INQUISITR.COM / News & Politics

Qandeel Baloch Murder: Brother Who Allegedly Killed Pakistani Social Media Star May Avoid Going To Jail

By Nathan Francis
Published on: 16:36 PST, Jul 16, 2016

Qandeel Baloch’s murder has drawn international outrage after the Pakistani social media star was allegedly killed by her brother in what appears to be a so-called “honor killing,” but now the case could be taking an even more controversial twist.

The 26-year-old actress and model was allegedly killed by her brother, Waseem Ahmed Azeemultan, in the country’s Punjab province. Her murder was reportedly an “honor killing,” with her brother reportedly threatening Qandeel on Facebook to stop modeling and making provocative appearances on social media.

“She was suffocated to death by strangulation. It seems to be a case of honor killing but we are investigating it,” said district police chief Azhar Akram via the Times of India.

Baloch, whose real name is Fouzia Azeem, had reportedly written to federal officials asking for protection after the threats, saying her life was in danger.

But despite police identifying Baloch’s brother as her likely murderer, there is a chance he may never see justice. As the Times of India noted, honor killings are particularly hard to prosecute in Pakistan.

“Those who kill for ‘honor’ are almost never punished in Pakistan. A law based on Islamic Shariah allows the family of a victim to forgive a killer, and in these cases the killers are almost always family. So other relatives give their forgiveness, unwilling to see loved ones jailed.”

Baloch had become a huge star on social media in Pakistan and across Asia for her racy posts, and she recently appeared in a video for pop artist Aryan Khan in which she danced provocatively. The Pakistani model had been very well known for some time, the Times of India noted, making headlines back in March when she promised to perform a striptease for Pakistan cricket captain Shahid Afridi if the team beat India in the World T20 Tournament.

Baloch was also known for speaking out in favor of female empowerment, and she often appeared wearing revealing clothing that veered far from the traditional, conservative attire worn by many women in her country.

Her final social media post before being killed conveyed this message, Al Jazeera noted.

“I am trying to change the typical orthodox mindset of people who don’t wanna come out of their shells of false beliefs and old practices,” she posted on Facebook back on July 4.

Now, there is growing outrage over Qandeel Baloch’s honor killing. Activists have held demonstrations in cities across Pakistan, calling these honor killings a problem that has not been properly addressed.

“I’m very shaken up today,” Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy, who won an Oscar for a film about honor killings, told Al Jazeera. “Activists in Pakistan have been screaming hoarse about honor killings; it is an epidemic, it takes place not only in towns, but in major cities as well.”

Others said that Baloch’s murder is a reflection of a society that does not value women and does not take seriously the violence they often face.

“She was killed because she said and did things that made people feel uncomfortable and angry,” said Erum Haider, a Karachi native and PhD student at Georgetown University. “We feel that there is no value to a woman’s life if she doesn’t live in a particular way… in the bounds of what a conservative, patriarchal society expects of you. We’re here to protest that.”

But her death reverberated far beyond Pakistan, with women’s rights groups across Europe and North America speaking out against her murder and the message it sent about the low value of women’s lives in areas where honor killings are prevalent.

Others hope that the murder of Qandeel Baloch could end up having a positive effect on society, prompting the Pakistani government to pass a bill against honor killings.

[Photo by M. Jameel/AP Images]

Share this article: Qandeel Baloch Murder: Brother Who Allegedly Killed Pakistani Social Media Star May Avoid Going To Jail
More from Inquisitr