This story of a young girl and her boyfriend tortured to death while the neighbours did nothing, is nothing new in South Asia, but the attitudes expressed by the killers family and the others involved should concern us, because these same attitudes are imported into the UK, by the never ending stream of immigrants from the Indian subcontinent.
Umesh Kumar and his wife Satvati Devi said "She was crying loudly. She was pleading, 'Kill me, but please don't hurt him.' She loved him and they wanted to get married"
This was after teenage lovers Asha and Yogesh were brutally killed because they were from different castes in Swaroop Nagar colony, on the north-western outskirts of the Indian capital, Delhi. Mr Kumar tried to intervene. "When I went in, Yogesh was tied up in ropes. He had bruises all over him. And they were beating Asha" (Note the fact that people are being tortured and no one calls the police).
Asha's uncle Omprakash Saini, her father Suraj Saini, their wives and her cousin were the torturers and they pushed him around so he left ... "I tried to save the girl, but they pushed me around. They broke my spectacles. They told me not to interfere since it was an internal family matter." They told him to not call the police..... so he didn't.
"I don't have a phone, the pay phone booths are closed at night, and the other neighbours were too scared to get involved."
Asha's uncle and father were arrested but the two men have shown no remorse. "I'm not sorry," a defiant Omprakash Saini told reporters after his arrest. "I would punish them again if given a chance."
There are no statistics on the number of "Honour Killings" in India, but Assistant commissioner of police Pankaj Kumar Singh says for every case that gets recorded, several others go unreported......
So deep-set is the ignorant and racist belief system that drives "Caste", that the boys relatives and friends could say that "We are very angry. We want justice. If they wanted to kill their daughter, that's okay. But they shouldn't have killed our boy." ..... its okay to kill their daughter!!
The girls relatives were happy that justice had been done .... "What will any parent do if they see their daughter in a compromising position with a man? What would you do if you were in the same situation?" one asked angrily. "That's why my uncles killed them."
Another of Asha's uncles, Titoo Saini, is convinced "the killings were justified. We did it for our honour. Honour in our community and society is paramount to us," he says..... Look closely at these men they could be living near you in a street in the UK...... cos its already here.
Umesh Kumar and his wife Satvati Devi said "She was crying loudly. She was pleading, 'Kill me, but please don't hurt him.' She loved him and they wanted to get married"
This was after teenage lovers Asha and Yogesh were brutally killed because they were from different castes in Swaroop Nagar colony, on the north-western outskirts of the Indian capital, Delhi. Mr Kumar tried to intervene. "When I went in, Yogesh was tied up in ropes. He had bruises all over him. And they were beating Asha" (Note the fact that people are being tortured and no one calls the police).
"I don't have a phone, the pay phone booths are closed at night, and the other neighbours were too scared to get involved."
Asha's uncle and father were arrested but the two men have shown no remorse. "I'm not sorry," a defiant Omprakash Saini told reporters after his arrest. "I would punish them again if given a chance."
There are no statistics on the number of "Honour Killings" in India, but Assistant commissioner of police Pankaj Kumar Singh says for every case that gets recorded, several others go unreported......
So deep-set is the ignorant and racist belief system that drives "Caste", that the boys relatives and friends could say that "We are very angry. We want justice. If they wanted to kill their daughter, that's okay. But they shouldn't have killed our boy." ..... its okay to kill their daughter!!
The girls relatives were happy that justice had been done .... "What will any parent do if they see their daughter in a compromising position with a man? What would you do if you were in the same situation?" one asked angrily. "That's why my uncles killed them."
Another of Asha's uncles, Titoo Saini, is convinced "the killings were justified. We did it for our honour. Honour in our community and society is paramount to us," he says..... Look closely at these men they could be living near you in a street in the UK...... cos its already here.
Dear Mr. No-PC,
ReplyDeleteDon't give up hope just yet. Recently, a village of Dalits in India won freedom thanks to a job program from the Indian government.
Well I have read that story about the Dalits (untouchables), but although there is hope for some of them escaping the slavery of the caste system, it doesn't mean that they themselves will stop 'honour' murders.
ReplyDeleteStill I guess some hope is better then no hope.
I don't know why in any culture, males would kill their daughters to proptect5 their 'honour', even if they were attacked and sexually molested, rather than the male(s) molester?
ReplyDeleteIn the North and West we had the idea that male honour was settled between men, not by killing your daughter, which would be considered 'cowardly'.
Dear Mr. No-PC,
ReplyDeleteWhen I was in college, I took a course on Ancient Greek culture. In Athens, any form of marital infidelity (whether consensual or non-consensual) was classified as a crime called moicheia.
If a man caught his wife being unfaithful to him, he was obligated to abandon her, even if she was raped. Otherwise, she could face public humiliation.
Peter,
You may see the glass as half-empty. I see it as half-full. The reason these "honor killings" are taking place is because people are finally starting to cross boundaries that were enforced by the caste system.
A few generations ago, no violence would have taken place because these relationships were unheard of.
Well, anonymous I can't answer for the other poster ... talking about Greece 2,000 or 3,000 yrs ago, hardly justifies it still being defensible action now.
ReplyDelete