AP/ November 5, 2012, 3:36 PM

Pakistani parents say they killed daughter for eyeing boy

ISLAMABAD A Pakistani couple accused of killing their 15-year-old daughter by pouring acid on her carried out the attack because she sullied the family's honor by looking at a boy, the couple said in an interview broadcast Monday by the BBC.

The girl's death underlines the problem of so-called "honor killings" in Pakistan where women are often killed for marrying or having relationships not approved by their families or because they are perceived to have somehow dishonored their family.

The girl's parents, Mohammad Zafar and his wife Zaheen, recounted the Oct. 29 incident from jail. The father said the girl had turned to look at a boy who drove by on a motorcycle, and he told her it was wrong.

"She said 'I didn't do it on purpose. I won't look again.' By then I had already thrown the acid. It was her destiny to die this way," the girl's mother told the British broadcaster.

Television footage of the couple showed them standing behind bars in separate, but adjoining jail cells.

The father said the family had already come under public censure because of their older daughter's behavior, but he did not detail what exactly he meant.

Pakistani officials initially said the attack occurred because the girl supposedly had an affair with a boy.

According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, at least 943 women were killed in the name of honor last year. Only 20 of the women were reported to have been given medical care before they died, the report said. The real toll is believed to be higher because many of the crimes go unreported.

"Throughout the year, women were callously killed in the name of honor when they went against family wishes in any way, or even on the basis of suspicion that they did so. Women were sometimes killed in the name of honor over property disputes and inheritance rights," the report said.

© 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
87 Comments Add a Comment
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renopanther says:
Did they just walk around with acid in their pockets, ready to go if necessary? Or they had planned to sacrifice that girl to their Honor and were just looking for the right reason?
This is nuts.
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sjmundy says:
wow, another heartwarming family episode from those peace loving paki muslims.
three words: Nuke em all!
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Nicholai_Madias says:
They should pour the same type of acid on her parents in public.
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Groundhog666 says:
Seems fair we need sharia law here. B Hussein Obama may give it to us in his second term.
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audemus says:
I have no idea how to bring people like this into the 21st century.
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frankrl-2009 says:
These comments by religous but ignorant Muslims
remind me of the comments of Captain Calli during the Vietnam war:
"We had to destroy Mylai in order to save it"
Perhaps the women of world would have a better place if we killed those fanatics!
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shitkicker6 says:
You CANNOT change RELIGION.
These cultures have been in existence since the DARK AGES.
It's getting to the point where it may be too late!
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VictorPurinton says:
Pakistan is a despicable country, with a despicable culture and despicable people.

There. It may not be true, but it felt good.
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superdem1 says:
You don't "choose a gay lifestyle" - you are either gay or straight. The children will be either gay or straight. Gay parents are not grooming their children to be gay, and if they did, they would fail. They are simply loving and providing for the kids, who will be what they will be. But yes, the children will NOT be taught to hate, or feel the need to hide what they are, like in many straight families. Every gay person came from a straight family. Every single one. They were certainly not taught to be gay. As a parent you are not protecting a kid by demonstrating bigotry against gays, especially if that kid is gay.
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Ebonyman500 replies:
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Yes, you do "choose to live a gay lifestyle!" You may not neccessarily choose your "feelings" (that is true of hjeterosexuals as well), but you do choose how you will deal with those feelings.
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fastdraw2 says:
Stop with these stories. You're going to make Santorum and Ryan and the rest of the extreme right wing Republican Christians jealous.
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