A police investigation in underway after the death of a British women on Wednesday in an alleged family 'honour killing' in Pakistan. The Foreign Office have confirmed the death of Samia Shahid, 28, a beauty therapist from Bradford, who at the time was visiting Pandori Village, her ancestral village in northern Punjab.
Shahid’s husband, Syed Mukhtar Kazam, fears that his wife was killed by her family, who he says were opposed their relationship, based on him being an 'outsider.' Shahid had married Kazam in September 2014, after leaving her first husband, a first cousin from their village in Pakistan.
So-called honour killings (although the term itself needs revising) are nothing new in Pakistan. Shahid’s case has been raised by Bradford Labour MP, Naz Shah, who demanded attention to the cause in a letter to Pakistan’s prime minister Nawaz Sharif. She wrote: ‘This idea that you can take your daughter to Pakistan and kill her as you can literally get away with it must be eradicated.’ According to reports in Pakistani media, Shah wants the authorities in Pakistan to commission an independent autopsy on the buried body.
Tragically, hundreds of women are killed this way in Pakistan every year - often by family members when a woman is fleeing a forced or arranged marriage. These murders are also often ignored by police and prosecutors. After countless years of activism, Pakistan’s parliament are now considering legislation that looks to tackle the killings. The anti-honour killing bill is due to be presented in front of a joint sitting of Pakistan's Senate and the National Assembly as early as August 9.
No arrests have currently been made in Shahid’s case and an initial post mortem report did not reveal the cause of death. Mohammad Aqeel Abbas, the station house officer for Jhelum district, said a post-mortem was carried out immediately after Shahid died and there were no visible injuries or signs of violence on her body.
Her family strongly deny claims of involvement in her death. Her father, who is in Pakistan, told the *Guardian*that: ‘My daughter was living a very peaceful and happy life. She had come to Pakistan on her own and was not under any pressure from her family,’ claiming that Kazam’s allegations were ‘lies’.
Kazam, who lives with Shahid in their home in Dubai, was told that his 28-year-old wife had suffered a fatal heart attack, and was buried soon after in her family’s local village. Mohammed Ali, a cousin in Bradford who first informed Kazam of her death, confirms the news: 'This is a terrible tragedy but she died of natural causes.' 'The family did a postmortem. There’s no evidence whatsoever of murder.'
He himself disputes Kazam’s claim of marriage, referring to him as 'that boy, Samia’s so-called husband'.
Kazam told the Guardian that; ‘I am sure my wife is killed by the family,’ Kazam said. ‘She was healthy. And she had no disease,' he said. ‘I believe she was killed because her parents were not happy with our marriage.’
A Foreign Office spokesman confirmed Shahid’s death, saying: 'We are providing support to the family of a British national who has died in Pakistan, and are in contact with the local authorities to seek further information.'
The news of the death of Samia Shahid comes after the murder of Pakistan womens-activist and social media star Qandeel Baloch who was drugged and murdered on Friday 15th July by her brother in her family home for bringing dishonour to her family.
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.