Honor Crimes—No End in Sight?
In 2009, there have been 18 murders attributed to so-called 'honor crimes,' and the year isn't over yet. Is Jordan really making progress in combating honor killing?
Words by Laith Abou-Ragheb.
IN OCTOBER, A MAN from the Jordan Valley reportedly confessed to using a sword to stab to death his 22-year-old daughter and her unborn child. He said he felt he needed to preserve his honor after the girl became pregnant out of wedlock.
This horrific act wasn’t the only one of its type to have occurred in the Kingdom this year. As JO went to press, 17 other so-called honor killings had been brought to light in the media in 2009.
They included a 30-year-old mother of six who was stabbed to death with a switchblade by her brothers, after she went missing from her husband’s house for 10 hours. And then there was the 16-year-old victim of incestuous rape who was shot nine times in an Amman suburb by her uncle.
Between 15 and 20 women are known to be murdered each year in Jordan in the name of honor, according to the AFP news agency, and some groups and individuals who try to track the crimes say there may be more killings that are missed, or made to look like accidents, suicides or disappearances. Despite numerous high-profile attempts to eradicate the practice, things don’t seem to be improving.
But despite the grim numbers, some campaigners are saying that significant and positive steps have been taken over the past year toward eliminating honor killings.
RANA HUSSEINI, A VETERAN Jordan Times journalist and human rights activist, says she has seen clear signs that all strata of Jordanian society, including important decision makers, are finally beginning to recognize the existence and prevalence of honorkillings, which she says is an important step towards one day finally stamping them out.
“A lot has happened this year in Jordan with regards to this topic. I have noticed several government officials openly speaking about this problem, promising to better protect women and announcing proper statistics of between 20 to 25 [victims per year]. So there is more acknowledgement,” Husseini explained in an e-mail interview with JO from the United States, where she was touring promote her book on the subject, Murder in the Name of Honor.
In July, Abdul Rahman Ibdah, assistant to the secretary general of the Ministry of Religious Affairs, told The Jordan Times: “Islam absolutely rejects the killing of others by individuals. There is nothing called ‘honor crimes’ in Islam.”
In the same article, Justice Minister Ayman Odeh was quoted as saying there should be no exemption for honor crimes under the law.
“A crime is a crime. There is no such thing as honor crimes. All people are equal before the law,” he said. These comforting words weren’t accompanied by any actual changes to the law—but neither are they insignificant, as a great deal depends on the length of sentences judges choose to hand out to convicted offenders.
Husseini thinks that a trend toward tougher sentences for murderers might already be underway.
In July, the Criminal Court designated a special tribunal to try cases of honor killings. And in October, the tribunal delivered 15-year prison sentences to two men for killing their sisters, and refused the families’ requests to drop charges against the defendants.
“These two cases are a precedent in the justice system and show that the leadership, the government and the civil society are all working towards ending these crimes and ensuring better protection for women,” Husseini wrote.
