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is a very strict social code in
place on these lands.
Still, there are miscreants and criminals
who wish to break the rules of not just the law, but
of decency and honour everywhere, and you will often
hear of cases where the ancient codes of tribalism overtakes
the rule of law, the considerations of Islam, or the
feudal code of honour itself.
To elaborate further, feudal and
tribal systems often overlap in the rural areas of Sindh,
particularly those bordering Balochistan, because a
lot of Balochs with Baloch tribal traditions have settled
in these areas, assimilating within the earlier Sindh
feudal social order. In the process, they have added
a different dimension to the local ethos. This mixing
of feudalism and tribalism has resulted in the very
worst excesses that we see today in the rural areas:
karo kari, bonded labour, the use of women to settle
scores of honour, and so on. The influence of the tribal
system, mixed with the high levels of illiteracy and
ignorance in the rural areas are a dangerous mix indeed.
Still, when the people of the area
— often poor, illiterate, and ignorant of their
own rights — try to carry out these old customs
(for example, trying to get their children married at
the age of five or bringing the entire family, including
the women, to the landowner’s doorstep to apologize
for a slight), there are few landowners I know who would
not unequivocally refuse to support or approve of these
traditions. Unfortunately, the world of the interior
is dreadfully harsh, but let me state categorically
that I know of no man in my family or in those of other
landowners who would ever encourage or permit the rape
of a woman for any reason.
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