SWABI, Jan 20: A humanitarian group based in Britain will form a regional alliance in seven districts of the NWFP to work for eradication of “honour killings” through opinion-makers and alliance partners. The announcement was made here on Friday by the provincial coordinator of Oxfam, Ali Gohar, at a seminar held on honour killings.

The seminar was attended by local body officials and members of labour unions, welfare groups, jirgas, as well as journalists and lawyers.

“The regional alliance will be launched in Swabi, Swat, Mardan, Charsadda, Nowshera, Peshawar and Kohat districts and Oxfam has already chalked out a strategy on how it would operate in these areas,” he said.

Calling honour crimes and violence against women a serious problem in the country, Mr Gohar said that Oxfam would raise awareness about the issue through various programmes initiated across the country.

He said the alliance would work until 2011 and voiced the hope that the desired objectives would be achieved. “We want to involve everybody in eradication of honour killing and violence against the women,” he said, inviting people to come forward the help the organisation.

“In our societies there are many social customs and attitudes support violence against women and in various families the attitudes are based on social beliefs that women are fundamentally of less value than men but this is a totally wrong perception,” said former district naib nazim Liaquat Ahmad Khan

However, he said, the situation in now changing. “In the near future women will not face physical and emotional abuse, beatings, humiliation and honour killings,” he said.

The naib nazim of Chota Lahor tehsil Shakeel Ahmad said the local government would extend its support to welfare bodies that are working for the emancipation of women. In this regard, he said, women councillors could play a key role.