Thursday, February 14, 2008

Woman to be executed for witchcraft in 2008

Somedays I just feel like curling up into the fetal position and crying. How do we combat all the fear and hatred directed at women? It's fucking everywhere! In every country, every religion. We got politicians (FRICKIN POLITICIANS) in America calling young women "sluts" and lamenting that rape just ain't what is used to be cause women aren't chaste anymore.

And all that looks like NOTHING when compared to what's going on in developing countries.

Rape at epedmic levels in Africa: Women are being gang raped as a tactic of war.

A man in Afghanistan is to be executed for simply reading about women's rights.

And now today I log on to this headline: Saudis to execute woman for witchcraft.

This is what happens when women are demonized through society and religion as "other." I'm so sick of it. It seems to be that this society is terrified of women. This is a country where women cannot drive, rape victims are sentenced to 200+ public lashings, and a woman can't even be seen at Starbucks with a male co-worker for fear of being arrested.

But yes, fear the women, they give you impotence.

Witchcraft is considered an offense against Islam in the conservative kingdom.

In Falih's case, the judges relied on a coerced confession and on the statements of witnesses who said she had "bewitched" them to convict her in April 2006, according to the group.

Falih later retracted her confession in court, claiming it was extracted under duress, and said that as an illiterate woman, she did not understand the document she was forced to fingerprint.

The Saudi court cited an instance in which a man allegedly became impotent after being bewitched by Falih, the rights group said.

An appeals court ruled in September 2006 that Falih could not be sentenced to death for witchcraft because she had retracted her confession. But a lower court subsequently reissued the death sentence for the benefit of "public interest" and to "protect the creed, souls and property of this country," the group's statement said.


Is it just me or is the WOMEN who need protection???

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is just par for the course for the Saudis! You can read more about Saudi Arabia's perverse justice system in "Part 2" here:

www.asecondlookatthesaudis.com
Using charges of "witchcraft," "apostasy" or "blasphemy," all of which are capital offenses under Saudi Arabia's version of Islamic law, are common tools for persecuting religious minorities in the Kingdom (especially Shia and Sufi Muslims), and for settling contract disputes with foreign workers.

The entire Saudi "Justice System" is a grotesque abomination, although, unfortunately, that is the least of our problems with the Saudis.

Anonymous said...

I think it is just you. All people need protection.

Tobes said...

Actually Anonymous-- there are real proven examples of how in conflict situations women do need different types of protection because war crimes like rape disproportionately affect women.

An article for you to check out... if you care... and I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and hope you do:

rhrealitycheck.org/blog/2008/02/11/the-tribe-called-woman