The brother of a Pakistani social media star who was sentenced in 2019 to life in prison for killing a young woman “for honor” in 2016 has been released on appeal in Pakistan, his lawyer announced on Monday.
Read more: Pakistani internet star assassinated by brother
The victim, Kandeel Baloch, was nicknamed Faisia Azeem, a 26-year-old woman with clear eyes, and Pakistani Kim Kardashian.
This star of social networking has always appeared in provocative poses, with elegant hair and makeup, sometimes considered a slander by his most conservative comrades.
Her brother Muhammad Waseem, who proudly admitted to strangling her for her “intolerable behavior”, was sentenced to life imprisonment.
His lawyer, Sardar Mehboob, told AFP that he had been “completely acquitted” by a court in the eastern city of Multan. The court order has not yet been issued.
The murder of a young woman has caused a great deal of shock in Pakistan, where hundreds of women are killed by relatives every year for allegedly tarnishing family honor.
A recent change in Pakistani law has made it possible for a victim of honor killing to have his or her killer forgiven, often by a family member, until the latter is removed from legal action.
But the judge in charge of the file may always choose not to retain the notion of honor in the charges, in which case the killer may always apologize.
First, Kandeel Baloch’s parents promised his son “no apology”, changed his mind and apologized for his action.
The mother’s lawyer said she had “given her consent” to pardon her son, according to the mother’s lawyer, Safdar Shaw.
Muhammad Waseem is expected to be released in the coming days after serving less than six years in prison.
“While Kandeel has been sentenced for violating the ‘acceptable’ behavior of women in Pakistan, Waseem can now be free,” biographer Sanam Maher told AFP. Kandil Baloch.
“After today’s verdict, who killed her?” She added.
Three months after the incident, the Pakistani parliament unanimously passed a law against the atrocity.
