© STR / Agence France-PressMurdered Pakistani social media celebrity Qandeel Baloch
Pakistan's ruling party plans to pass legislation against so-called "honor killings," Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said following the murder of social media celebrity Qandeel Baloch.
The bill will go before a parliamentary committee on Thursday, Maryam Nawaz Sharif told Reuters.
"We have finalized the draft law in the light of negotiations," she said. "The final draft will be presented to a committee of joint session of parliament on July 21 for consideration and approval."
Maryam said that once the parliamentary committee has approved the bill, it will be presented for a vote in a "couple of weeks" before a joint session of parliament. If passed into law, the legislation would remove a loophole which currently allows other family members to pardon a killer.
Maryam, who has become an increasingly influential member of her father's ruling party, said the government wants to pass the law unanimously and has been negotiating with religious parties in parliament.
A senior government official also confirmed to Reuters that all major parties are indeed backing the bill and it is likely to be passed by the joint session of parliament.
"The prime minister is taking a personal interest," a second official and close aide to Sharif added. "You will see in the coming days more will be done, big changes will be announced."
Comment: Pakistan may pass a law banning such horrors, but it will be an uphill battle to change centuries of societal norms. How much effort they put into making those changes will be the real test of how seriously they take this issue.