WUNRN
Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission
National
Inquiry on Rape & Honor Killing - Report Summary
June
2013 - Despite many efforts made over the past few years to protect women's
rights and to fight violence against women, still violence against women
continue to be one of the most serious problems in Afghanistan. Women and girls
are mostly victims of various violations. In spite of different problems and
obstacles in front of women, thousands of cases of violence against women from
all over the country are registered at the Commission’s offices annually. Honor
killings and sexual assaults are the most serious cases of human rights
violation and violence against women. The higher rate of occurrence of such
cases has made the AIHRC to launch the first national inquiry program about
these two cases in Afghanistan.
National inquiry is a very effective tool and method to address important issues of human rights. This program includes various aspects including case study, data analysis, fact finding, presenting consultation and recommendations. Similarly, training and awareness are the most important aspects of this program and sensitizing public opinion against the cases of human rights violation is one of its main objectives. This program will be widely implemented at national level to address the larger problems of human rights, rather than individual cases to be handled routinely.
The AIHRC, using experiences of different countries in this area and relying on its legal mandates in the Article 58 of the Afghan Constitution and articles 5 and 21 of the Law on Structure, Duties and Mandates of the AIHRC, develops and implements the first National Inquiry Program in Afghanistan about cases of sexual assaults and honor killings.
For several reasons, the Commission has chosen “Honor Killings and Sexual Assaults” as the subject of this national inquiry. Based on the findings by the Commission, cases of honor killing and sexual assaults have been the most serious cases of violence against women registered in our regional and provincial offices in the recent years. The number of such cases has been increased recently occurring in almost all parts of Afghanistan and has changed to constitute a general concern. These two cases are the most serious human rights violations and the victims and their relatives have suffered from the most severe physical, mental and social trauma. Therefore, it is necessary to consider and investigate about these issues as serious human rights violations, and the victims of these crimes should be protected and the perpetrators should be prosecuted and brought to justice.
The AIHRC is following five main goals in the implementation of national inquiry programs on honor killings and rape, and make effort to achieve them:
In different phases of this national inquiry, more than 2000 people from different groups in the society including representatives of state organ, civil society organizations, justice and judicial organs, media, associations, provincial councils, in charges of safe shelters, elders and influential figures in the society participated in consultative sessions, joint focus group meetings and public hearings to discuss about cases of sexual assaults, honor killings and their causes in the society. Similarly, during this program, interviews were made with 136 accused persons, offenders, victims, eyewitnesses and family members of the victims. Almost 127 cases of sexual assaults and honor killings were documented.
This report consists of 8 chapters and its data and information has been collected through holding focus group discussions, public hearing sessions, interviews with victims, their family members, witnesses, offenders( accused persons and perpetrators) as well as data base of the AIHRC.
Summary of Findings of This Report
Since the beginning of 1390 till the end of Saur 1392, a number of 406 cases of honor killings and sexual assaults have been registered by regional and provincial offices of the AIHRC out of which 243 cases are honor killings and 163 cases are identified as sexual assault cases. Due to severe traditional sensitivities and cultural obstacles, a large number of such cases are kept secret, but still the highest number sexual assaults and honor killings in Afghanistan is shocking.
Out of the above-mentioned cases, 127 of them have been documented in this national inquiry which include 66 percent (84 cases) of sexual assaults and 34 percent (43 cases) of honor killings.
The most common type of honor killings is committed for sexual relation outside marriage. The findings of this national inquiry show that almost 50 percent of honor killings are committed as a result of out of marriage relations between a woman and a man “attempting sexual relations (Zena)”.
Sometimes “being a victim of sexual assault” can result in an honor killing. It constitutes 3.8 percent of honor killings documented in this national inquiry. According to traditions and cultural norms, women and girls who became victims of sexual assaults are considered the cause of shame and disgracefulness in the family and in the tribe. Their presence in the community can cause continuation of shame and scandal. Therefore, the killing of the woman is considered as redressing and removing shamefulness and humiliation. Researches show that in many cases, justice and judicial organs in Afghanistan also consider victims of sexual assaults as criminals and condemn them. This is common in most provinces of our country.
