In Theory: Are honor killings cultural or religious?

The conviction in Kingston, Ontario, Canada last month of three members of an Afghan family for murdering four relatives has brought so-called honor killings into the news again. The bodies of sisters Zainab, 19, Sahar, 17, and Geeti Shafia, 13, and their father’s first wife, Rona Amir Mohammad, were found in a submerged car in 2009. The girls’ father, mother and brother have been sentenced to 25 years in prison by a Canadian court.

The jury heard police wiretaps of the family in which the girls’ father, Mohammad Shafia, called his daughters “treacherous whores” because they defied his rules on dress, using the Internet, attending school and dating boys. Ontario Superior Court Judge Robert Maranger told Shafia that the women died because they “offended your completely twisted concept of honor ... that has absolutely no place in any civilized society.”

Canadian Muslims have been following the case closely and leaders are worried that calling the murders “honor killings” will reinforce the perception that Islam is intolerant and violent. Alia Hogben of the Canadian Council of Muslim Women said that the term honor killing “makes it kind of exotic and different and therefore does not include them with all of us as Canadian women ... [it’s] the killing of women and girls just because they’re women and girls.”

A Calgary-based imam, Syed Soharwardy, said the Shafia case has galvanized the community to address uncomfortable issues. Soharwardy said that honor killings are less to do with Islam and more with cultural values that existed before the faith took root, and that the Koran specifically forbids them.

Canada’s Minister for Status of Women, Rona Ambrose, said that although honor killings are rare in the country, there has been a rise in honor-motivated intimidation and violence against women for wearing jeans or makeup. “We need to educate prosecutors, we need to educate police officers, social workers so they understand what this is about,” she said. “Honor-motivated violence does exist and we have to address it.”

What can Islamic leaders do about these honor killings? Or are they a cultural phenomenon and nothing to do with a particular religion?

Unfortunately, in some countries in the Muslim world, and particularly in parts of South Asia, women who are accused of sexual indiscretions bring a disproportional amount of dishonor to their families and are forced to pay a terrible price at the hands of male family members. However, these honor killings are cases of extreme violence that no religion, including Islam, would ever promote or condone.

The problem of honor killings stems from a lack of respect for the equality and human rights of women, rather than from religious morality. Islam recognizes and celebrates the inherent dignity bestowed by God upon all human beings, regardless of race, ethnicity, gender or religion. The Koran is explicit in its emphasis on the equality of women and men before God: “And their Lord has accepted of them and answered them, ‘Never will I suffer to be lost the work of any of you, whether male or female, you are members, one of another....’” (3:195; see also 33:35).

Furthermore, while Islamic teachings unequivocally prohibit sexual relationships outside of marriage, this prohibition does not distinguish between men and women, as both genders are to remain chaste until marriage. To single out and punish women for sexual indiscretions is contrary to Islamic dictates.

The horrific actions of the convicted Afghani murderers in Canada were motivated by a misogynist view that devalues and belittles women, derived from socio-cultural factors that they imported from their home country and justified by a distorted and erroneous understanding of Islam.

Muslims leaders today must unequivocally reject this distortion of Islam that is used to violate the most basic Islamic rights of human decency and justice. There is no excuse for the Muslim community to turn a blind eye to the horrible injustices committed in honor killings.

Although special-interest groups in our society make it their preoccupation to perpetuate the bigotry of Islamophobia, confronting the problem of honor killings and the underlying attitude that pervades all forms of discrimination toward women in Muslim communities must be met head-on. Muslim leaders can provide an important example to their followers by taking an explicit stand against behavior that is in direct violation of Islam. At the same time, attention must be paid to meeting basic human needs, and to solving problems stemming from poverty and illiteracy that are often the contributing factors that make women the scapegoats of severe socio-economic problems.

Levent Akbarut

Islamic Congregation of La Cañada Flintridge

Honor killings occur in Brazil and India, and probably in other countries, too. Brazil is usually thought of as a Catholic country, and India a Hindu country. So I’m willing to accept that such a barbaric practice as honor killings is more of a cultural thing and not a religious practice.

