Pakistan parliament to vote on 'honor killing,' rape lawsISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- Pakistan's law minister on Thursday announced that bills aimed at tackling "honor killings" and boosting rape convictions would soon be voted on by parliament, days after the murder of a social media star by her brother. A 2005 amendment to the law pertaining to honor killings prevented men who kill female relatives pardoning themselves as an "heir" of the victim. Law Minister Zahid Hamid, who chaired the committee, said: "We have plugged all loopholes in the anti-honor killing legislation, which will be put up for approval at a joint sitting of parliament soon." The perpetrators of so-called honor killings — in which the victim, normally a woman, is killed by a relative — often walk free because they can seek forgiveness for the crime from another family member. Rape conviction rates meanwhile are close to 0 percent, largely due to the law's reliance on circumstantial evidence and a lack of forensic testing.

Source: The China Post July 21, 2016 16:24 UTC