Pakistan: ‘Karo- Kari’ killings claim over 70 lives in 6 months

Karachi: Honour killings have claimed over 70 live in the rural parts of Sindh during the first six months of 2019, according to official figures in the local media.

Official estimates said 78 people were killed between January to June this year in parts of Sindh as part of honor killings also known as ‘Karo-Kari’, leading to registration of 65 cases, reported The Dawn.

Adding that 90 percent of the cases were pending trial citing various reasons, the official data said an investigation by police into the majority of the cases remain inconclusive.

This comes after Inspector General of Police (IG) Syed Kaleem Imam chaired a meeting to look into the status of investigations into Karo-Kari killings in the region.

Imam had directed the police to prepare a detailed report on a case-to-case basis about the conviction and release of people in connection with Karo-Kari killings across the province.

Besides, he urged officials to ensure no loopholes are left during the probe and the same was adequately pursued before courts.

According to police, Karo-Kari killings, a heinous trend criticized by the authorities as well as human rights organizations, continues unabated as they find it hard to investigate such killings as both aggrieved and accused parties generally belong to the same family or tribe.