Final witness testifies at Kingston murder trial
Posted Dec 6, 2011 05:24:03 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The final witness has testified at the honour killing trial in Kingston which sees Mohammed Shafia, his second wife and his son facing four first degree murder charges each in the deaths of four women.
The women were Shafia’s three daughters and his first wife in a polygamous marriage.
The prosecution is framing this case as three girls being raised in a western culture but under the restraints of strict Afghan culture.
The girls wanted to wear make up, and western fashions, and date boys, which all flew in the face of their father’s demands.
University of Toronto Professor Shahrzad Mojob is an expert in middle eastern honour and honour killings and says the practice is a man’s control of a woman’s body.
While honour killings are the purvey of men in Arabic cultures, Mojob also testified that quite often mother’s have participated by creating the environment or by not preventing the killing.
The defence begins it’s arguments on Thursday and it’s expected at some time Mohammad Shafia will take the stand in his own defence.
