Monday, December 17, 2007

Saudi King Abdullah Pardons Rape Victim


King Abdullah has decided to step in and grant an official pardon to the Saudi gang rape victim who was sentenced to six months in jail and 200 lashes for being alone with a man at the time of the attack who was not related to her.

Her original sentence, as you'll remember was 90 lashes, until she and her lawyer complained about it and appealed. The increased sentence was doubtless regarded as a message to other women in the Kingdom.

Saudi Justice Minister Abdullah bin Mohammed al-Sheik told al-Jazirah newspaper that the pardon does not mean the king doubted the country's judges, but instead acted in the "interests of the people."

"The king always looks into alleviating the suffering of the citizens when he becomes sure that these verdicts will leave psychological effects on the convicted people, though he is convinced and sure that the verdicts were fair," al-Jazirah quoted al-Sheik as saying.

The case had sparked international outrage and garnered lots of unfavorable publicity for the Saudis and the sharia-strict wahabi lifestyle they're busily promoting in the west under our noses. I'm sure that this had a lot more to do with the pardon than any`concern' about suffering.

Of course, it's only a back handed pardon. The Saudi Justice Ministry is still defending the sentence, saying the girl was having an illicit affair with the man.

In that culture,this kind of accusation amounts to total ostracism for the woman at best and a brutal honor killing by the family at worst.If she's supremely lucky, the men of her family will give her permission to leave the country.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think this woman is still at a high risk for an "honor" killing.

And, really, as much as the king's pardon is welcomed, this situation really needs to be addressed on a more generalized level.

Ellen R. Sheeley, Author
"Reclaiming Honor in Jordan"

Freedom Fighter said...

An honor to have you on board, Ellen. I confess to not having read your book,but I have heard good things about it.

As I stated in the piece, this poor woman is indeed at risk for an honor killing...and make no mistake she was `pardoned' simply to address an injustice. I have an extended piece I'm working on in this general area that should be out shortly.

Anonymous said...

lol, you people are outrageous, you constantly lie and lie and lie, this woman was not sentenced to 6 months in jail becasue of just knowing an unrelasted man, she was sentenced to 200 lashes and 6 months in jail for cheating on her husband with a man she barely knew, the lawyer i nthe case outright lied, just like you're lal ldoing, the woman officially ADMITTED to cheating on her husband wit hthis stranger, and at the time she was raped, she was already having sex wit hthe man with whom she committed adultery, like it or not, adultery is illegal in S.A, and as well it should be, so the woman broke the law by cheating on her husband, she could have infected her husbadnm wit hAIDS unknowingly! committing adultery, while married with children, and puting her husband at risk of death, is a major crime, IMO, she should have been sentenced to 12 months, instead of 6, this woman was absolutely no different from a prostitue. fif you people feel adultery is fine and shouldtn be punished, then keep that to yourself or use some logic, this is why so many american women are such sluts nowadays, you make it seem as if its A-OK

Freedom Fighter said...

Hi Y'all,
I let this `Anonymous'comment go through for the rest of you to see the sort of cretins who make comment moderation necessary and to give youall a clear indication of th estate of mind we're dealing with...and why we must fight and win this war.

This is the sort of person who would indeed sentence a woman to prison and 90 lashes for being out without her lord and master, and up the sentence because she dard to complain.

Notice the spittle soaked invective, to the point where this person could barely type straight. Notice th etendency toblame the victime, who of course `got what was coming to her.'

Notice the immediate parroting of the Saudi line, in spite of the fact that the woman herself AND her lawyer said that she only agreed to meet this man to retrieve a photograph ( a major deal in this truly scrwed up society) and only met with him privately when he insisted; even if adultry had occurred, notice the salivating at the thought of beating a woman within an inch of her life for the`crime' of defying her `owner.

Notice the complete glossing over the fact that the woman was gangraped. After all, this person obviouly feels that this `slut' got waht she `deserved'.

I especially want any woman who reads this to take note...just in case you still have any lingering affection for multiculturalism, as preached by the Left.

crowsnest said...

Freedom Fighter,

that's a very good rebuttal of 'anonymous'' rant.

However, I was left wondering as to which political/cultural camp 'anonymous' sat itself in?

The final assertion that

this is why so many american women are such sluts nowadays, you make it seem as if its A-OK

could, I surmise, come from the mouth of either some basket case Islamist, or some basket case moral revivalist on the Right.

Perhaps 'anonymous' could enlighten us all on this matter?