However, it would behoove every imam and every Muslim to decry such atrocious inhumanity because, like it or not, whenever a Muslim does something awful, there are always the ignorant and the narrow-minded who say, “See? They’re all like that!” Well, the truth is that they’re not all like that, but ever since 9/11, the ignorant and the narrow-minded seem hell-bent on painting every Muslim with the same brush. So, my Muslim American friends, speak out against such barbarism at every opportunity.

There have been some Christian leaders involved in sex scandals. So are all Christian leaders perverts? Of course not. As we’ve seen in recent days, some male grade-school teachers in the county are in deep trouble because of alleged sexual molestations. So are all male grade-school teachers alike? Of course not. Are all Christians alike as to abortion or political party preference? Of course not.

As I have said before, fear and ignorance tend to make some people assume that any different ethnic or religious group always acts the same, and in a bloc. When Massachusetts Sen. John F. Kennedy was running for the presidency in 1960, the fear was that as a Catholic, he would kow-tow to Rome, and not to the people who elected him. We need not have feared. But a Catholic president was a first, and we tend to fear anything new and different.

But back to the main point: As an American, don’t you want to be judged by your character, and not by whose surname you bear? As a believer or non-believer, do you want to be painted into a box of how, and what, you are supposed to believe? Of course not. So give Muslims, and any other religious or ethnic group, the benefit of the doubt that you demand for yourself as an individual.

Or, as a great man once said, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

The Rev. Skip Lindeman

La Cañada Congregational Church

La Cañada Flintridge

If these honor killings existed before the Islamic faith took root, they were standard cultural values prior to the institution of that faith, and they are forbidden in the Koran, what exactly can Islamic leaders do to the perpetrators, those who practice such a cultural phenomenon? It seems that those committing these evil acts do not abide by the Koran and are not devoted followers of the Islamic religion.

In my opinion, Islamic leaders can do little more than bring awareness and speak out against it. But they probably have as little power over this practice as they do the terrorists who obviously are not devout followers of the Islamic religion. And this is the discrepancy that we see between religion and evil throughout history — and across religious beliefs. Evil will always exist. And prayer and our voices are fundamental in combating evil.

The Rev. Kimberlie Zakarian, LMFT

Kimberly Zakarian Therapy, Inc.

Montrose

To be blunt, the best thing Islamic leaders can do for themselves and their community is to repent of their low estimation of Jesus Christ and turn to him as their lord and savior. Whether Islam-related honor killings, or terrorist acts, or murders of Christians in Southeast Asia are culturally or doctrinally based, something is obviously wrong on a foundational level.

Band-Aid solutions like anti-violence education and awareness programs are helpful, certainly. But when foundational beliefs, like the foundation of a house, are errant, cosmetic solutions never last for long.

Is there really just one proper faith foundation in life? Paul wrote: “No man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 3:11). Jesus Christ alone died for our sins. Jesus Christ alone rose from the grave. Jesus Christ alone makes us new people — “born again,” as he put it. Jesus himself said, “Everyone who hears these words of mine, and does not act upon them, will be like a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and it fell, and great was its fall.” (Matthew 7:26-27). Bad foundations may last for a while, but ultimately they always fail.

Please don’t misunderstand me. I treasure our American rights to freedom of religion. I don’t think Muslims are bad people. And I don’t think Christians are perfect. It’s just that it’s senseless to tiptoe around, or completely avoid, the one answer God has given for all the needs of mankind — following Jesus Christ, his only-begotten son.

Pastor Jon Barta

Valley Baptist Church

Burbank

I truly believe that such shocking crimes have more to do with psychological illness than religious doctrine. And ultimately, it’s irrelevant whether these so-called honor killings are spurred by Islamic beliefs, cultural traditions or mental illness, since our response must be the same: There can be absolutely no place for this kind of ghastly behavior in a civilized society.

