December 5, 2005:
Iran's Islamic Punishment Law: Article 630 gives men the right to kill their wives in case of "betrayal" Iranian Daily Examines Attitudes Toward, Motivations for Honor Killings
Thanks for clarifying. According to the Islamic Punishment Law:
According to Article 630 of the Islamic Punishment Law, if a man finds his wife willingly having intercourse with another man, he can kill them both. If the woman is not a willing participant, the husband can only kill the man.
Article 630 of the punishment law does not give any excessive right to the brother to punish the third person.
Article 630 gives men the right to kill their wives in case of "betrayal".
Here's a novel idea - how about making it illegal for ANYONE to kill, instead of allowing men to kill their wives under certain circumstances.
And so goes equal rights for women in Islamic countries...
Iranian Daily Examines Attitudes Toward, Motivations for Honor Killings
Mardom Salari
Some crimes are committed in the world under the pretext of defending honor and chastity. The term "honor crime" refers to the traditional attitude toward honor and chastity that has nothing to do with their definition in civil society. In many traditional patriarchal societies, the honor of the men who are in charge of safeguarding the chastity of the family is linked to the relations and attitudes of their female relatives. A study of these crimes shows that they are either committed to restore family honor and face; to hide offenses, such as rape and incest; or with the goal of solving family disputes, such as disputes over heritage or tribal and financial problems.
According to an ISNA (Iranian Students News Agency) report, despite the advent of such crimes all over the world, the dissemination of information is not implemented correctly. According to UN statistics, about 5,000 women and girls are killed each year in the name of defending honor and chastity. Certainly, the real figures are much higher. In many cases, no complaints are filed or the victims' families lie about them by reporting them as suicides, accidents, or disappearances. Some experts believe that honor killings happen mostly in Islamic countries, such as Pakistan, Afghanistan, Jordan, Turkey, and Iran. Of course, instances of such crimes have been also seen in countries such as Brazil, Ecuador, and Italy but it is said that such crimes in Western countries are mainly committed by immigrants and foreign refugees.
Such crimes are not limited to Iran or Eastern countries, because also in Western countries, men may display violence due to jealousy. According to the ISNA report, statistics show that such a phenomenon is more common among immigrants from Eastern countries in the West, and a lot of immigrants in modern societies will bring the traditions of their native cultures into these societies. Therefore, the patriarchal culture teaches them that they should guard the honor and chastity of their women and girls, and they have the right to resort to violence to protect them.
The results of a study on spousal homicide in 15 Iranian provinces show that 67% of men killed by women were due to the existence of a third person (betrayal of the man) and 33% as kind of reaction to the man's violence, a sudden attack, or a threat by the man. The results of the study conducted by Dr Shahla Moazzami, a scholar at Tehran University's Center for Criminology, illustrate several instances of sex and honor crimes. In one example, a girl has illegitimate relations with a man and the affair is disclosed. This brings a kind of humiliation to the members of the family, and eventually the father or a brother kills the girl because they know that there is no plaintiff in this case or, if there is, he will consent very easily. Therefore, they would have no problem with punishment.
Based on these results, such a crime exists all over the country, but it is more intensive in the rural and nomadic areas, compared with urban areas.
According to Article 630 of the Islamic Punishment Law, if a man finds his wife willingly having intercourse with another man, he can kill them both. If the woman is not a willing participant, the husband can only kill the man. The same applies to beating. Therefore, it is more acceptable if a man sees the woman while she is having intercourse with another man. The law does not include another case.
On the other hand, the law emphasizes the case with regard to the man and his wife, and it cannot be generalized to brother and sister.
Jurists say that the lawmaker has given no concession to the brother with regard to punishing his sister, and Article 630 of the punishment law does not give any excessive right to the brother to punish the third person.
Although Article 630, gives only men the right to kill their wives in case of betrayal, the results of the study on spousal homicide in 15 provinces show that in many cases, men, without being sure about their wife's betrayal, on the pretext of a failed marriage, the woman's refusal to have sex, and even ignorance toward marriage tasks, may kill their wife deliberately or accidentally and, by resorting to this article of the law and claming that they have lost control, they would be proved not guilty. Unfortunately, it is enough if the woman acts according to one of the rights recognized by the UN for all human beings, for instance, if she gives a negative response to one of the candidates nominated by the family for her to be married with or get divorced. In countries such as Afghanistan and Pakistan, it is enough for the woman to have such ideas or if it seems to the men of the family that she has such thoughts, so that the men believe their honor has been lost. Due to social structure of these societies, such crimes are also accepted by the people of these societies. Therefore, these problems should be handled not only as family problems, but also social problems.
Research shows that the criminals are mostly male family members, including fathers, brothers, and husbands . They may also include youths under age 18, who in some cases volunteer to commit such crimes so that they would receive light punishment. Of course, in some countries, such as Turkey, the punishment for youths involved in such cases has become so severe that the number of such crimes has dropped.
According to this report, up to 1990s, honor killings were not considered human rights violations, but only ordinary crimes. Since then, for the first time, under pressure from women's rights organizations, such as the Land of Women, and nongovernmental organizations, such as Amnesty International and Human Right Watch, these crimes have been considered human rights violations. Since last year, Amnesty International, with the help of its international forces, has been trying to draw the world's attention to these crimes.
(Description of Source: Tehran Mardom Salari in Persian -- pro-Khatami morning daily managed by Mostafa Kavakevian, a former member of Hambastegi's editorial board. The license holder is the Party of Defenders of the Message of 2 Khordad.)