WUNRN
Palestinian
Young Woman Alleged Torture and Killing by Her Father for
Talking
on Her Cell Phone and Suspicion of "Illegitimate Relationship"
Fadia al-Najar, 27, was at her home in Gaza’s Jabalya refugee camp talking to
someone on her cell phone when her father, Jawdat al-Najar, grew suspicious
that she might be having an “illegitimate relation,” according to two human
rights organizations based in the Palestinian Territories.
________________________________________________________________________
Case
OPT 180809.VAW
‘Honour’
killing/ Risk of lenient punishment
The International Secretariat
of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) requests your URGENT intervention in the following
situation in the
The International Secretariat
of OMCT has been informed by Al Mezan Centre for Human Rights, a member of the
OMCT SOS-Torture Network, regarding the case of Ms. Fadia Jawdat al-Najjar, 27 years old, who was allegedly killed by
her father in a matter of ‘family honour’.
According to information
obtained by Al Mezan, on
According to the same
information, the police subsequently found the body of Ms. al-Najjar in her
house. The forensic examination by the medical staff of the
Background
information
Crimes against women and girls
committed in the name of honour are gender-specific forms of violence that are
either approved or supported by States in many parts of the world. According to
the information received, since the beginning of the year to date, Ms. Fadia
Jawdat al-Najjar is the 10th victim of so-called ‘honour’ killings
in the OPT. OMCT is gravely concerned by
the high numbers of such crimes taking place in the OPT, particularly in the
Gaza Strip. Most victims of crimes committed in the name of family honour are
women, who are often killed by male family members when they are suspected of
having committed an offence that might endanger the family’s honour. Male
relatives who commit such murders in the OPT enjoy a relative impunity for
these crimes and are often sentenced to less than 3 civil years of
imprisonment, serving about 2 years of the sentence. OMCT considers that such
punishment is not dissuasive and fails to prevent further killings. In early
2007, there was an increase in the honour-related killings carried out by armed
groups. The four such cases that occurred in early 2007 were not investigated
duly.
OMCT
firmly condemns these killings in the name of honour and calls upon the
Government in
Please write to the
authorities in the OPT, in particular the Government in
i. Carry out a prompt, effective, thorough,
independent and impartial investigation into the murder of Ms. Fadia Jawdat
al-Najjar, the result of which must be made public, in order to bring all those responsible before
a competent, independent and impartial tribunal and apply penal, civil and/or
administrative sanctions as provided by law;
ii. Ensure
the protection of women and girls who are threatened with ‘honour’ crimes;
iii. Ensure that the right to
life is strictly respected, and that the same degree of due diligence is
exercised in the prevention of crimes committed in the name of honour and in
the punishment of the perpetrators, as in any other case of arbitrary
deprivation of the right to life;
iv. Guarantee the respect of
human rights and the fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance
with national laws and international human rights standards.
Addresses
-
Mr. Ismail Haneyeh, Prime Minister
(
- Mr. Fathi Hammdad , Minister of Interior: +970 8 288
1994
- Permanent Observer Mission of Palestine to the
United Nations, Route de Vernier 96, Châtelaine, Fax. +41 22 796 78 60, Email: Palestine.un@bluewin.ch
Kindly inform us of any action
undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.
================================================================
To contact the list administrator, or to leave the list, send an email to:
wunrn_listserve-request@lists.wunrn.com. Thank you.