ERBIL, Jul 18 (IPS) - Shawbo Rauf Ali, 19, clearly did not know that the picnic she was headed for would become a death trap. When she got there, her husband and several other men beat her to death on suspicion of extra-marital relations.
The suspicion arose because of an unknown number that appeared on Shawbo's cell phone.
The men fled after the murder. Two who had British citizenship left for the UK. Kurdish officials have said the British police will now extradite them to Iraq. The other two have been arrested and are awaiting trial.
The murder of Shawbo is among numerous 'honour killings' in the Kurdish region every year. A Kurdistan parliament report has warned of an "increasing rate of violence against women."
In Sulaimaniya province south of Erbil, 24 women have been killed in the first half of this year, says the parliament report. Arrests have been made in only five of these cases.
In 2005, four women were reported killed in the Kurdish region's three provinces Erbil, Sulaimaniya and Dohuk. In 2006 that figure rose to 17. Most of the victims were married women, says a report from the human rights ministry.
These figures do not tell all. Many women are reported to have committed suicide under pressure from male members of the family. In 2005, 22 women committed suicide; in 2006 that number rose to 64, according to police records.
So-called honour killings can be of many kinds. In one case a video recording showed a girl from the Yazidi religious minority in northern Iraq brutally killed by dozens of men for having fallen in love with a Sunni Muslim boy. Yazidis are followers of an ancient Mesopotamian religion.
That killing led to several demonstrations, and has brought violence against women into the spotlight.
"This phenomenon of violence against women has become very dangerous and is on the rise," Yusef Aziz, minister for human rights in the Kurdistan regional government told IPS in his office in Erbil.
Aziz said courts and the police must take tougher measures to curb the violence. But, he said, a long-term strategy needs to be devised "by raising society's awareness of women rights, education, and passing new legislation to better protect women's rights."
People speak of many factors triggering violence against women in northern Iraq.
"Honour has been the prime motivator of violence against women, because in such a patriarchal society women are considered the honour of their men," Hawjin Hama Rashid, a women activist in Erbil told IPS. "I believe that today honour has become a new weapon of mass destruction."
She said authorities have been lenient with men who kill women, and that some of the men are protected by political parties.
But authorities say they have already taken "decisive measures" against honour killings. Under earlier Iraqi laws in place in Kurdistan, men who engaged in honour killing were not charged with deliberate murder. But new legislation has removed the expression 'honour killing', and the accused can now be charged with "deliberate murder" for which punishment is usually life imprisonment or execution.
General amnesties will no more include those convicted of killing women. A new police department has been established to investigate violence against women. Imams are being urged to explain that religion does not condone such acts.
The 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq brought rampant violence to the rest of the country, but in Kurdistan it opened a new era of economic and social openness to the outside world. That has led to more independence among women – and sometimes a price to pay for it.
"In parallel with the social, economic and political changes that have taken place in Kurdistan after the war, the conservative and traditional part of society has resorted to self-protection and putting more restrictions on women," Hama Rashid said.
While women's rights are being debated widely now, few expect a radical change in the near future.
"This phenomenon has not emerged today, and has deep historical roots," Pakhshan Zangana, head of Kurdish parliament's women rights committee told media representatives. "I am not expecting an immediate solution, but measures will lead to a solution gradually." Hama Rashid says that "until the mentality of the individuals is changed regarding the relation between women and honour, we will continue to have violence against women."
Found here.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
8 comments:
Insane, because of a unknown phone number?
This is completely unIslamic. The burden of proof for adultery is almost impossible in Islam. I believe that at least two people must catch the people physically engaged in the act for the accusation to be made.
I have to wonder about the self-esteem of the men in question. Was the guy so low on himself that a strange phone number was justification for murder? It very well have been a wrong number for God's sake.
May God have mercy on her soul.
This is so sad reading this. I am glad that they caught the men who did this and hopefully they will be punished.
What really surprised me was the big increase of suicides of women because of this pressure.
Thanks for the article.
Love and Hugs!
I know, AS. It is crazy. It's funny because we often hear about these honour killings in Jordan, but not much out of N. Iraq.
What we hear about is just the tip of the iceberg. Jordan publicizes them so we know, but the reality is probably less than 1% of those who kill these women are ever punished. And it happens a lot... in Egypt, the Levant and the Gulf.
A shocking example is one of my students in Abu Dhabi. Very very influential family... if I said his name, you would know of him CG. Western educated businessman. His daughter was one of those who was well traveled, articulate in English, hard-working and bright. (for graduation she asked for an apartment building rather than a car... and got it in her name) I would even see her in public without facial veil with hair showing. I assumed that her family must be quite liberal. But as she neared graduation, we were talking and I asked if she was going to marry soon, as that is what usually seemed to happen. She said that she assumed so. I asked if she knew who it would be. She said that she would be informed by her father when he had decided. I asked her if she could say no. (we were alone, so no one could hear us) She said that in her family, her father had final say and since he had already killed two of her sisters, she knew not to disobey. She said it very matter-of-factly and I just merely said that seemed the best choice for her. YIKES!! What could I say...
I heard the next year that she was married off to a scraggly bearded, short dishdasha wearing fundamentalist - who was a foot shorter than her. Just the type that would gladly kill her if she left the house without his express permission and chaperons.
VS
VS - wow that is so sad that she was so matter-of-fact about her 2 sisters being killed. As if it was no big deal. And the men who did this can say that they did it in the name of Islam and to keep honor in the family. To me, this is nothing but culture. And there is no honor in killing anyone.
I think so much can be attributed to tribal culture.
Definitely, it is the tribal culture that considers women the possession of first her father and then her husband. Unfortunately they have twisted Quranic text interpretations and hadith to justify these ideas too.
And this was a father who would fit comfortably onto Wall Street and Bond Street and not be out place... full Western education... a very sophisticated cosmopolitan man.
I didn't really feel that I should ask this girl for any details, but there is a chance that she didn't even know these girls personally. I'm certain that her father had had many wives through the years and thus numerous family compounds.
VS
As a non-muslim I hesitate to add my two bits worth - but it sure does seem like a great way to keep the women under control - they have no choices and no options - if they step out of line they face death. What a great tool. I also know from my reading that this is a very non-Islamic way to do things - it never ceases to amaze me the things that are done in the name of Islam.
Post a Comment