Mrs. Qaisra Riaz d/o Riaz Hussain

Address:                                   Tehkal (Peshawar)

Age:                                          29

Date of incidence:                     24-11-2000

Firearm entry wound:                Injury to the brain. Meningitis

Cause of Death:                        Firearm

Causative Agent:                       Firearm.

ii)      Cases in December:

In this month, 59 autopsies were brought to Department Forensic and Medicine Khyber Medical Collage, Peshawar. Eight were female autopsies. One was excluded because it was a road accident case. Details of the 7-autopsies are mentioned below:

Case No.8

Name:                                      Mrs.Nigat d/o Shamsurehman

Address:                                   Ragi

Age:                                          26

Date of incidence:                     06-12-2000

Firearm entry wound:                Wound on left shoulder with size 1cm *.5cm with microgontugen

Cause of Death:                        The deceased died due to the injury to the left lungs along with blood vessel.

Causative Agent:                       Firearm.

Case No. 9

Name:                                      Mrs. Neelofar w/o Zahoor Ahmad

Address:                                   Arbab Road, Peshawar.

Age:                                          33

Date of incidence:                     09-12-2000

Firearm entry wound:                On left breast wound of size 1cm *.5cm and 9cm from midline and 11cm below the clavicle.

Cause of Death:                        The deceased died due to the injury to left lungs and major blood vessel.

Causative Agent:                       Firearm

Case No. 10

Name:                                      Unknown dead body

Address:                                   -

Age:                                         -

Date of incidence:                     15-12-2000

Firearm entry wound:                -

Cause of Death:                        Strangulation with rope

Causative Agent:                       Rope

Case No. 11

Name:                                      Mrs.Mehr Taj d/o Maroof Khan

Address:                                   Dag Ismail Khel, Peshawar.

Age:                                          35

Date of incidence:                     -

Firearm entry wound:                Wound on left breast with size of 2*1cm and .7cm from left nipple 8cm below maxilla.

Cause of Death:                        The deceased died due to cardiopulmonary arrest due to injury to the lever, stomach and pancreas.

Causative Agent:                       Firearm.

Case No. 12

Name:                                      Mrs.Basmina d/o Ibrahim

Address:                                   Delbahar colony Peshawar.

Age:                                          23

Date of incidence:                     13-12-2000

Firearm entry wound:                On midline, back of skull 1*.1cm in size .9cm above base of skull

Cause of Death:                        Brain injury due to firearm.

Causative Agent:                       Firearm.

Case No.13

Name:                                      Mrs.Fareeda d/o Akbar khan

Address:                                  Landi Akhoon Abad Peshawar.

Age:                                         21

Date of incidence:                     3-12-2000

Firearm entry wound:                Skull wound of irregular shape and the brain matter was out

Cause of Death:                        The deceased died due to injury to the brain both lungs, lever, stomach and intestines, spleen and both kidneys.

Causative Agent:                       Firearm.

Case No. 14

Information about the case was not available with the Forensic Department.

Case No. 15

Omitted because it was a road accident case.

Conclusion &Summary:

1)                  15 female bodies were autopsied by the Department of Forensic during November and December 2000.

2)                  3-cases were exempted because these were road accident cases.

3)                  In 10 cases, the cause of death was the use of firearm.

4)                  In one case the deceased was killed by strangulation.

5)                  Detail of one case was not available with Department of Forensic

6.         Overall Observations and Conclusions:

§        Evidence is that honor killing is widely prevalent in NWFP and has social sanction in most cases. Bannu district emerged as a case in point.  

§        We see the tip of the iceberg in the small numbers of cases that are filed with the police.  Cases happen in the communities (God knows how many!) that just create a stir and some talk before they fade into oblivion.  There is no moral or social indignation and community action to take up the issue and have justice done.  

§        The killers continue to live as usual without danger or threat of social ostracism, or even pricks of conscience. On the contrary, there is implied, if not explicit, appreciation for redeeming personal and family honor.  

§        A twist in the tragedy of loss of human lives by an enraged father, son,   husband, or thwarted lover is that stark murder is raised to a pedestal of  honor killing. Murders are disguised as honor killing by the perpetrator with the connivance of family, or by the family wishing to protect itself from scandal. 

§        The loss of life is among very young girls and young married women. Typical of  the culture of gun toting as a sign of manliness in the province, this weapon is most commonly used in killing an aberrant wife/daughter/sister.  

§        The casual attitude of the communities towards killing women is manifested at other levels as well, viz. by the police, hospitals and judicial staff.  Where a culprit does not run away from law, the court cases and the disposition of honor killing cases leaves much to be desired. Sentences are light in comparison with the magnitude of the crime.

A deep- rooted culture of acceptance and inaction is prevalent in the province with regards to killing of young girls and married woman who become a problem for family, or husband.

Concerted action and a collective voice must be raised to change thinking at the community level for such gross injustices.