{"id":287,"date":"2019-09-12T20:51:05","date_gmt":"2019-09-12T23:51:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/?p=287"},"modified":"2019-09-12T21:57:47","modified_gmt":"2019-09-13T00:57:47","slug":"where-are-the-voices-of-our-radical-feminists-to-denounce-honour-killing-abroad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/2019\/09\/12\/where-are-the-voices-of-our-radical-feminists-to-denounce-honour-killing-abroad\/","title":{"rendered":"Where are the voices of our radical Canadian feminists to denounce Honour killing abroad?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
Where are the voices of our radical feminists to denounce honour killing abroad?<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

This beautiful young woman\u2019s name is Israa (Ghrayeb). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Israa was a make-up artist from a village near Bethlehem. She died a month ago after being rushed to the hospital with severe wounds. Her family members killed her\u2026in the name of honour (simply because of a picture on Instagram!).  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/world\/middle-east\/israa-ghrayeb-palestine-honour-killing-relatives-charged-bethlehem-a9102926.html<\/a>\n(English article).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Three male relatives of Israa have been\nofficially charged. Will they go to jail? And if so, for how long? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Will their story serve to make others whose brains may become blinded by the same murderous madness stop to reflect: Enough senseless tragedies in the name of a cultural attachment to an ideological concept like family honour. Fruitful coping efforts are possible when we allow our rationality and (psychological) flexibility to operate. Yes, it is possible to learn to solve conflicts without resorting to crimes. Some ingredients that can help deal with bursts of anger may be simple common sense, love, forgiveness, and humour. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since the beginning of 2019, 19 Palestinian women\ndied in cases of domestic violence, according to L\u2019Orient Le Jour <\/em>(Israa\nis # 19).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.lorientlejour.com\/article\/1185615\/la-mort-disraa-ghraieb-relance-la-question-des-crimes-dhonneur-en-palestine.html<\/a>\n(Lebanese article).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2018, the number of women killed was 23 in\nGaza:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.parismatch.com\/Actu\/International\/Une-Palestinienne-tuee-par-sa-famille-pour-une-photo-Instagram-1646789<\/a>\n(French article).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is no impunity, largely because there\nis no legal protection yet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A bill that was supposed to put an end to impunity in domestic violence was finalized in 2004. It is still not adopted by the Palestinian Government, even if the Palestinian Prime Minister declared that the protection of women should be reinforced. Despite his good intentions, it is hard to pass such bill. A culture of \u201creal\u201d patriarchy truly exists in this part of the world.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, let\u2019s stop to think about the term\n*honour killing*. Victims, mostly women (+ at times men), are perceived as having\ncaused dishonour to their family because of a shameful behaviour, that is judged\nas being immoral. This real or just suspected behaviour may be refusing a pre-arranged\nmarriage, having been sexually assaulted, appearing in a picture with a man, being\nsuspected of having kissed a man or having had an intimate relation before marriage,\nbeing gay, etc. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why would honour killing be still committed by some in 2019? Why would the so-called honour of a family be valued more than loving one\u2019s children or forgiving them (for any real, perceived, or even simply suspected behaviour)?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Make no mistake. Israa\u2019s story is NOT only made in Palestine. This sad story could have occurred anywhere in the world, including Canada (i.e., the Shafias, if you recall). However, these tragedies occur primarily in Arab and Muslim countries (e.g., Pakistan, Iran). In Arab countries, we can think of Jordan, Egypt, Syria, and sadly even in Lebanon where, in 2011, the Parliament agreed by a majority to abolish an Article, which was used in the past as an excuse to reduce sentences related to honour killing. That was a piece of good news\u2026 but, to truly get rid of honour killing, there should also be a general shift in societal attitudes toward gender-based violence, via massive educational programs in all the communities, perhaps especially in highly religious ones. Even if honour killing is more cultural than religious per se, religion may act as a carrying vehicle for it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Honour killing also occurs in other countries,\nnamely in South America (e.g., Ecuador, Brazil) and in Asian countries, namely\nPakistan, India, Bangladesh, and Cambodia. One must also note that in India, honour\nkilling can occur in all sorts of families, including Sikh (in Punjab) and Hindu.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like the horrible murders in Kingston, ON,\nCanada (i.e., Shafia\u2019s family), several cases of honour killing have occurred throughout\nFrance and also in the UK (also in immigrant families). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.lemonde.fr\/europe\/article\/2011\/11\/15\/les-crimes-d-honneur-une-realite-europeenne_1604170_3214.html<\/a>\n(French article).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The article in Le Monde<\/em> above was published\nin 2011. It is hard to believe that we are in 2019 and such crimes are still\ntolerated in some other countries. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related to this, Bambi cannot help but to\nwonder to herself: Where are our radical Canadian feminists to join their voices\nto the tireless women (and men) who have denounced this honour killing? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Perhaps they are too busy denouncing rape cultures\nor patriarchy in our civilized societies? Perhaps they are comfortable in their\n\u201csafe spaces\u201d, who knows? Or perhaps like our politicians and societies, they are\nexhibiting political correctness. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anyhow, Israa\u2019s story ended with her death. Other forms of barbaric stories, also committed in the name of cultural traditions, lead to another form of death (the brutal unsolicited end of sexual pleasure in life). I am thinking specifically of cases of vaginal mutilation in some parts of the world (e.g., 27 African countries as well Yemen, Irak, and Indonesia):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.franceinter.fr\/monde\/mutilation-genitales-feminines-200-millions-de-femmes-concernees<\/a>\n (French article).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On this differently disturbing note, Bambi would like to end by hoping that Israa is resting in peace now. May her memory be eternal\u2026 Israa, in addition to being beautiful, you were a make-up artist on earth. May you enjoy your rest; wherever you are, perhaps somewhere among the *beautiful* stars in the sky.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This beautiful young woman\u2019s name is Israa (Ghrayeb). Israa was a make-up artist from a village near Bethlehem. She died a month ago after being rushed to the hospital with severe wounds. Her family members […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/287"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=287"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/287\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":297,"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/287\/revisions\/297"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=287"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=287"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=287"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}