United Nations treaty bodies have expressed concerns that honour-related crimes often go unreported, are rarely investigated and usually go unpunished, and that when they are punished the sentences are far less than those for equally violent crimes without the "honour" dimension. Reduced sentences are justified on the basis of the necessity of murdering such women, to defend the misconceived notion of family honour.
Legal status
Non-negotiated soft law
Body
Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences