Islamabad: As women activists are rallying against the pardon of the brother of Qandeel Baloch, Pakistan’s national commission on women has announced to challenge the acquittal.
National Commission on the Status of Women (NCSW), an autonomous statutory body, has announced plans to appeal the verdict before the Supreme Court following the acquittal of Waseem Baloch for the murder of his sister and outspoken social media star Qandeel Baloch.
“The NCSW has grave concerns about the release of Qandeel Baloch’s murderer. The early release of a criminal convicted for the heinous crime of honour killing is unconscionable” said NCSW chairperson Nilofar Bakhtiar. NCSW will appeal to the Supreme Court against Lahore High Court’s acquittal order and “pursue justice for Qandeel Baloch,” she said.
Strong message against honour killings
The move aims to send a strong message to the people that the heinous crime of killing women in the name of family honour will no longer be tolerated by society and courts.
In 2016, Pakistan’s parliament unanimously passed legislation against honour killings, guaranteeing mandatory 25 years in prison for convicted murderers even if pardoned by the victim’s family. The law was passed months after the murder of 26-year-old Qandeel Baloch.
Six years later, the court decided to acquit Qandeel’s killer and his brother, Waseem Baloch, after their parents said they had forgiven their son. Waseem was sentenced to life in prison after confessing to killing Baloch in July 2016, saying the star had brought shame on the family.
Pakistan’s Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said that Pakistanis should be “ashamed” of a legal system that had acquitted the slain social media star and called for judicial reforms in the country.
