Honor-based violence in Canada and Quebec
Honour-based Violence (HBV) is often invisible, poorly understood, and seldom discussed. Such violence is difficult to address publically because discussion may lead to the social stigmatizing of some immigrant communities. The lack of a common understanding of how to define and describe the problem makes it difficult to determine how to proceed with prevention and intervention in an HBV environment. In this context, there are complex issues not only around identifying and supporting victims but also in denouncing aggressors, who are often family members. The widely publicized Shafia case, in particular, has shaken Quebec and Canadian society and triggered a collective awareness that is necessary to identify measures that can be taken to prevent HBV and protect the victims of such acts. In the years following the Shafia case, laws to protect HBV victims were adopted at both the federal and provincial level. It is still too early to evaluate the effectiveness of these laws, but we can already see that, while these legislative measures were welcomed, it is important to study their effects to determine what results, both positive and negative, they will have.