Sometimes, matters which have no direct connection with “illegal sexual relation” or even “sexual assault”, only personal and baseless suspicion about women can result in an honor killing. For example escaping of women from home though is not considered as a crime according to laws in Afghanistan can cause honor killing sometimes. Almost 15.4 percent of honor killings documented by the national inquiry program are committed because a woman or a girl had escaped from home. Similarly 3.8 percent of the cases occurred for not accepting forced marriage and 1.9 percent of the cases happened to expressing willingness to get married to someone.
Social traditions and customs are very strict and harsh against women, but due to a superior position, men are not treated in such a harsh way. For example the aforementioned cases seldom cause the killing of men. These findings show a high level of vulnerability and severe restrictions against women in traditional societies of Afghanistan.
The high tendency for total or partial concealment of such cases in the society has made research activities very difficult. For example, in 57 percent of the cases relation between victims of sexual assaults and the offenders has not been mentioned clearly, in 8 percent of the cases only “offender” has been mentioned. Most probably, 65 percent of the cases have been committed by those who have no special relation to victims.
The shocking point is that almost 35 percent of the cases have been committed by those who have a relationship with the victim. For example 17 percent of sexual assault cases have been committed by relatives, around 10 percent by neighbors, 4 percent by father, 2 percent by a brother and 1 percent of sexual assaults have been committed by uncles of the victims. One percent of the cases have been committed by marriage representatives.
Honor killings due to its relation to out of marriage sexual relation, provokes sensitivities of the victim’s husband and his family members more than anyone else. Unequal and possessive status of a husband against his wife and the inferior position of women in the family of husbands make women vulnerable in the family. For this reason, the victims of honor killings are usually married women and mostly perpetrators of the killings are husbands or their family members. Honor killing of girls is usually committed by her father’s family members.
Probably there is no direct relation between perpetrator’s age and committing honor killings, but the level of this crime is higher among young people. This research shows that the level of committing sexual assaults and honor killings is very high among young persons and middle age people. It includes 82 percent of the cases. Based on the results of this research, 46.4 percent of sexual assaults and 34.9 percent of honor killing cases are committed by persons aging 19 to 30 years.
The age group of 31 to 45 years is the perpetrators of 30.2 percent of honor killings and 27.4 percent of sexual assaults. The people under 18 years old have no role in honor killings and they are responsible for 10.7 percent of sexual assaults. The age of almost 10.7 percent of perpetrators of sexual assaults and 21 percent of honor killing perpetrators is not known. It shows lack of tendency in the society to address such cases and efforts to conceal details of such crimes.
Comparing young and middle age perpetrators of sexual assaults and honor killings shows a contradiction in the behaviors of perpetrators of these two crimes. They make the majority of perpetrators of sexual assaults on one hand and on the other hand high figure of honor killings committed by them show their severe sensitivity against sexual issues and relations with their spouses.
Perpetrators of sexual assaults and honor killings are usually people with low incomes. Almost 17.6 percent of perpetrators of sexual assaults and honor killings are laborers, 14.5 percent are shopkeepers, farmers and drivers are respectively make 7.6 percent and 4.7 percent of perpetrators of sexual assaults and honor killings. Almost 11 percent of perpetrators of such crimes are jobless people.
Among them, 14.6 percent of honor killings and sexual assaults are committed by police while the police force is responsible for public security and protection of vulnerable persons. This issue can harm public confidence and trust on national police. The occupation of almost 21 percent of perpetrators is unknown.
The results of this research show that members of poor families are victims of sexual assaults and honor killings more than others. For example 58.2 percent of sexual assaults and honor killing cases collected by teams of this national inquiry belong to people living in poor families. Almost 38 percent of the victims belong to middle class families. This figure indicates severe vulnerability of women in poorer families.
