LARKANA, Dec 31: Around 432 persons were killed in Sindh province over Karo-Kari in year 2001. Out of the victims 293 were women while 139 were men.

These figures were given by the coordinator of Human Rights Commission of Pakistan’s Larkana core group, Abdul Wahab Wahoocho, on Sunday.

He said that the number of the murders was comparatively higher than those of 2000 and the majority of the incidents had happened in Larkana, Shikarpur, Jacobabad and Sukkur districts.

Though the federal government announced that the FIRs of Karo-kari killing would be registered under section 302 (murder), these killings under the evil custom did not reduce amidst seminars and workshops held by different NGOs and human rights organizations.

During year 2001, some 640 cases of suicide were reported in the province where 50 per cent incidents occurred due to unemployment, 30 per cent due to not being allowed to marry of one’s choice while only 20 per cent due to domestic disputes.

In majority of the suicide cases, the ratio of women victims was higher than men, said Wahoocho adding that 200 cases were reported from Mirpurkhas, 175 from Sukkur, 110 from Karachi, 90 from Hyderabad, and 65 from Larkana.

According to figures gathered here, 502 incidents of sexual assault were reported in Sindh province in 2001.

Forty percent incidents involved educated girls while 60 per cent uneducated girls.

The ratio of sexually assaulted boys stood at 10 per cent of the cases.