Human Rights & The Preservation of Culture

Hello to all UNPians,

I am currently taking a course called "Human Rights & Democracy in Asia" and we are learning much in regards to human rights violations in places like China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, as well as parts of India. As i was coming home today, i was on the bus and i was thinking of how human rights violations in india are often attributed to maintaining culture.

For example, many of you have probably heard of stories where daughters are killed by their fathers or brothers or uncles, because the daughter did something which was considered shameful for the family, such as finding a boyfriend. In such a case where the father kills his daughter, this has been referred to as "Honour Killings." Meaning the daughter is killed so as to maintain family honour in the eyes of society.

Now of course democratic thought and the Western world view such "honour killings" as a direct violation of human rights and thus they intervene in societies like India and China to stop such violations and murders from occuring. However, the traditional countries in Asia argue that the Western world is invading their country because honour killings are a way to preserve culture and therefore they do not view it as a human rights violation, they view it as something that helps to keep discipline and order within the family.

I would like you all to share your views on this. Do you think the western world should impose their ideas of what human rights should be on traditional countries? Or do you think such countries should be able to decide what constitutes as a human rights violation by themselves? Is it fair for the Western world to be telling Asian countries what is right and what is wrong? Because as we all know, there is no right and wrong in this world. Everything depends on how each individual percieves what is good and what is bad. What is good to one person can be bad to another.

So please comment on this topic, i would love to know how you all feel about this.

Love,
Pink Puma

pink puma said:

For example, many of you have probably heard of stories where daughters are killed by their fathers or brothers or uncles, because the daughter did something which was considered shameful for the family, such as finding a boyfriend. In such a case where the father kills his daughter, this has been referred to as "Honour Killings." Meaning the daughter is killed so as to maintain family honour in the eyes of society.

Now of course democratic thought and the Western world view such "honour killings" as a direct violation of human rights and thus they intervene in societies like India and China to stop such violations and murders from occuring. However, the traditional countries in Asia argue that the Western world is invading their country because honour killings are a way to preserve culture and therefore they do not view it as a human rights violation, they view it as something that helps to keep discipline and order within the family.

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nice thread pink....well minu tah lagda esda main reason sadi india di male dominating society hai, jethe mundian nu kdi kuj nahi keha janda....te je kudi koe galti kar dethe ohnu tahne maar maar le loki appi maran lai majboor kar dinde ne.......te jetho yah Honour killing di gall hai, es toh burra kamm minu nahi lagda koe hor hovega.....main tah ohna lokkan nu insan nahi kahanga....

jas_sandhu said:

nice thread pink....well minu tah lagda esda main reason sadi india di male dominating society hai, jethe mundian nu kdi kuj nahi keha janda....te je kudi koe galti kar dethe ohnu tahne maar maar le loki appi maran lai majboor kar dinde ne.......te jetho yah Honour killing di gall hai, es toh burra kamm minu nahi lagda koe hor hovega.....main tah ohna lokkan nu insan nahi kahanga....

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thank you ji for your response

thusi bilkol teek gall keeti, vi jehra banda ek hor nu marr da, that is definetly murder and its wrong without a doubt. But fer jehre gorreh deshan diyan values aa (human rights) oh saade india and hor traditional societies teh impose honiyan chi diyan k nahi?

pink puma said:

thank you ji for your response

thusi bilkol teek gall keeti, vi jehra banda ek hor nu marr da, that is definetly murder and its wrong without a doubt. But fer jehre gorreh deshan diyan values aa (human rights) oh saade india and hor traditional societies teh impose honiyan chi diyan k nahi?

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eh kamm bda okha....piunjab vich tah bhut okha...hun je tuh khe kisi de father ne apne munde de thapad mariya,,,,thapad tah chal fir mamuli ji gall hai..asi ve bde khade ne chotte hunde...ja changi tah chitter laye ne kisi galti karke.....fir munda jake police station report kardeve....ethe ta fir roj pange peya karne...thhane walee tah pagal hi ho jannge ...ohnu nu tah pehla hi surat tekane nahi hundi ...report tah oh msah likhde. .......sara sys change karna pena...fir hi kuj ho sakda..

Honor Killing di gal challi hai, I'll like to make some comments....the main reason behind such behaviors or actions is illiteracy, because many of the people in the rural India are uneducated, they start beleive in such baseless and false beliefs that if a girl or someone else is sacrificed you'll be blessed with a boy ...as and when ppl get educated thy will stop believing in such beliefs, which might in turn bring a decline in Honnor Killings and it will eventually reduce the cases of Human Rights viloations...

As far as honour killing is concerned it should be banned
and western countries should be followed
after all u r taking the life of an individual....

but at the same moment there is "mercy killing" which is banned in india but is still prevalant in some western countries...
so how can one trust those countries on leading a pathway to stophonour killings....

would anybody else like to comment?