The Muslim News

PA News:

Two British police officers are heading to Pakistan in the New Year to help train the country’s officers to deal with so-called “honour killings”.

In 2000 it was estimated that up to 5,000 women a year – more than 13 a day – died worldwide because they were deemed to have brought shame on their families or communities.

Many are not fully investigated because of the background of silence in the cultures in which the crimes were committed.

Now Karla Howard and Gail Jones, of Northamptonshire Police’s training department, will spend 10 days in Karachi as part of a Foreign and Commonwealth Office project aimed at building links with South Asian countries.

They will host training seminars and workshops on domestic violence and honour killings (sic) and develop the concept of community policing in the military-run state.

Wellingborough Sector Commander Inspector Inam Khan has organised the return trip as part of an international agreement brought forward by the British Council in Karachi.

Four Pakistani officers visited the UK in March and were impressed with the force’s efforts in developing community policing. By getting locals to talk to officers it is hoped to cut the numbers of “culturally-acceptable” crimes.

Mr Khan said: “There is a huge amount of interest in this in Pakistan at the moment. Even the president himself has said he wants the police to take serious action and that is part of the reason why this project has been given such prominence.

“In India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, because it has been a culturally accepted thing, it has not been given the same action that something like a horrendous murder would be given, but it is murder and we cannot hide from that fact.

“It is an international problem. We are hoping to halt the problem but it is fairly hidden. If a case comes to our attention, we will deal with it.

“We have got to have the political will and the community support for the action to continue.”

Although Pakistan became independent in 1947, said Mr Khan, its police system has not changed much since the days of empire and has few procedures for reaching out to communities.

“Their whole system was set up during the days of the empire and policing is done on a military basis. The culture is not one of community policing but more towards controlling people.

“This style of policing can often create a hostile and confrontational environment that breeds a lack of distrust within local communities, which makes people more reluctant to get the police involved.

“The law is all in black and white and they are there to enforce it but they are trying to change that. They do want to become more community-based and get the community on their side.”

The United Nations Population Fund estimates that 5,000 women and girls are murdered by family members each year in so-called honour killings.

They occur not just in Asian communities but also in Middle East countries, Turkey, eastern Europe and West Africa.

In western Europe, the killings are escalating in countries where there are large, close-knit immigrant communities, such as Sweden, Italy, the Netherlands and the UK.

Earlier this month, the Crown Prosecution Service said 117 deaths and disappearances of Asian women, spanning a decade, were being reinvestigated to ensure they were not victims of honour killings (sic).

The suicide rate of Asian women aged 16 to 24 is nearly three times higher than the national average – possibly driven by fear of dishonour and their families’ reaction.

Metropolitan Police figures show 12 cases of honour killings (sic) were prosecuted last year, but there are no data on the national picture because not all police forces deal with the crime in the same way.

Mr Khan said the partnership also had benefits for British forces, helping officers to relate better to Britain’s ethnic minorities and promote understanding of different cultures.

It is hoped the two Northants officers can pass on their knowledge of Asian cultures and techniques to other officers in the county.

“They will certainly be a lot more informed, and the more we understand about the issues they are facing and the problems they have faced, the better it will be for us to police.

“Our support of the Pakistan Police Service has been well-received by members of the Muslim communities in Northamptonshire, which still have close links over there.

“They are very supportive of and trust the work we are doing, which is being relayed back to Pakistan, and hopefully will enable us to set up an open dialogue between local communities and the police.”

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