“This is totally against Islam and anyone who does this must be punished and punished very severely. Changing the law is something that needs to be done at the earliest possibility.” – Pakistani prime minister, Nawaz Sharif.

In reaction to the death and widespread outrage over the killing of 26-year-old Pakistani social media celebrity, Qandeel Baloch, the government is making moves to end ‘honour killings.’ Yesterday, Maryam Nawaz Sharif, the daughter of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, said the ruling party plans to pass the long overdue legislation against honour killings. The said bill will be presented to parliament today.

Born Fauzia Azeem, Baloch was drugged and strangled to death by her brother for posting sexy, raunchy photos and videos on social media, something considered abominable in a deeply conservative Muslim country like Pakistan. In his defence, Baloch’s brother, Waseem Azeem, said he killed her for the honour and dignity of his family, claiming that her “shameful” online presence had become unbearable. Waseem told the Associated Press, “I was determined either to kill myself or kill her.”

According to this op-ed by Pakistani filmmaker, Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, hundreds of women – Pakistan’s Human Rights Commission says thousands – are killed yearly by family members. Most times, this is done over the most ridiculous reasons, claiming they brought dishonour to their families. “Almost every day, you read about a woman who has been killed for ‘falling in love’ or ‘running away from home’ or ‘seeking a divorce’ and, in most cases, the only thing to blame is a man’s insecurity.”

A controversial Pakistani law allows for the victim’s family to forgive the ‘honour killer,’ and this often results in cases being settled with the payment of “blood money.” However, the new anti-honour killing law pending parliamentary approval, seeks to remove this provision. As reported by Reuters, Sharif said the government who has been negotiating with religious parties in parliament, wants a unanimous approval of the law.

“We have finalised the draft law in the light of negotiations,” she told Reuters in an interview. “The final draft will be presented to a committee of joint session of parliament on July 21 for consideration and approval.” Soon enough, the bill will be presented before a joint session of parliament for a vote once it is approved by the parliamentary committee.

However, it is very likely that the new law could face certain opposition and trigger confrontation with religious conservatives as it goes against the sharia-inspired law of family pardon for an honour killer. “Islamic law and the Koran say that the right to forgive or punish lies first and foremost with the victim’s family,” the spokesman of the Council of Islamic Ideology, Inam Ullah, told Reuters. “So if this bill is trying to completely take away that right from the family, then of course that is against Islamic teachings. The state cannot completely take away that right from the family.”