TEHMINA and Abida Bhutto, two sisters living in the Shikarpur area, after refusing marriage proposals by their cousins, left their home for a relative’s house in the nearby town of Sukkur. A search was launched and finally the sisters were located and brought back to Shikarpur on the pledge that they would not be handed back to their parents.
A landlord of the area offered them saam (refuge), to which they agreed. In the culture of Sindh, saam has historical background. It is a sacred pledge over which the person granting saam would even sacrifice his life but dare not hand over the refuge-seeker to anybody or have any harm inflicted to the person under his care.
A few days later, in the first week of May, the girls were woken up during the night and driven to a far-away jungle and shot dead. The killings were made known to their parents, the jirga members and the landlord under whose chairmanship the jirga had earlier decided to execute them as kari. As evidence, the girls’ jewellery was handed over to them.
Soon after, the police moved in, albeit reluctantly, but the landlord had already fled by then. Tehmina and Abida Bhutto were offered as sacrifice at the altar of the morbid custom of karo-kari which has finally drawn the attention of lawmakers. A month back, a demand was put forth in the Sindh Assembly to enact a law by which karo-kari could be prosecuted as premeditated murder and the culprits envisaged punishment according to the relevant law. The Sindh High Court verdict banning all such decisions by the jirga, too, came in the wake of such happenings.
Moreover, the case of Shaista Almani and Balk Sher Mahar has resulted into a series of reprisals, and at least eight people of both the communities have been slain. Why such a gory custom prevails has been debated for quite a long time. While our so-called notables come with superficial arguments, it has been established that material gains rule above all others.
The continuation of the tradition is mainly due to the two factors which play important roles: tribal life and the flawed legal system. The feudal lord has to keep his hegemony and to achieve this, he keeps people illiterate, economically handicapped and himself stays as a virtual master. In practice, he is a ruler of the fiefdom he has created. With a couple of hand-picked villagers, he passes judgments even in the personal matters of villagers. To achieve his objectives, he keeps close liaison with the police, revenue and other officials — a service for which he spends money and retains his upper hand. For this, he even uses his political influence and gets the police officers of his choice within his jurisdiction. It is in this process that he becomes a self-imposed judge in disputed matters. Matrimonial and other sensitive issues such as karo-kari are discussed and decided by him in collusion with the local chieftains.
Unfortunately, we still follow the centuries-old colonial system which is aimed at suppressing people through the law. Politicians, tribal chieftains and feudal lords all used it as a tool to practice suppressive tactics. After independence, lawmakers did not bother to revise the system in accordance with the changed atmosphere. Instead, every ruling party added to the powers of police officials and used it for their political ends.
Obviously, this made it an informidable force which twisted the law according to personal desires or those of the feudal lord. The word of the official became law and successive governments made the police officials even stronger. The Police Order, 2002, which somehow draws broad parameters of the basic rights of the people, was opposed in many ways. The very basic need of separating prosecution from investigation was disputed and deferred, owing to the inappropriate approach of the police personnel.
Incidents of karo-kari are reported either at the insistence of the relatives or the community’s so-called notables with the blessings of the feudal lord or the tribal chief. The folly begins from the registration of the case and the role of the police becomes even more sinister.
The question that how these killings can be avoided, if not eliminated, is quite intriguing. First, curtailing the effectiveness of the feudal institution needs economic reforms on a large scale. This does not appear to be a practical proposition because it requires a strong political system. In our society, a feudal seeks political power to defend his economic strength. Even a strong-willed person like Z.A. Bhutto with massive mandate could not trim their powers. The formidable public support needed to end feudal system is perhaps a utopian perception which could never be achieved till a miracle takes place.
Similar is the case with police reformation. It is a colossal task which again stipulates an irresistible political will, herculean effort and honest application. Even mere separating investigation from prosecution cannot help bring about the reforms needed to fulfil the objectives of justice.
In this backdrop, it appears almost impossible to bring an end to karo-kari, committed at the whim of a few individuals who become masters of the ignorant people due to tribal traditions, feudals and dishonest bureaucracy, specially the police.
