Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy's petition to Nawaz Sharif seeks state support to eradicate honour killings

The petition needs at least 5,000 signatures in order to show the PM that people want to abolish this heinous practice

22 Jan, 2016

Last week ace documentary maker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy's A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary - Short Subject. But more than that , it was Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's call to end honour killings which restored many people's faith in the system.

To make sure that the PM walks the talk, Sharmeen has started a petition to get at least 5,000 signatures in order to show the PM that Pakistanis want to abolish the heinous practice of honour killing.

The PM had said honour killings was ''evil'' and had also congratulated the director for bagging the nomination: “Honour killings, the theme of the film, afflict several segments of Pakistani society," he was quoted earlier.

A Girl in the River, which is a joint production of Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy (SOC) Films and Home Box Office (HBO), follows the life of an 18-year-old girl who is a rare survivor of an honour killing attempt. Honour killing is a grave issue in Pakistan as more than a 1000 women fall prey to this practice each year, usually at the hands of their own family members.

Their male murderers are often “pardoned” by relatives under the country's controversial Islamic blood money laws that allow murderers to escape punishment.

The film has been jointly produced by journalist Tina Brown and documentary producer Sheila Nevins and will be aired on HBO this year.

Comments

K Jan 22, 2016 02:19pm

Would have been great if there was a link on the page to sign the petition

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Haroon Jan 22, 2016 02:50pm

Miss Shirmeen i just want to add that you cannot eradicate some ill in the society by the advertisement of it in the West. I request you to be little sensitive in the timings of the release of films next time. I have one staunch Republican friend. He is a fan of Donald Trump and always on a lookout for propaganda against the Muslims. Unfortunately i came to know about your movie from him. Yours and Iranian film maker movies are being used by Donald Trump supporters as the propaganda material against our countries. I am not a right winger or for these ills. But I am insisting that release of these movies in the West just affirm their believe that we are living in the stone old and such movies are just a matter of pride for them in the OSCARS that look West is great, while East is just a filth of the world. The West love to generalize and i do not want my 200 million to be defined and generalized based on one movie by you. I hope you will understand.

Yousuf Jan 22, 2016 02:57pm

@K Link is present in the story in the text 'started a peittion'

Abdulla Hussain Jan 22, 2016 02:59pm

Honor killing is a real curse in Pakistan, innocents are killed in an effort to salvage honor which otherwise is not the case. Why would any get killed for the mistake of others or why would any get killed for marrying a person of choice. Ms. Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy should also highlight to negative effects of illiteracy, this in fact is the giant wave responsible to wash ashore many vices.

Qutbi Alam Jan 22, 2016 04:02pm

Bold step! The bill should be passed as soon as possible. its need of the time and particularly for saving the lives who are killed just for nothing. Islam does not allow honor killing and support this bill.

Nasim Ahmed Jan 22, 2016 05:31pm

Pm should do something with the strongest arm to stop this crime.

M. SHAFI ALAM Jan 22, 2016 11:56pm

This is an inhuman and heinous crime, should be stopped immediately.

>:) Jan 23, 2016 08:07am

@Haroon Have you tried telling your friend that it is a cultural thing that unfortunately we haven't been able to let go off? Yet, I agree with your point. I mean we should be able to see wrong in our societies but when we're being suffering because of the actions of a few, this could've been handle more sensibly. Perhaps she could have shown how the mindset has changed and show that progress is being made, while slowly.