Tegen mijn wil

The Dastak relief centre in Pakistan houses women who have fled from their own families. In many cases, they are victims of abuse, or they have been married off by their parents to a man they did not want. The women are in danger of dying, because in this Pakistani community divorce is a disgrace to the family. A woman who leaves her husband is guilty of tarnishing her family’s honour. She is accused of adultery or other lies and runs the risk of being killed as a way of avenging the family honour. Kubra, a 28-year-old woman to whom this film is dedicated, was such a woman. She was ill-treated, escaped to the sanctuary and was persuaded by her family to come back home. Within three weeks of her homecoming, she was murdered. The filmmakers go to the village, but are sent away by Kubra’s father. The murderer will probably come away scot-free. Another runaway was married off to a man of 70 when she was 14 years old, and yet another was set on fire by her husband after 18 years of marriage. After Kubra’s death, the women in the shelter have become even more afraid. Despite the help that is offered to them by a collective of lawyers, they have nowhere to go.