I think this is a
really important topic to discuss in our community. As a Canadian-born Sikh I
was interested in being able to understand the origins of the concept of izzat
and how it continues to affect us today. I've been working on this post for a while now and my heart goes out to all those women who have died due to honour-based violence.
Most of us are
aware of the pull between Punjabi values, Sikh values, and western values as we
try to make sense of conflicting beliefs. I remember sitting in a group of my
peers and trying to explain that even though it’s against Sikh values to drink
alcohol, you can’t assume your patient doesn’t drink because of the differences
between cultural values and religious values. The book Emotions and Religious Dynamics describes this triangle of conflicting
values very well, and goes on to describe Izzat as coming from the “Punjabi
culture” part of that triangle (1).
In terms of Sikh
religion, “A brief guide to Honor Based Violence” by the Metropolitan Police
Sikh Association did a really excellent job of describing the religious
context. I’ll quickly summarize what they have written. Guru Nanak Dev Ji lived
at a time when women were considered inferior, however he made a huge cultural
shift by encouraging equality via ending discriminatory cultural practices like
sati, dowries, female infanticide, etc (2). As described by Sikhpolice.org,
Guru Nanak “redefined honour as self-appraisal in the eyes of Divine-Nature.
Guru Nanak advocated that it was immortal to enslave or force individuals to
act against their will, and that individuals should be empowered with ethical
teachings helping them to police their own behavior (as opposed to allowing
themselves to be policed by others, such as family or the community, whose
subjective laws go against what is natural)”(3). Therefore, the concept of
using honor to discriminate against and commit violence against women is
entirely against Sikhi and falls into the realm of Punjabi culture.
This brings us
to the topic of honour killings. Honour killing is defined as “the premeditated
murder of a relative (usually a young woman) who
has allegedly impugned the honor of her family”(4). Since I’d only ever
heard about this happening in Sikh and Muslim families, I was really surprised
to learn that honor killing happens in families of various cultures and
religions (5). Honour killings have happened in Latin America, Europe, the Middle
East, and South Asia (5), dating back to the times of ancient Rome (6). The
concept of honor killings is based on patriarchy (5). “The power dynamics of patriarchy
reduce women to their reproductive potential, and in the process deny them
agency as human beings. The preservation of a
woman's chastity and fidelity, through segregation and control, becomes the
responsibility of the men to whom she ‘belongs.’ The concept of women as
property and honour remains deeply entrenched in the socio-cultural fabric of
many countries. As a result, many individuals, including women, support this
ritual” (5). Common reasons for honor killings therefore include:
premarital sex, rape, adultery, inappropriate dress, etc (7). The book Emotions and Religious Dynamics states
that for the Punjabi culture “Crucial to the maintenance
of izzat is the conduct, actual and perceived, of women, and of unmarried
daughters in particular. For women the correlates of izzat are the expectation
of modesty, the fear of disgrace or shame (beizzati)… and the necessary
suppression of romantic love, especially when aroused by a member of a lower
caste” (1). In the context of Sikhi many would use lust as a reason for honor
killing, but as stated by Sikh Polis “the Sikh view is to manage lust through a
loving partnership and spiritual connection with divine power, whilst shunning
the company of those who subscribe to the honour-mindset” (3). No where did the
Gurus ever teach us to be killing our daughters and daughter-in-laws in the
name of honour- it was clear that our sword is to be used as a last resort in
defense only defense only (8).
I want to
extend this idea of izzat now to sexual reputation and how it affects females
in Sikhi. From everything above, it’s obvious that the control of a woman’s
sexuality in Punjabi culture happens through the concept of izzat. Sexual
experiences- consensual or not, create a bad reputation for her. This creates
an environment in which, if a woman is raped, she is deemed damaged/devalued,
and becomes ostracized from her community in the time that she needs the most
support. Males have the power to use her reputation against her in cases of
sexual assault, abuse, or harassment, which is used to keep the victim from
speaking out. It’s not a question of being believed anymore, even if she was
believed to be a victim of sexual violence rather than an active participant in
a consensual sexual encounter, she carries the same shame and dishonor. In researching about this topic, I spoke
to a sexual assault counselor about these crimes. She told me that it is
well-known to men in the community at large (not just the Sikh community) that
Sikh women will not speak out due to issues of family honor and therefore are more
vulnerable as targets for sexual offenders. It pained me to hear this reality- that
we have propagated a cultural environment that causes our girls to be targeted,
and that they are suffering in silence. We have smothered their power to speak
out by making it about honor, when they are the innocent victims of a crime.
I
think it’s really important for each of us to not only educate ourselves, but
also teach our children the human rights and ethics that our Gurus have taught
us, and end the cultural practices that go against them. As a community we need
to make it unacceptable to be discriminating against women and rather treat
women as free individuals who have the power to make their own decisions. Let’s
give our Kaurs a voice.
REFERENCE
1 Warne, Nathaniel. Emotions And Religious Dynamics. E-book. https://books.google.ca/books?id=o_soDAAAQBAJ&pg=PT54&lpg=PT54&dq=sikh+family+izzat&source=bl&ots=ZNew-qPZrk&sig=yF5AQ4-eaTk9z7Wg4qCBvTrAJzE&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiBx4jT55zNAhVhHGMKHXtlBZAQ6AEITjAK#v=onepage&q=sikh%20family%20izzat&f=false
2 http://ksghauser.harvard.edu/index.php/content/download/70240/1253770/version/1/file/Honour_Violence_Booklet.pdf CHECK
THIS OUT IF YOU HAVE TIME!
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