Category: Women’s Rights Matter

— AFP:  “Man jailed 15 years for honour killing”
— “A Jordanian court sentenced a man to 15 years’ hard labour yesterday after convicting him of killing his daughter for allegedly having sex with her husband before their marriage in 2007.”
— ” ‘The man, in his sixties, knew that his daughter, 25, was involved in an affair with a man, and decided to allow her to marry him,’ a judicial official said.”
— ” ‘But after the wedding he shot her several times. He made sure she was dead, before handing himself in to police and confessing to the crime.’ ”
— “Murder is punishable by death in Jordan but in so-called ‘honour’ cases a court sometimes commutes or reduces sentences, particularly if the victim’s family urges leniency.”

— The Jordan Times: “Man charged with premeditated murder of his younger sister”
— “The Criminal Court prosecutor on Saturday charged a 36-year-old man with the premeditated murder of his younger married sister the previous day in the latest so-called honour murder in the Kingdom, according to official sources.”
— “The 34-year-old victim, who was nine months pregnant, received seven fatal stab wounds to different parts of her body, allegedly inflicted by her brother, one senior official source told The Jordan Times.”
— “The suspect then headed to the nearest police station, handed the knife he allegedly used in the incident to the officer on duty and claimed ‘family honour as his motive’, the source added.”
— “The victim would often leave her husband’s house and he “once caught her committing adultery with another man,’ the source said, citing the suspect’s initial testimony to the police.”
— ” ‘Her husband sent her back to her family’s home two weeks before the incident and she left the house for an unknown destination,’ the source explained.”
— “The suspect came to know of his sister’s whereabouts a day before the incident, the source said, adding that he monitored her movements and approached her while “she was walking in a small alley in the neighbourhood.’ ”
— “He stabbed her to death and then headed to the nearest police station, the source noted.”
— “A postmortem examination conducted by pathologist Ali Shotar from the North National Institute of Forensic Medicine indicated the woman died of internal bleeding as a result of multiple stab wounds to her stomach, chest and back.”
— “Shotar established that the victim was nine months pregnant with a boy, with the foetus also receiving stab wounds, according to the source.”
— “The mother of three children, aged between three and eight years, was the 21st victim of a so-called honour crime this year in the Kingdom. She is the second woman to be killed for reasons related to family honour this month.”

— Jordan woman killed over ‘bad behaviour’: police

— R.E.A.L. reports on Jordan and regular Jordanian “honor killings” of women

— Daily Telegraph: “Queen Rania of Jordan takes on hardliners over honour killings”
— Daily Telegraph reports: “Queen Rania, who regularly appears without head-scarf, let alone hijab, has given her quiet support to women’s rights groups who want to change laws amounting to legal impunity for men involved in honour killings.”
— “Standing against her is another symbol of the country’s attempts to show a progressive face. Jordan’s MPs, who have been given more power to hold the government and royal family to account than in other Arab countries, have shown little enthusiasm for the moves.”
— ” ‘This whole issue is being exaggerated, and the reason behind it is not innocent,’ said Sheikh Hamza Mansour, leader of the parliament’s Islamic Action Front. His coalition of Islamist and tribal representatives has so far blocked an attempt to introduce tougher sentences for men who have killed their sisters and daughters for bringing ‘shame’ on their families.”

— R.E.A.L. reports on Jordan and regular Jordanian “honor killings” of women

— Herald Sun reports: “Men sought ‘to kill woman for adultery'”
— “Spanish police have arrested nine men suspected of seeking to have a woman killed after they accused her of adultery, claiming they were following Islamic law, authorities said on Sunday.”
— “The men were arrested on November 14 and seven have been held in jail, a police spokesman said.”
— “According to police, the woman had been taken in March and held in an isolated house in Valls in northeastern Catalonia.”
— “Authorities say the men set up a court there to judge her for adultery.”
— ” ‘These men had formed a kind of court to apply (Islamic) sharia law,” the spokesman said, adding the woman told authorities she was tried and sentenced to death.”
— “She was later able to escape and report what happened to police.”

Spain to Try 9 Men Over Islamic Death Trial

— Daily Mail reports “Honour crime up by 40% due to rising fundamentalism”:
— “Police have seen ‘honour’ crime surge by 40 per cent due to rising fundamentalism, new figures show.”
— “Honour-based violence, including crimes like murder, rape and kidnap has rocketed in London during the past year.”
— “Reported instances of intimidation and attempts at forced marriage have also increased by 60 per cent.”
— “A report into the scale of the problem by Scotland Yard found there were 161 honour-based incidents recorded in 2007-8, of which 93 were criminal offences.”
— “But in 2008/9 the number of incidents had risen to 256, with 132 being criminal offences.”
— “The latest figures indicate that the trend is continuing, with 211 incidents reported in the last six months until October, of which 129 were offences – more than double the number in the same period last year.”
— “Police define honour crimes as offences motivated by a desire to protect the honour of a family or community.”
— “Diana Nammi, of the Iranian and Kurdish Women’s Rights Organisation, said the group is now dealing with four times more complaints relating to honour than two years ago.”
— “She said: ‘More women are coming forward. They are becoming more aware of their rights in the UK, that there is help available and they feel confident enough to report matters to the police.”
— “‘But I also think cases and violence are increasing.”
— “‘One reason is the rise in fundamentalism. The problem is increasing in communities around the UK.”
— “‘We are seeing a rise not only in honour killings, but also in female genital mutilation and polygamy.'”
— “She added: ‘The rise in Sharia courts is another indication of more fundamental beliefs.”
— “‘There must be more support from the Government to organisations who are working to combat this problem.’ ”
— “The Metropolitan Police also records incidents where no offences has been committed, such as complaints by women that they are under pressure to enter into forced marriages.”
— “Recently there have been a series of horrific attacks linked to ‘honour’.”
— “Detectives are still investigating the death of mother-of-two Geeta Aulakh, 28, who was hacked to death with a sword in Greenford, north west London last month.”
— “An 18-year-old student has been charged with her murder.”
— “In July, a 24-year-old Asian man from Denmark lost part of his tongue and was left blind in one eye when he had acid thrown in his face in Leytonstone. ”
— “Police believe he was attacked over his relationship with a married Muslim woman.”
— “Two men are awaiting trial over the assault.”
— “Campaigners believe honour attacks are on the up due to rising fundamentalism in communities around Britain.”
— “Up to 12 people are murdered every year in the name of honour, and police fear a further 500 people are forced into an arranged marriage or attacked.”
— “One of the most high-profile cases was that of Banaz Mahmod who was murdered by members of her own family after falling in love with a man they disapproved of.”
— “The 20-year-old, who had left an arranged marriage and started a relationship with Rhamat Sulemani, 29, was strangled with a bootlace at her home in Surrey in January 2006.”
— “Her father Mahmod Mahmod, 52, and uncle Ari Mahmod, 50, of Mitcham, were later convicted of the killing after the pair decided she must pay ‘the ultimate price’ for bringing shame on them.”
— “Earlier this year, police were issued with new guidance telling them to assume honour crimes have been committed in more circumstances.”
— “Senior officers anticipated that the move would drive up figures as in many cases only limited information is available or a potential victim refuses to help police.”
— “Detective Chief Inspector Gerry Campbell, of the Metropolitan Police, said: ‘The description of this type of crime is misplaced. There is no honour in these crimes.'”
— “Mr Campbell said the Met had improved its intelligence systems to better identify such crimes.”
— “He said: ‘Ten years ago our knowledge was almost absent but we have worked hard and our knowledge has improved substantially.'”
— UPI: Reports of ‘honor’ crimes rise in London