Date: 5 Oct 2022 (Wed)

Time: 12:30 – 14:00

Venue: Cheng Yu Tung Building 209A, CUHK

Speaker: Dr. BAIG Raees Begum (Lecturer, Department of Social Work, The Chinese University of Hong Kong)

Moderator: Prof. CHENG Sea Ling (Associate Professor, Department of Anthropology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong

Abstract: 

As a form of gender-based violence, honour-based violence is generally understood as power exertion by close relatives on victims, mostly women and girls, with the belief that they have brought dishonour and shame to the family and community. Mainstream media and political rhetoric in the West have represented Muslim women and girls as passive victims of honour-based violence. This Orientalist framing, often reproduced in transnational feminist discourses, vilifies cultural Others and perpetuates the impulse to “save Brown women”. As a result, young Muslim women have to grapple not only with the patriarchal forces that shape their everyday life, but also the victimizing discourse that circulate in the global arena.This seminar centers young Muslim women as agents of change in relation to honour-based violence. Based on the narratives of non-Chinese Muslim young women in Hong Kong, the discussion will illuminate how they reclaim the discourse on Islam, honour-based violence, and victimhood.This is also the book launch event for the Guidebook on Honour-based Violence – Experiences from Hong Kong, a consortium of cases on honour-based violence in Hong Kong and possible intervention guidelines for frontline professionals. The guidebook is the product of a 2-year project coordinated by Dr. Raees Baig with funding from Equal Opportunities Commission.

Speaker’s Biography:

Raees Baig (BSW, PhD HKU) is a lecturer in social work at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. She specialises in the study of gender, race and global security in transnational communities. Her published journal articles mainly focus on gender-based violence and women’s empowerment in Muslim communities. Before joining the university, she worked for various local and international organisations, including the United Nations and Amnesty International.In 2018, Raees and her team launched the pioneer project “Muslim Girls and Gender Justice” to explore gender equality issues with non-Chinese communities in Hong Kong. Two books were published under the project, including “Break the Barriers-Inside Stories of Ethnic Minority Muslim Girls in Hong Kong”, and the latest “Guidebook on Honour-based Violence – Experiences from Hong Kong” focuses on imminent situations of honour-based violence in Hong Kong.

Language: English

Registration: https://cloud.itsc.cuhk.edu.hk/webform/view.php?id=13655642