Skip to main content

LUP Student Papers

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Heder – tillåtet eller straffbart? Gränsen mellan tillåtna och straffbara hedersrelaterade handlingar som föräldrar vidtar mot sina barn

Schelin, Ella LU (2022) LAGF03 20221
Department of Law
Faculty of Law
Abstract
Girls who grow up in families with strong norms of honor often live lives surrounded by control and restrictions. However, honor is difficult to define and not seldom debated. This creates problems in the legislation process and in law enforcement. Problems arise particularly when it comes to criminalizing and prosecuting the least serious honor-related acts.

This essay examines to what extent honor-related acts, which parents perpetrate against their children, are punishable as violation of integrity offenses. For the examination an honor-staircase is used. It constitutes a step-by step delimitation of signs of an honor-related context and is related to the child’s home situation, school situation and leisure time. The honor-staircase... (More)
Girls who grow up in families with strong norms of honor often live lives surrounded by control and restrictions. However, honor is difficult to define and not seldom debated. This creates problems in the legislation process and in law enforcement. Problems arise particularly when it comes to criminalizing and prosecuting the least serious honor-related acts.

This essay examines to what extent honor-related acts, which parents perpetrate against their children, are punishable as violation of integrity offenses. For the examination an honor-staircase is used. It constitutes a step-by step delimitation of signs of an honor-related context and is related to the child’s home situation, school situation and leisure time. The honor-staircase consists of four steps in which different honor related acts fit. Together, the first two steps constitute central characteristics of living in an honor-related context, the first three steps imply a high probability of honor-related norms and restrictions, and the fourth step comprise additional honor-related acts that are not necessary to be considered living in an honor-related context. The essay also examines how children's and parents' rights in custody related issues affect the criminal law assessment of honor-related acts, which parents perpetrate against their children.

The essay finds that punishable acts rarely, or never, occur when solely central characteristics of living in an honor-related context can be identified. When a high probability of honor-related norms and restrictions can be identified, punishable acts occur to a somewhat greater extent. Acts attributed to the fourth, unnecessary step of the honor-staircase are often punishable. Furthermore, it appears that the children's and parents' rights in custody issues can affect the criminal law assessment. However, the rules of family law are unclear. It is relatively unproblematic in family law, which is a civil law area, but since family law affects criminal law, the principle of legality in criminal law should limit the punishable area to a significant extent. (Less)
Abstract (Swedish)
Flickor som växer upp i familjer med starka hedersnormer lever ofta liv kantade av kontroll och begränsningar. Hedersbegreppet är emellertid svårdefinierat och inte sällan omdiskuterat. Detta skapar problem vid lagstiftning och rättstillämpning. Problem uppstår inte minst beträffande att kriminalisera och lagföra de minst allvarliga hedersrelaterade handlingarna.

I uppsatsen undersöks i vilken utsträckning hedersrelaterade handlingar, som föräldrar vidtar mot sina barn, är straffbara som fridskränkningsbrott. För undersökningen används en hederstrappa som utgör en stegvis avgränsning av tecken på ett hedersrelaterat sammanhang och anknyter till barnets hemsituation, skolgång och fritid. Hederstrappan består av fyra steg där olika... (More)
Flickor som växer upp i familjer med starka hedersnormer lever ofta liv kantade av kontroll och begränsningar. Hedersbegreppet är emellertid svårdefinierat och inte sällan omdiskuterat. Detta skapar problem vid lagstiftning och rättstillämpning. Problem uppstår inte minst beträffande att kriminalisera och lagföra de minst allvarliga hedersrelaterade handlingarna.

I uppsatsen undersöks i vilken utsträckning hedersrelaterade handlingar, som föräldrar vidtar mot sina barn, är straffbara som fridskränkningsbrott. För undersökningen används en hederstrappa som utgör en stegvis avgränsning av tecken på ett hedersrelaterat sammanhang och anknyter till barnets hemsituation, skolgång och fritid. Hederstrappan består av fyra steg där olika hedersrelaterade handlingar passar in. De två första stegen utgör tillsammans centrala kännetecken på att leva i ett hedersrelaterat sammanhang, de tre första stegen innebär stor sannolikhet för hedersrelaterade normer och begränsningar och det fjärde steget utgör ytterligare hedersrelaterade handlingar som inte är nödvändiga för att anses leva i ett hedersrelaterat sammanhang. Vidare undersöks hur barns och föräldrars rättigheter i vårdnadsfrågor påverkar den straffrättsliga bedömningen av hedersrelaterade handlingar som föräldrar vidtar mot sina barn.

Av undersökningen framkommer att straffbara handlingar sällan eller aldrig förekommer när det endast föreligger centrala kännetecken på att leva i ett hedersrelaterat sammanhang. Vid stor sannolikhet för hedersrelaterade normer och begränsningar förekommer straffbara handlingar i något större omfattning. Handlingar som omfattas av det fjärde icke nödvändiga steget av hederstrappan är ofta straffbara. Vidare framkommer att de barns och föräldrars rättigheter i vårdnadsfrågor kan påverka den straffrättsliga bedömningen. De familjerättsliga reglerna är emellertid oklara. Det är relativt oproblematiskt i familjerätten som är ett civilrättsligt område, men då familjerätten påverkar straffrätten torde den straffrättsliga legalitetsprincipen begränsa det straffbara området i betydlig omfattning. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Schelin, Ella LU
supervisor
organization
course
LAGF03 20221
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
familjerätt, straffrätt
language
Swedish
id
9080804
date added to LUP
2022-06-28 11:17:35
date last changed
2022-06-28 11:17:35
@misc{9080804,
  abstract     = {{Girls who grow up in families with strong norms of honor often live lives surrounded by control and restrictions. However, honor is difficult to define and not seldom debated. This creates problems in the legislation process and in law enforcement. Problems arise particularly when it comes to criminalizing and prosecuting the least serious honor-related acts.

This essay examines to what extent honor-related acts, which parents perpetrate against their children, are punishable as violation of integrity offenses. For the examination an honor-staircase is used. It constitutes a step-by step delimitation of signs of an honor-related context and is related to the child’s home situation, school situation and leisure time. The honor-staircase consists of four steps in which different honor related acts fit. Together, the first two steps constitute central characteristics of living in an honor-related context, the first three steps imply a high probability of honor-related norms and restrictions, and the fourth step comprise additional honor-related acts that are not necessary to be considered living in an honor-related context. The essay also examines how children's and parents' rights in custody related issues affect the criminal law assessment of honor-related acts, which parents perpetrate against their children.

The essay finds that punishable acts rarely, or never, occur when solely central characteristics of living in an honor-related context can be identified. When a high probability of honor-related norms and restrictions can be identified, punishable acts occur to a somewhat greater extent. Acts attributed to the fourth, unnecessary step of the honor-staircase are often punishable. Furthermore, it appears that the children's and parents' rights in custody issues can affect the criminal law assessment. However, the rules of family law are unclear. It is relatively unproblematic in family law, which is a civil law area, but since family law affects criminal law, the principle of legality in criminal law should limit the punishable area to a significant extent.}},
  author       = {{Schelin, Ella}},
  language     = {{swe}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Heder – tillåtet eller straffbart? Gränsen mellan tillåtna och straffbara hedersrelaterade handlingar som föräldrar vidtar mot sina barn}},
  year         = {{2022}},
}