We are the voices of the women who lost their lives to honor killings—women who no longer have the chance to speak for their rights. We are the cry for justice for those silenced under the weight of oppression and violence.
Honor killing is a crime—
Not a tradition, not a value, and never a justification!
Shaheeda, a 22-year-old woman—whose only “crime” was choosing life and love—was brutally slaughtered by her own father and brother. Her name was Shaheeda—a common female name in many Muslim communities, not a symbolic title. She was not a martyr by choice or ideology—she was a real woman, with dreams, dignity, and a life unjustly stolen.
This is not an isolated tragedy. It is part of a horrific chain of murders that, for years, have claimed the lives of women under the name of “honor” and “pride,” all while hiding beneath the shadows of tradition and religion.
So-called “honor killings” are framed as acts of dignity—but in truth, they are nothing more than systemic violence and brutal oppression against women.
A system that justifies violence is complicit in the crime.
Honor killings are the product of a repressive order—one that transforms “honor,” domination, and patriarchal control into tools for policing women’s bodies and choices. It is a system that turns innocent daughters into victims, grieving mothers into mourners, and sons into murderers empowered by a toxic sense of entitlement.
These killings stem from a patriarchal culture that teaches boys from a young age that women are their property.
They are perpetuated by legal frameworks that offer leniency to murderers and pave the way for repeated violence.
They are fueled by a society whose silence legitimizes the control of women and, in doing so, becomes complicit in these crimes.
We, the Women’s Justice, will break these chains of oppression!
A society that confines its women is itself a prison.
Any society that offers women conditional freedom—freedom defined by the limitations set by men—is not a free society. It is a vast prison, guarded in the name of tradition, religion, and male supremacy. A prison where men are conditioned to equate “honor” with domination and turn to violence to protect their crumbling thrones of control. But this prison will fall.
Honor killings do not only end women’s lives—they cast entire societies into darkness, breeding fear, inequality, and repression. If we stay silent in the face of this brutality today, we will mourn more daughters tomorrow.
Our Demands:
We, the Justice-Seeking Women, demand an end to the impunity enjoyed by perpetrators of honor killings. We call for the strict criminalization of these acts and urge all human rights organizations, international bodies, and governments to:
1. Officially recognize honor killings as organized crimes against women.
2. Enact laws that impose the maximum penalty on perpetrators of honor killings, with no room for leniency.
3. Launch public awareness campaigns to dismantle the culture of honor-based violence and male domination.
4. Establish safe shelters for women at risk, so potential victims have a path to safety and survival.
5. Ensure that judicial and legal institutions take urgent, transparent action in processing honor killing cases and deliver just punishments to all involved.
6. Invest in comprehensive social and cultural education to transform attitudes toward women’s rights and strengthen gender equality.
We will not be silent in the face of crimes masked by “tradition” and “honor.”
We speak the name Shaheeda so that no other woman is ever butchered for exercising her right to choose.
The Women’s Justice Movement stands firm against this brutality.
And we will not be silent—until the bloodshed ends.