Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Rape, Mutilation, and Enslavement of Poor Women and Girls Still Common Practices Throughout The World

The rape and enslavement of women and mutilation of girls continues throughout the world. It is common for Muslims to enslave poor women from countries such as the Phillipines and Indonesia.

In Colorado a member of a "prominent" Saudi Arabian family was convicted of raping an Indonesian nanny whom he held captive in his home in Aurora, Colorado. Saudia Arabian media has made it into a major news story. It seems that the Saudis find it inconceivable that the Indonesian maid was actually considered a competent witness in American courts.

At the request of the U.S. Ambassador, Colorado Attorney General John Suthers flew to Riyadh to explain to the King, Crown Prince, other Saudi officials, and the man's family, that the trial in the U.S. was fair to the man throughout his arrest, conviction and appeal. Suthers learned that in Saudi Arabia to prove a rape case, you need four eye witnesses!

Last week a man was convicted in Atlanta of cutting off his daughter's clitoris with a scissors. That man’s conviction also produced outrage and lots of news coverage in the man's country of birth, Ethiopia, where the mutilation practice is common.

Nancy Reyes, a physician who lives in the Phillipines, regularly blogs about similar outrageous incidents. She is very knowledgable and experienced, and I recommend that readers of this blog should make reading her blog a priority. You can click on my blogroll to find her at Boinkie's Blog.

1 comment:

Doogman said...

Fascinating that Rep. Musgrave saw fit to be one of three votes against House Resolution 970, denouncing the practice.

Genital mutilation a hideous practice and we shouldn't allow it in the US, IMHO.

Apparently Ms. Musgrave disagrees. Her staff flatly refuses to discuss this vote. Hmm.