'Honor Killing' Reflects Dark Side of Women's Struggles in Afghanistan

KABUL, Afghanistan, Aug. 2, 2005 -- -- She was a pretty, sophisticated young TV star with the controversial, wildly popular channel broadcast in war-torn Afghanistan. Then her killing sent shockwaves through the media and across the world.

Shaima Rezayee, 24, an MTV-style veejay for Afghanistan's popular independent Tolo TV channel, was slain in her home by a bullet at close range.

For a time, her two brothers were held in custody for what was being called an honor killing. They have since been released. Despite several attempts to reach the Afghanistan Interior Ministry for an update on the case, it remains unclear if an investigation is ongoing.

Rezayee had been the center of controversy in conservative circles in Afghanistan since she tossed aside her burqa and wore Western-style clothing on air, with a headscarf and a swath of her shiny, carefully styled black hair. She was fired as host of "Hop" on Tolo TV in March. The reasons given have ranged from tardiness to complaints from the public over her appearance and demeanor.

Conservative Islamists complained that "Hop" was corrupting Afghan youth. Moreover, Rezayee, who had worried about death threats publicly in a radio show just two months before her death, was criticized because of her controversial behavior, which included her burqa-less attire as well as her on-air banter with her male co-host.

Stories also circulated of the young TV star guzzling alcohol in Kabul restaurants where only foreigners are allowed to drink. And several conflicting stories of boyfriends and affairs were repeated, embellished or simply made up. Rumors swirled after her dismissal from Tolo that she was murdered by her family, killed by hard-liners or kidnapped.

The Paris-based group, Reporters Without Borders, said Rezayee was "the first journalist to be killed in Afghanistan since the end of the war in 2001." Fans packed online chat rooms with dirges on the state of Afghan women's rights even as casual conversations with several Kabul residents revealed a disturbing insight into the Afghan state of mind.

Nearly four years after the fall of the Taliban, the implication of much of the chatter was clear. For all her real or perceived moral misdemeanors, for "dishonoring" her family's reputation, Rezayee got what she deserved.