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In both cases, sources within Canada’s South Asian communities fear the murders carry the distinctive marks of honour killings. In both cases, the husbands turned themselves into police and have been charged with first-degree murder.

Honour killings are different from standard cases of domestic violence in that the killings are carried out in order to “cleanse” a family name of perceived dishonour. The practice remains relatively rare in Canada, although experts agree there is an “upward trend” in Canadian instances of honour-based violence. Between 2002 and 2010, Canada experienced 13 cases of honour-based murders, according to a 2010 report for the federal government by Amin Muhammad, a psychiatrist at Memorial University in St. John’s, N.L.

Ms. Shahdady was raised in Canada, but in her late teens was sent to Pakistan by her father. At 18, she was wedded to Mr. Rustam in an arranged marriage. Due to complications in a subsequent pregnancy, she came back to Canada to give birth. Medical problems with her son compelled her to stay in Canada for another year so he could receive a heart transplant. In May, Ms. Shahdady sponsored her husband to immigrate to Canada.

Community members report that Ms. Shahdady was initially happy with her husband’s arrival, but the two quickly began to clash. “She saw her friends in the community going to college, university, getting good jobs – and that’s the kind of independent life she wanted for herself and for her child,” says Zaffar Baloch, a friend of the family, which comes from the Baloch region of Pakistan. “This husband, people say he was against her going to school.”