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HONOUR-BASED,VIOLENCE,AND,COMPARISON,OF,HONOUR,KILLINGS,AND,CRIMES,OF,PASSION,

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The Causation of Honour-Based Violence and a Comparison between Honour Killings and Crimes of Passion Honour-based violence is an act of violence ranging from lesser assault to murder of a family member over actions, such as sexual practices outside of marriage, that are perceived to be harmful to a families’ honour (Tripathi & Yadav, 2004, pp. 65). The victims of honourbased violence are predominantly female, with reports from 2000 claiming up to 5,000 females were victims of honour killings (the most extreme result of honour-based violence) (UNFPA, 2000, pp. 29). Honour-based violence stems from cultures that push societal and gender-based constructions that tote honour, specifically familial, as vitally important. In relation to gender constructions, it is the dominant patriarchal themes in families, where women are expected to act ‘honourably’ at all times for the good of the family and males are enrolled as a guardian to keep the female in line, that result in honour-based violence (Gill, Begikhani, & Hague 2012, pp. 81-82). Similarly, the importance of societal and economical values placed on family connections generate a need to maintain honour, and in many cases coerce females into arranged marriages to further a social status, perpetuating an environment where honour-based violence is utilised (Faqir, 2001, pp. 71). Often perceived as similar to honour killing is that of crimes of passion. Crimes of passion are acts of violence, typically committed by a male towards a sexual partner, that occur due to a provocation such as witnessing the partner committing adultery (Van den Haag, 2013, pp. 253). Although both crimes may at first seem relatively dissimilar, they both encompass several comparable and contrastable features (Abu-Odeh, 1997). Honour based violence is prevalent in many countries throughout the world. Although religion is targeted as a leading reason for honour-based violence, Elakkary et al. (2014) portrays it as one that is not solely based on religious beliefs, noting that this form of violence occurs in countries where communities consist of many varied religions, and that many enact

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this form of violence without their religion expressing any necessity to. However, regardless of questions surrounding the religious pursuance of this form of violence, offenders enacting honour killings have been predominantly found in areas with a Muslim based community (UNFPA, 2000, pp. 29). This is supported by Chesler (2010), where reported cases of honour killings were analysed from twenty-nine different countries ranging from Jordan to the United States. Out of 320 victims, 91% of offenders were Muslim. This parallels with reported cases mainly stemming from populations in or originally from the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia (MENASA) region (Khan, 2018, pp. 217). Although religion may not actively encourage the usage of honour-based violence, it acts as a catalyst for the continued usage in areas of predominantly religious communities through the lack of effective punishment and efforts to prevent it (Chesler & Bloom, 2012, pp. 44). Due to this seeming acceptance of its’ usage through lack of action, as well as the statistics indicating a vastly higher occurrence in specific societies (primarily Muslim based communities), honourbased violence is seen as an issue endorsed through cultural norms. Gender constructs are possibly the most significant factor in eliciting honour-based violence, especially in areas where a family based on patriarchy is common ground. Gill, Begikhani, and Hague (2012) analysed results from research conducted within Kurdish Communities in Britain that examined honour-based violence and the role that culture played in its occurrence. The strong patriarchy within these cultures rampant with honour-based violence lead to women often being placed in arranged marriages for the benefit of the family, which in turn generates a form of pressure on the male family figures to keep the women “in line” (Gill, Begikhani, & Hague 2012, pp. 81-82). This creates two very different gender roles, in which women are tools to be traded for further acceptance into a society, whilst males, wishing to uphold family honour, fall into the role of enacting honour-based violence for the good of the family. Mothers also play a large role in honour-based violence, ranging

