Finally, after three long years of court trials, justice has been served. A model court in Multan sentenced the brother of Qandeel Baloch, Waseem Azeem to life in prison for her murder.
In Pakistan, a life sentence means 25 years in jail. With good behavior, that time can be cut short a few years.
The Multan model court of Judge Imran Shafi had reserved the verdict in the Qandeel Baloch murder case yesterday and today the verdict was released.
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Others implicated in the honor killing besides Waseem Azeem include Qandeel’s other brother Aslam Shaheen, Mufti Abdul Qavi, Haq Nawaz and Abdul Basit. The other six suspects in the case have been acquitted, even though Qandeel Baloch’s parents hold Mufti Qavi responsible for their daughter’s death.
It was Qandeel Baloch’s photographs with Mufti Qavi that sparked social media outrage leading to the woman’s honor killing. Meanwhile, Mufti Qavi remains a free man.
Qandeel Baloch’s Brothers Seek Pardon
Waseem had initially confessed to the crime but later changed his statement. Shaheen was accused of urging Azeem to kill Qandeel. He was arrested in Saudi Arabia this year with the help of Interpol.
Earlier, Qandeel’s father had filed a petition seeking a pardon for his sons but the court turned it down.
The petitioner said that the Anti-Honor Killing Laws (Criminal Amendment Bill) 2015 was passed months after Baloch was murdered and, therefore, cannot be applied to her case.
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Following Qandeel Baloch’s murder and International outrage, paired with Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy winning the Oscar for a documentary on honor killing the Anti-Honour Killing Laws (Criminal Amendment Bill) was passed in 2015.
The legislation prevents families from pardoning the murders in honor killings. Previously these murderers would walk free as they were often the family of the victim, and under Pakistani’s criminal law a family can pardon the murderer of a family member.
Qandeel Baloch Honor Killing
Social media influencer Qandeel Baloch was strangled to death in Multan in July 2016. Her brother Waseem Azeem was accused of her murder. Initially, Waseem Azeem confessed to her murder saying she had “brought dishonour to the Baloch name” with her risqué videos and statements posted on social media.
Following her murder, International media covered the news referring to her as the Kim Kardashian of Pakistan.
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The social media model had been actively doing what she does for ages, but it wasn’t until the Mufti Qavi scandal that it became her undoing. So who’s honor was she killed for? Her own or Qavi’s?
