Lawyers Manual - Unified Court System

From Sex Trafficking to FGM: Emerging Issues 377
Her husband contacted her brothers in Pakistan and informed them that she had
left him for another man. The brothers convened a meeting at which they vowed
to kill her; not long afterward her oldest brother was smuggled into New York City.
As this story illustrates, women targeted by honor killing conspiracies are
not only in danger in their home countries; they can be at great risk here in the
United States. Lawyers representing such victims must work closely with
domestic violence service providers to insure that the women’s locations are
kept confidential. Notifying criminal justice authorities about the threats is
usually a good idea. Pursuing a civil order of protection or pursuing other
family law relief may not be advisable, however, because it will require the
victim to serve the threatening family members and give them access to her
during court dates. In these cases, the victim’s own community poses a danger,
and it is important that she avoid locations where community members may
spot her and report her whereabouts to her family. To protect her safety it may
be necessary for the victim to relocate to another jurisdiction within New York
State or even to another state.
Women and girls threatened with death by their families in their home
countries often have strong claims for asylum because most of the countries
where honor killing is practiced, especially in the Middle East and Pakistan,
have not taken adequate steps to protect victims. In some of these countries
perpetrators of crimes of honor are rarely brought to justice or are prosecuted
but under reduced charges and, upon conviction, receive reduced sentences.
If your client is a victim of an honor killing conspiracy and does not have US
citizenship or permanent resident status, immediately contact an immigration
legal services provider to explore whether she is eligible for immigration law
protection and relief.
Female Genital Mutilation
Female genital mutilation, often known by its acronym, FGM, or as female
circumcision, is practiced in twenty-eight African countries and twelve other
countries in Asia and the Middle East. The World Health Organizations
estimates that as many as 140 million women have been subjected to FGM and
each year two million girls are threatened with it. 22 Although most prevalent in
Muslim countries, female genital mutilation is not a religious practice but a
tradition rooted in tribal culture. In some countries, FGM is also practiced by
Christians, and there are many Muslim countries in which FGM is absent.