Almost 91 percent of sexual assaults and honor killings cases registered during this research were transferred to justice and judicial sources as well as to other state organs. Out of them, follow up activities about 64.5 percent of the cases have been successful and considered according to the laws, but measures taken about 35.5 percent of other cases are not successful. According to these outcomes, in more than one third of the cases, judicial proceedings of sexual assaults and honor killings were not according to the laws.
Almost 67 percent of the perpetrators have been arrested by the police, but 23.6 percent of them remained at large. In 60.5 percent of the cases, offenders have been trialed and punished, but in 39.5 percent of the cases, the perpetrators and offenders have not been trialed and punished. Of course, this figure includes all cases covered by this research. Therefore, in 7 percent of the cases, while the perpetrators have been arrested, but not trailed and punished.
Causes and Context of Violence against Women:
There are several causes and factors contributing to violence against women, including honor killings and rape. There are also many patterns and cultural and traditional norms continue to provide grounds for the commotion and the continuation of violence, and justify them. These factors and patterns have been investigated in four parts: Legal- political, socio- cultural, economic and psychological factors.
I -Legal - political factors:
The Commission's findings of the national inquiry show that the followings are the most important legal - political factors that play important role in the continuation and commission of honor killings and rape crimes on which the participants of all public hearings and focus group meetings, have emphasized. (These factors are very obvious and we avoid further description and comments at this point and give reference to the full report):
II – Cultural and Social Factors
The prevalence of violence against women has its roots in the social structures and relationships as well as in the cultural patterns. These cultural patterns and norms present a special perception of women, based on which women are considered to be naïve, fallible and untrustworthy characters that are not able to properly carry out tasks – that they always go astray. Thus, they should always be dominated by men. This inhumane attitude and understanding of women and the male domineering attitude toward women pave the ground for violent behavior against them. In its cultural context, traditional relationship and rigid cultural and social norms, the Afghan society has institutionalized violence, especially violence against women and regularized it in the common and usual human relationships. Various manifestations of such a violent attitude and behavior could be seen in the culture and the social relationships in the society.
The practical aspects of such attitude, behavior and violent treatment are also prevalent in various forms. Honor killing and rape, as the most sever and obvious form of violence against women, appear, grow and continue in such a suitable cultural context and social ground. The linguistic aspects of such attitude are also rampant in the forms of saying and proverbs in the Afghan society.
III - Economic factors:
Causes and contexts of violence against women is rooted in economic issues. The most important of these are presented below.
IV - Psychosocial factors:
Psychological factors are also involved in the prevalence of violence against women, including rape and honor killing. These factors are described as follows:
Social exclusion and isolation is one of these factors. Isolation can provide psychological ground for engaging in sexual violence, including rape.
Unemployment, lack of jobs and depression stemming from it could also be involved in raising of this problem.
Deprivation complex is another important point that can cause behavior problems such as violence against women and rape.
Being Suspicious of women due to negative attitudes and traditional beliefs of the people toward them is another point. Sometimes the family, especially the husband's family, based on the slightest suspicion attempt murder of his wife. Such attitude limits the character and dignity of women to sexual affairs and submission to her husband’s desire.
Problems and mental disorders are one of the major and important factors in violence against women, including rape and honor killing
Men who suffer from mental health problems, appealing to traditional sensibilities and the animal ego which is rising from patriarchal attitudes, engage in rape.
Another important point is a kind of suspicion and delusions about women’s relationship with strangers. Due to the existence of hypersensitivity against sexual affairs and forcefully behavior against it, this suspicion will lead to violence and even murder.
Social and Psychological Consequences of Rape and Honor Killing:
Social and psychological consequences of rape and honor killing is considered to be the most severe forms of violence against women, Some of these consequences include:
2- Consequences of honor killing:
Recommendations: