World Defends Sudanese Rape Victim Condemned to Death

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An online campaign is gaining momentum to defend a 19-year-old Sudanese woman sentenced to death for murdering her husband, who she says raped her after she was forced to marry him. The story of Noura Hussein received international attention when the details of her case circulated on social media and via an online petition on Change.org. In 2016, Hussein attempted to escape her arranged marriage, but her in-laws forcibly restrained her as her husband raped her to consummate their vows. Sarah el-Hasan, a rights activist supporting Hussein’s case, told al-Jazeera:

She wouldn’t have sex with the man; he recruited some of his cousins and brought them home where they held her down while her husband raped her.

Her lawyer Ahmed Sebair said:

The following night, when her husband tried to rape her again, Hussein stabbed him with a knife and killed him.

On Thursday, Hussein’s supporters stood behind her in the Omdurman courtroom as the judge condemned her to death by hanging after her husband’s family refused financial compensation for the killing, demanding instead that she face execution. Seif Magango, of Amnesty International said:

The death penalty is the ultimate cruel, inhuman, and degrading punishment, and to apply it to a rape victim only highlights the failure of the Sudanese authorities to acknowledge the violence she endured. Marital rape… despite being a taboo… is still a common occurrence in Sudanese society.

Nahid Gabralla is the director of NGO SEEMA, which assists gender-based violence victims and survivors. Gabralla said:

In my work, I’ve seen other cases like this. The suffering of Sudanese women happens all the time. The case of Noura is different. She stood for her rights.

Magango said:

This girl is a victim. She was married off at the tender age of 16 against her will and she stood up against that and refused to be forced into marriage. The death that took place was an act of self-defence and it’s a travesty of justice that she is at risk of being murdered, being killed by the state, only for defending herself and that is something that needs to be corrected and this death penalty, this death sentence, must be revoked.

Hussein’s lawyers have just under two weeks to appeal the conviction.

12 May 2018

TeleSur

https://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/World-Defends-Sudanese-Rape-Victim-Condemned-to-Death-20180512-0013.html

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13-Year-Old Boy Killed by Deeply Held Religious Beliefs of His Parents

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A friend sent me this as a “cut n’ paste”. I did fact-checking and I’m sorry to say that this story is true in all particulars (see this and this and this).

BMD

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The parents of 13-year-old Alex Radita are on trial for murder in the death of their son. Members of the Romanian Pentecostal Church in Calgary AB, the parents had deeply held religious beliefs against seeking medical treatment for their son. Alex had Type 1 diabetes and other illnesses. His parents stopped his treatments. They declared that if he could find a way to survive without insulin and dietary regulation, he’d live… if not, they’d know that his death was God’s will. By the time of his death, Alex weighed less than 40 pounds. After his death, his family and members of the Pentecostal assembly prayed over him for some hours, expecting that God would raise him from the dead. Only after these prayers were over did they call 911 to report his death.

SOME DEEPLY HELD RELIGIOUS BELIEFS CAN BE FATAL, USUALLY TO THE INNOCENT. Remember the hieromonk who killed a young woman in northern Romania a few years ago by trying to exorcise the schizophrenia out of her. Yes, there are limits on religious freedoms, and well there should be, since we see occasions when the deeply held religious beliefs of some groups turn out to result in homicide. It does matter if it is somewhat rare for this to happen in North America, even once is too often. Alex Radita was a human sacrifice to his parents’ deeply held religious beliefs. He should be alive now and looking forward to his 14th birthday. It would be useful for someone with the time and ability to research how often incidents of this have occurred during the last century. Take into account the forbidding of blood transfusion by certain religious groups (based clearly on Scripture) and the refusal to turn to medical doctors by some others. In addition, we should review the episodes of death due to exorcisms and publish them along with the others.

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Be careful with the term “sincerely-held religious beliefs”… you could end by justifying violence and bigotry. This isn’t an isolated case, sadly enough… be especially wary of homeschoolers and those who advocate physical punishment of children… they cloak evil under the guise of “Christianity”. All too many of them are “nice” and “respectable” people, so externalities often cloak a pietistic and smarmy apologia for violence and rightwing indoctrination. Have a care… we live in evil times; some of the worst sorts justify their ill will and crank notions with saccharine religious platitudes. Our children suffer…

BMD

11 October 2015. Translated Russian Demot… International Girls’ Day

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10 March 2015. A REAL Man Never Hurts a Woman… You Can Learn a Lot From a Cossack

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A wife, a daughter, and a husband… a family. Not all families are dysfunctional. Let’s celebrate the good as we excoriate the bad…

BMD