There are a lot of unanswered questions in this Arab News piece, which I’m quoting in full. The story is remarkable, however, as the first instance I can find in which the Saudi state is acting against the perpetrator of an ‘honor killing’. The piece notes that while the government may seek the death penalty against a man accused of killing two of his sisters, that punishment can be avoided through the family’s forgiveness, something I consider likely. He would still face jail, however, if convicted.
So-called ‘honor killing’ is one of the many fronts in the clash between tradition and modernity in contemporary Saudi life. Making a strong statement here can only serve Saudi Arabia well. It will also put on trial, in a Shariah court, the notion that ‘honor killings’ are somehow a part of Islam.
Man in ‘honor killing’ may face death penalty
Arab NewsRIYADH: A man may face the death penalty if found guilty of gunning down his two sisters as they were being discharged by Social Affairs officials into the custody of their father.
The two women had been caught in suspicious circumstances with two unrelated men on Thursday.
Police believe the brother murdered his two sisters to save the family honor. The names and ages of the young women and their brother were not made public.
According to Riyadh police, the man followed his father to the social protection home and then waited until the women came out. He reportedly shot one sister in the head and discharged three bullets into the other. He then tossed the gun near the bodies. Guards at the Social Affairs shelter quickly apprehended the man.
The man will face the death penalty unless his family forgives him. If he is spared capital punishment he will still face jail time served in the name of the public right.
Women are usually turned over to Social Affairs shelters if they are caught with unrelated men until their guardians can get them out of custody.
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July:08:2009 - 14:23
I predict that the father forgives the son and he gets a terribly short prison sentence for violating the public right, ten years later reduced to five or some such travesty.
I’m against the death penalty, but if the choice is the man gets some extremely short prison sentence then I hope the father loved those two girls enough to let this sicko (presuming he’s guilty, of course) get his head whacked off.
Ideally, IMO, he gets life in a Saudi prison if found guilty of murdering two human beings in cold blood.
After reading this, a Muslim friend of mine joked that the only way to eradicate the evil of murdering women for harming their male relatives’ pride is to wipe out all the people who believe this utter nonsense with DDT.
A little harsh, I know (he said it not me), but it shows that a lot of Muslims really feel that this sense that a woman’s conduct is directly linked to family pride is a form of evil in this world.
July:08:2009 - 14:48
Maybe sending this guy to beheading in an express fashion would send a message that is ‘genuine’ to vile elements like him.
Sure the family have a right to forgive the son.. but there is still the “Ameer Al Belad”(The King, Ruler of the Land) saying in the matter. Will it Benefit the family? no, not at all. But there are times were the law shouldn’t compramise to send a message that it will not hand these matters to the family.
July:09:2009 - 05:00
Can’t happen. Murder is a crime specifically addressed in the Qur’an. If the family (ie the alpha male of the family) forgives the killer, even the king cannot prescribe capital punishment. (This differs from drug trafficking, which has no prescribed punishment in the Qur’an, therefore the state may assign death for that crime.) What the Saudi government can do is, in the public’s right, lock this guy up for the rest of his life. I suppose they could use a Reconciliation Commission to bribe the family NOT to forgive the killer. If they can bribe families to forgive I suppose they can bribe families not to forgive. (They do this when the condemned person is a political issue, like a foreign national who has garnered sympathy back home for his or her plight). That’s basically what blood money is: a bribe, a price tag for justice. It’s terribly un-just, but when in Rome. . .
The ball is in the father’s court, but don’t expect deep coverage of this from the press in Saudi Arabia.
July:09:2009 - 06:30
No, it’s unlikely that the father is going to demand the death penalty. The thought of a reverse Reconciliation Committee had crossed my mind, too, but it’s as you suggest.
Still, the facts that the guy is charged and it was reported are something new, at least to this observer.
July:10:2009 - 09:04
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