This is Not Us         Author: Muna Khan

The article dismantles the layers of apathy, complicity, and toxic cultural norms surrounding gender-based violence (GBV) in Pakistan, triggered by the recent ‘honour’ killing of a Baloch couple. Khan critiques both mainstream and social media’s role in shaping and manipulating public perception—highlighting how, without a viral video, the state likely wouldn’t have acted at all. The media, she argues, often reinforces misogyny through selective coverage, romanticized narratives, and victim-blaming tropes. She denounces the disturbing framing of the woman’s murder as a “dignified death for love” and raises alarm over the Balochistan chief minister revealing the couple’s unmarried status, subtly justifying their murder. Khan calls out the jirga system, failed judiciary, and patriarchal state alliances as enablers of GBV. Her piece stresses the cumulative effect of repeated misogynistic messaging in media and how it warps societal attitudes over time, ultimately demanding institutional reform and cultural reckoning.

Overview:

The article focuses on a brutal gender-based murder in Balochistan and uses it to explore Pakistan’s broader failure to confront systemic violence against women. It critiques state inaction, media irresponsibility, and societal desensitisation to GBV. The writer highlights how media narratives often romanticize or justify such crimes and argues that only viral outrage sparks temporary justice, while institutional mechanisms remain broken.

NOTES:

The article analyzes the systemic enablers of gender-based violence (GBV) in Pakistan, using the recent honour killing of a Baloch couple as a case study to expose the depth of societal complicity. It presents alarming statistics, 32,000 GBV cases and 547 honour killings in 2024, with only one conviction in Balochistan to show how rare justice is. Muna Khan denounces the media’s selective outrage and its romanticizing or moralizing tone that often blames victims and normalizes patriarchal violence. She criticizes the Balochistan Chief Minister for disclosing the couple’s unmarried status, which seemed to justify their murder in the public eye. The piece also condemns the role of the jirga system and a judiciary that routinely fails survivors. By highlighting how cumulative media messaging perpetuates misogyny, the article warns of a society becoming desensitized to brutality. Khan calls for urgent structural reforms and a cultural reckoning to dismantle deeply entrenched misogynistic norms, stressing that denying these injustices as unrepresentative of society is part of the problem itself.

Related CSS Subjects and Topics:

• Pakistan Affairs: Judicial failures, tribal systems, state governance, GBV in provincial contexts
• Current Affairs: Gender justice, media ethics, digital activism, social psychology
• Essay Paper: Patriarchy, media’s influence, justice system reform
• Sociology: Cultural conditioning, role of state in reinforcing inequality

Notes for Beginners:

This article is a strong critique of how Pakistani society and institutions handle violence against women. It says that unless a case becomes viral, no one takes action. The media and state often blame the victims and support traditional systems like jirgas that allow such crimes. Even the mother of the murdered woman agreed with the killing, showing how society itself accepts this violence. The article urges Pakistanis to stop saying “this isn’t us” and instead admit that if it is part of our culture, we must actively work to change it.

Facts and Figures:

• 32,000 GBV cases reported in 2024
• 547 honour killings recorded, 32 in Balochistan
• Only one conviction reported from Balochistan
• Baloch couple murdered in May 2025; state acted only after video went viral

In essence, Muna Khan’s article is a challenge to Pakistani society, media, and state institutions to confront a reality we’ve grown dangerously used to. Until misogyny is rejected in both culture and law, every “this isn’t us” rings hollow.        

Difficult Words and Meaning:

1. Cumulative Effect – Long-term impact built through repetition (Syn: compounding | Ant: isolated impact)
2. Romanticism – Idealizing or glorifying something (Syn: glorification | Ant: realism)
3. Misogyny – Hatred or distrust of women (Syn: sexism | Ant: feminism)
4. Muzzled – Silenced or restricted from expression (Syn: suppressed | Ant: amplified)
5. Moralising – Imposing a judgmental standard on others’ behavior (Syn: preaching | Ant: neutrality)