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 The film, which follows the story of a young woman who
survived attempted murder by her father and uncle after marrying
a man without their approval, was nominated for an Oscar in
January, prompting Pakistan's prime minister to pledge to take a
firm stand against the "evil" practice.
More than 500 men and women died in honor killings in 2015,
according to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan.
Many of these crimes, carried out by relatives who say their
mostly female victims have brought shame on the family, are
never prosecuted, observers say.
"People need to realize that it is a very serious crime,"
Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy told Reuters in an interview in the
southern city of Karachi.
"It's not something that is part of our religion or culture.
This is something that should be treated as pre-meditated murder
and people should go to jail for it."
Obaid-Chinoy's film "A Girl in the River: The Price of
Forgiveness", scheduled to air on HBO in March, tells the story
of 19-year-old Saba from Pakistan's Punjab province.
After marrying a man without the agreement of her family, Saba's
father and uncle beat her, shot her in the face, put her in a
bag and threw her in a river, leaving her for dead.
Saba survived, and set out to ensure that her attackers were
brought to justice.
Her father and uncle were arrested and went to jail, but Saba
was pressured to "forgive" her attackers. That option under
Pakistani law can effectively waive a complainant's right to
seek punishment against the accused, even in the case of
attempted murder.
Altering the law to remove the possibility of "forgiveness"
could help reduce the number of honor killings in Pakistan,
advocates of such a change say.
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 An act that would amend the law across Pakistan was passed by
one house of parliament last year, but did not clear the other
chamber due to delays, said Sughra Imam, who introduced the bill
when she was a lawmaker.
Both she and Obaid-Chinoy hope the attention the film has
received abroad and at home, including from Pakistani Prime
Minister Nawaz Sharif, might help push the amendments through.
"The greatest win of 'A Girl in the River' would be if the prime
minister does take the lead, brings the stakeholders on board and
they pass the (act)," Obaid-Chinoy said.
After the film was nominated in the short documentary category,
Sharif issued a statement congratulating the filmmaker and pledging
his government's commitment to rid Pakistan of the "evil" of honor
killings by "bringing in appropriate legislation."
Obaid-Chinoy has already won an Oscar in the same category for
"Saving Face", a film about acid attacks in Pakistan.
Sharif invited the director to screen the new film at his residence
to an audience of prominent Pakistanis.
Although it is not clear exactly how Sharif proposes to change
existing legislation, Obaid-Chinoy said his reaction was a pleasant
surprise.
"This could be (Sharif's) legacy ... that no woman in this country
should be killed in the name of honor, and if she is, people should
go to jail for it," she said.
"The world is watching."
(Editing by Mike Collett-White)
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