A Jordanian man shot dead his divorced sister after seeing her photo on his friend's cameraphone, officials said Monday. The unidentified man shot the 31-year-old mother twice in the head Sunday night and then turned himself in to police saying he committed the murder to "cleanse his family's honor." The incident is the fifth example of a so-called honour killing in Jordan this year. Those found guilty usually face sentences of a maximum of one year in jail under Jordanian law. [Source]For those of you who missed the "justice" part of the story, let me reiterate: he shoots his sister dead, and will likely get a year in jail.
Tuesday, April 26, 2005
Justice in Jordan
It's one thing to respect the cultural beliefs and traditions of another person, or group, or nation -- but it's another thing entirely to stand by and let this go on without comment:
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That's certainly interesting, and if you will allow me, I will add to it. I teach at a school with a large number of Hispanic students (most of Mexican descent). Mexicans have a tradition whereby their daughters have the big birthday celebration at 15, after which they are women. A lot of my students were 15, 16, 17, hooking up with guys who were 18, 19, 20, and getting pregnant by them. Often this was done with the consent of the parents, even though in Arizona, any sex between 18-or-older people and those younger is statutory rape, even if both parties consent to it and even if the parents know. It's "tradition" for Mexicans girls to be considered "adults" when they hit 15, but it just leads to a lot of abuse and teenaged pregnancy. It's not as serious as your example, but it's an example of perhaps a time when "tradition" needs to be left behind. Sorry for the rant; your post just made me think of it.
Don't apologize for your "rant" -- I welcome and applaud it.
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