Amandeep Atwal was stabbed to death by her father for having a relationship with a Canadian boy.
Anita Gindha was strangled to death in front of her baby son for refusing an arranged marriage.
Ayesha Baloch was mutilated two months after her marriage on the suspicion of premarital sex.
D. Kannagi was forced to drink poison in front of witnesses, then burnt for marrying outside her caste.
Hatin Surucu was shot for “living like a German!”
Banaz Mahmod Babakir Agha disappeared from her home in London in January 2006. Her body was later found in a suitcase – she had chosen to end her arranged marriage.

Each one of these women were supposedly “stepping out of line” and rather then forgiving them, these women were killed in order to protect the honour of their families. The numbers of these honour killings are endless – at least three quarters of the world know someone or has heard about a victim of honour killings. But there are still thousands of women whose births haven’t been registered, nor their deaths. No-one would even realise that they have mysteriously “disappeared”.

Honour killings are global and they happen on a regular basis. Egypt, Iran, Jordan, Uganda, Turkey, Afghanistan, Brazil, Iraq, India, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Ethiopia. These are just a few places in which honour killings occur and what’s worse, is that half of the murders in these places aren’t even noticed or reported – it is considered to be a “private family affair”. According to the UN’s reports, every year, at least 5000 women are murdered for honour. When will it end? When will equality between men and women be granted? When will women stop being shown as the inferior sex?

In a lot of circumstances, it is the father, brother, son or even the husband that is kills women for honour. Every so often you hear of the woman’s mother doing it! Women killing women! How many more women must die because of honour?

According to Indian writer and publisher, Urvashi Butalia, Heshu Yones was 16 and in love with her fellow college student. When her father found this out, he slit her throat – killing her. The young man belonged to a different religion to Heshu and the two were planning to marry against her father’s wishes. Urvashi wrote that before Heshu ran away, she wrote a note saying: “Me and you will probably never understand each other, I’m sorry I wasn’t what you wanted but there are some things you can’t change.”

A lot of murders that occur are due to religion or race. Why? What is so different between a black man, and a white man? What is the difference between a Sikh and a Muslim? Is there any? Aren’t we all human beings? If you are for or against honour kills, please comment and send in your opinions!

By Gurpreet Kaur Sihat