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from being the primary offenders to supporting the enactment of violence (Aplin, 2017, pp. 9). This acceptance of gender roles and arranged marriage within these cultures creates an environment that relies on honour-based violence to maintain a level of respect and family honour (Payton, 2015, pp. 333). Additionally, Gill and Brah (2014, pp. 73-75) found that in South Asian communities, family honour plays an important role where family members, primarily females, must conduct themselves in a fashion deemed honourable to the patriarchal structure of families. Although family honour may be interpreted the same way throughout cultures that see it as a necessity, gender roles, and what is considered honourable for each gender, varies. Whilst males primarily maintain the same role as a “guardian” over female relatives, women, depending on their culture, may be considered to be bringing honour to their family through achievements such as education and professional status, whilst women in other cultures would be considered dishonourable for striving for these same achievements (Gill & Brah, 2014, pp. 73-75). The largest factor contributing to the conduct of honour-based violence is the role honour plays in social status. Faqir (2001, pp. 71) examines the issue of honour killings in Jordan, and describes the importance of a families’ social status, in which they value their families’ perceived position in a social hierarchy. Arranged marriages are pivotal in that they aid in creating valuable connections that assist in attaining this status. A survey by Payton (2015) show that women were significantly more likely to have some form of intervention from their family when it comes to marriage. Further, Payton (2015) argues that honourbased violence is not only cultural but instead also a result of social structures where tools such as arranged marriage can be used to further a families’ social, political, and economical standing within these societies, and honour-based violence is a method deemed important in order to strengthen their familial status. This supports the idea that honour-based violence and honour killings occur in societies that base their actions on their groups (or family), and an

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individual is considered less important than the welfare of the community (Faqir, 2001, pp. 71). In contrast to the familial nature of honour-based violence, crimes of passion are more about an individual’s perceived grievance. A crime of passion is one that occurs in the “heat of the moment” directly after a provocation and is commonly used to describe the murder of an intimate partner due to sudden circumstances or events that cause a sudden onset of anger, most commonly from witnessing adultery (Ahmad, 2004, pp. 1302 – 1304). Honour killings and crimes of passion are often grouped together as similar crimes, and although they share some similarities, are vastly different in both the act and use of legal defences. Similarly, both honour killings and crimes of passion are crimes committed primarily by people in close relationships with the victim (family or loved one) and both having the victim as predominantly being female (Coker, 1992, pp. 83 & Chesler, 2010). Additionally, emanating from the idea of honour, both forms of violence occur due to a perceived blow to the offender’s honour. Honour killing is a retaliation on perceived damage to family honour (depending greatly on cultural beliefs), whereas crimes of passion can be seen as a reaction due to a perceived impact on masculine honour (Osch, Breugelmans, Zeelenberg, & Bölük, 2013, pp. 340-341). The most glaring similarity between the two forms of violence, however, is the acceptance of both in a variety of cultures within the legal system, as shown by the upheld laws that defend these practices. Both honour killings and crimes of passion have, or have had previously, legal defences aimed at either diminishing or abolishing punishment for the offenders. Although honour killing is less prevalent in Western society, it is rampant in areas of a primarily Muslim presence (Chesler, 2010), and it is within these societies where certain laws aim to defend these actions. An example of this is Article 340 in the Jordanian Penal Code, which states that “He who discovers his wife or a female relative committing adultery and kills, wounds, or

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injures one or both of them is exempted from any penalty” (Hadidi, Kulwicki, & Jahshan, 2001, pp. 358). Although not as direct, crimes of passion are also protected in an array of countries due to heat of passion defences. This type of defence was created, according to Goldstein (2002, pp. 30), because the usage of death sentences in early England for serious crimes was considered unfair for certain actions caused by provocations such as killing through self-defence and, most importantly, witnessing adultery. Although these laws may have been deemed necessary to reduce ‘unfair’ punishment, they still remain today even with the significant reduction, and in most places’ removal of, capital punishment. The primary differentiating characteristic of honour killing and crimes of passion is that whilst both perpetrators experience a point in which they “flip”, meaning the moment violence is decided on being the outcome, honour killing defences accept the perceived necessity to enact on this decision can occur at a later stage, whilst crime of passion requires an action of violence to occur at the point of decision (Abu-Odeh, 1997, pp. 293). This can be summarised by recognising honour killing as premeditated, whilst crimes of passion are not. To expand on this contrast between both acts of violence, the legal viewpoint of either violent act can be examined. Although both crimes have, or used to have, legal defences or recognition, honour killing defences are aimed at validating the act, whilst crimes of passion defences aim to protect the offender. Justification as a defence is one that implies that the society in which the crime occurred approves of the actions and believe that no harm to society occurred (Dressler, 1982, pp. 436). Honour killing offenders rely on the defence of justification as a valid reason to enact their crimes, as they see their actions as one of redemption aimed at restoring a perceived disturbance by the victim. Alternatively, crimes of passion focus on the excuse defences. An excuse as a defence aims to prove that the offender was not acting in their right mind due to sudden extreme circumstances that led them to carry out their acts, whilst acknowledging the act itself as wrong (Fletcher, 1974, pp. 1269).