We should not tolerate the abuse or denigration of women in any shape or form, regardless of the motivation. Whether it’s an Islamic father killing his daughters in an honor killing, an ultra-orthodox Jew spitting at an eight year-old girl for offending his standards of modesty, or a fundamentalist Christian whipping his teen-age daughter into obedience, this madness must stop. It is simply unacceptable. Period.

I am not sure what runs through these people’s heads that allows them to treat women in this fashion. But as a society, we have a moral obligation to instill within our male children a reverence for women. Boys must be taught to protect and venerate women, and to respect them for who they are as individuals.

Sadly, our modern culture tends to glorify a woman’s body and take a sexist attitude about her appearance, often at the expense of respecting her feelings and honoring her unique knowledge and skills. As much as we would like these demeaning visuals to remain on the TV screen of a Super Bowl commercial, the reality is that they have a deep impact on our society, and make especially strong imprints on the impressionable minds of our children. We therefore have a moral responsibility to counter the negative effects of the mass media and instill within our young ones — both male and female — the essential concept that no human should ever be judged or valued solely on their external appearance.

Every woman, regardless of her station in life, is created in the very image of God and deserves just as much respect. Harming a woman in any way is an affront to our creator, and those who perpetrate these horrendous acts, regardless of motive, will pay for it dearly — both in the physical and the spiritual realms.

Rabbi Simcha Backman

Chabad Jewish Center

Glendale

The dishonorable killings of Zainab, Sahar and Geeti Shafia, and Rona Amir Mohammad, are evidence that much of our world remains patriarchal at its core. Violence against men by women makes a huge news splash precisely because it is so much rarer than the reverse.

Islam itself is not at fault, nor need we make a broader cultural critique — this is a male problem worldwide, and selective in that population. All of us should speak with words and deeds against anti-female violence from whatever pulpit or soapbox we have.

I fear though that preaching and reason won’t reach the men who most need it. Women and girls have to feel themselves empowered to refuse to accept subservience. Faith and secular groups can, and do, help by providing encouragement and support. Law enforcement must step up as well.

It is unbelievable in the face of events like the Shafia murders that our modestly-funded California Commission on the Status of Women is slated for elimination.

The Shafia sisters reported being mistreated twice, then recanted — I assume because of threats from their eventual murderers. This story might not have ended in murder had they been able to be bolder, or if the community had been listening closely enough to heed even a faint cry of girls desperately needing help.

Roberta Medford

Atheist

Montrose

Honor-based violence is a cultural practice that existed in most societies in the past, but now only remains in a small number of communities, including some that practice Islam. While the Koran does not support honor-based killing, cases exist in Islamic nations and among practicing Muslims in Western nations. Islamic leaders should continue to speak out against honor motivated violence.

Honor-based violence developed in cultures with weak legal traditions to serve as societal controls. Victims are usually daughters, sisters, wives or other blood-related young women. The fear of loss of honor and belief in religious ethical mores that do not have legal remedies leads to this violence.

We need to speak out against violence ascribed to honor. Community leaders need to offer substitutes for the fears that form the basis of this behavior. Alternatives must be offered that include legal redress and education. Toleration for the practices must be ended. The support for people who practice this violence against women must be ended.

These are the ways Islamic leaders and others can help reduce this crime.

Steven Gibson

South Pasadena Atheist Meetup

Altadena

According to The Toronto Star, Mohammad Shafia was recorded on police wiretap saying of his daughters, “They betrayed Islam. They betrayed our religion.” He also allegedly said, “may the devil s*** on their graves.” Does this sound like cultural or religion-motivated honor-killing?

Two authorities that define Islamic belief are the Koran (its primary holy book) and hadiths (various medieval commentaries on the sayings of Muhammad and the Koran). In one of the Sunni hadiths of respected medieval cleric Imam Al-Nawawi, Mohammad is quoted as saying, “the blood of a Muslim may not be legally spilt other than in one of three instances: the married person who commits adultery; a life for a life; and one who forsakes his religion and abandons the community” (The Forty Hadith #14).

It’s that third one that I think comes into play here, in that honor killing has more to do with these words from the mouth of God’s supposed prophet than it does with simple culture. What man would murder his own children simply for them becoming acclimated to the manners of the place to which he happily emigrated? More likely, he started feeling compelled by such words because his family had become the illustration of those who abandon their community; that is, they ceased to practice Muslim decorum and thereby betrayed Islam’s perceived correct expression. Shafia probably felt that he was serving his deity, Allah, with the utmost sacrifice.

Was this one of the hadith by which Shafia’s motivation was provoked? Was it some other? Whatever it was, what needs to happen is louder teaching against such behavior based on all Islamic texts that can be cited as instigators. Many moderate Muslims denounce honor killing with koranic citations against murder, but the above quoted hadith doesn’t consider it murder to execute a murderer, an adulterer, or a defector (the honor-killed).

I would be interested in knowing specifically where the father got his internal marching orders. Find that out, and a lot of questions will be answered. But mullahs and imams, you have to preach the opposite of how your flocks are apparently interpreting deadly passages, even if it’s a minority, presuming the opposite is correct.

The Rev. Bryan Griem

Montrose Community Church

Montrose

The murder in Canada of the three teenaged daughters and the first wife of Mohammad Shafia by this father, his second wife and their son is reprehensible beyond all imagining. Likewise, the fact that such an act could be justified by the perpetrators because of the supposedly loose morals of these girls is beyond my comprehension.

The responsibility of parents is to protect their children from danger, not to be the instruments of their deaths. And this case is not an isolated occurrence. There have been many young women who have suffered similar fates because of the wrongheaded beliefs of their parents.

However, what also is of great concern to me is the attempt by some to blame this crime on the teachings of Islam. As many authorities have pointed out, there are no writings in the Koran that condone the killing of children by their fathers.

The reality is that honor killings by family members can be traced to customs that are accepted in some cultural groups, not to the dictates of the Muslim religion. We should not confuse the misguided acts of people from a particular culture with their religious beliefs. Nor should we assume that all people from a particular culture have the same attitudes and customs.

The Unitarian Universalist principle that affirms “the inherent worth and dignity of every person” supports the value of all but certainly does not condone acts of violence against innocent people in the name of honor or parental rights.

I have great sorrow for the victims of this senseless crime and can only hope that the incarceration of the perpetrators of these horrific murders will act as a message to other would-be perpetrators that such acts will not be tolerated in enlightened cultures.

The Rev. Betty Stapleford

Unitarian Universalist Church of the Verdugo Hills

La Crescenta

I will leave it to Levent Akbarut to interpret Islam and draw for us the lines between Islamic religion and culture. I have little doubt that our Muslim neighbors are as distraught by the tragedy of honor killings as anyone else — more so, for the additional need to distance themselves from the evil of it all.

To women in Canada, the U.S. and around the world who are in danger of violence from the men who are supposed to protect and provide, please know that many people care about your situation and will continue to work for your safety and your rights. This happens in myriad ways: through faith communities, who alert congregations to the cycles and signs of domestic abuse; through organizations that operate safe houses; through the courts, where advocates have worked tirelessly for women to be believed and given a fair hearing; and through the arena of international opinion, where the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that “everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.”

In other areas of women’s safety and empowerment, the United Methodist Women partner with many organizations in places like Haiti, where emergency food supplies were made available specifically to women so that they would not have to trade their bodies for rice; and around the world, where networks of organizations are working to put a stop to human trafficking.

Many, many people are on your side, continuing to abolish any and all cultural phenomena that degrade and dishonor women. May the justice that was served in this Canadian case send a clear and powerful message.

The Rev. Paige Eaves

Crescenta Valley United Methodist Church

Montrose