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Honour-based violence is a serious issue that is hard to accurately prevent due to a significant amount of cases going unreported and the difficulty in successfully targeting a primarily culturally related issue (UNFPA, 2000, pp. 29). Although Honour-based violence occurs in an array of countries, it predominantly occurs in areas with heavy Muslim populations (Chesler, 2010). The predominant mitigating factors of honour-based violence in these cultures has shown to be twofold. Firstly, the notion of family honour that is largely prevalent in these cultures, where families must maintain honour to be respected and successful in their commuinity, creates an environment where actions perceived as dishonourable can damage a group and must be punished in order to restore honour (Faqir, 2001). Secondly, these actions that are honourable or not are largely based on that culture’s gender constructions and norms, and differ culture to culture, whilst the idea of family honour remains the same (Gill & Brah, 2014, pp. 73-75). While honour-based violence and honour killings can be perceived as a cultural issue, crimes of passion are one that appears in almost all areas of the world. Comparison between the two types of crimes can be made, specifically with the idea that crimes of passion are Western based, whilst honour killings are Eastern based (Abu-Odeh, 1997), however although similarities between the two types of crime exist, such as the predominantly female victims (Coker, 1992, pp. 83), they have very different methods of defence, where honour killing defends the action through justification (Dressler, 1982, pp. 436), whilst crimes of passion utilise excuses, suggesting a temporary insanity where the offender was blinded by provocation and was not in their right state of mind (Fletcher, 1974, pp. 1269). Word Count: 1998

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References Abu-Odeh, L. (1997). Comparatively speaking: The honor of the East and the passion of the West. Utah Law Review, 287-307. Retrieved April 16, 2019, from HeinOnline. Ahmad, M. I. (2004). A rage shared by law: Post-September 11 racial violence as crimes of passion. California Law Review, 92(5), 1259-1330. Retrieved April 16, 2019, from HeinOnline. Aplin, R. (2017). Exploring the role of mothers in ‘honour’ based abuse perpetration and the impact on the policing response. Women's Studies International Forum, 60, 1-10. DOI: 10.1016/j.wsif.2016.10.007 Chesler, P. (2010). Worldwide trends in honor killings. Middle east quarterly, 17(2), 3-11. Retrieved April 10, 2019, from Middle East Forum. Chesler, P., & Bloom, N. (2012). Hindu vs. Muslim honor killings. Middle East Quarterly, 19(3), 43-52. Retrieved April 10, 2019, from Middle East Forum. Coker, D. K. (1992). Heat of passion and wife killing: men who batter/men who kill. S. Cal. Rev. L. & Women's Studies, 2, 71-130. Retrieved April 16, 2019, from HeinOnline. Dressler, J. (1982). Rethinking heat of passion: A defense in search of a rationale. Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 73(2), 421-470. Retrieved April 24, 2019, from HeinOnline. Elakkary, S., Franke, B., Shokri, D., Hartwig, S., Tsokos, M., & Püschel, K. (2014). Honor crimes: review and proposed definition. Forensic science, medicine, and pathology, 10, 76-82. DOI 10.1007/s12024-013-9455-1 Faqir, F. (2001). Intrafamily femicide in defence of honour: the case of Jordan. Third World Quarterly, 22(1), 65-82. DOI: 10.1080/01436590020022583

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Tripathi, A., & Yadav, S. (2004). For the sake of honour: But whose honour? Honour crimes against women. Asia Pacific Journal on Human Rights and the Law, 5(2), 63-78. Retrieved April 17, 2019, from Springer. UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund). (2000). The state of the world population. Retrieved from https://www.unfpa.org/publications/state-world-population-2000 Van den Haag, E. (2013). Crimes of passion. In Van den Haag, E., & Conrad, J. P. (Ed.), The Death Penalty: A Debate (pp. 253-256). Boston, MA: Springer. , , ,...