It’s real simple to get to the point regarding a recent Associated Press article about a Moroccan girl who took her life rather than be married to her rapist, and the outrage that followed once the details were revealed.
The case of a 16-year-old girl who killed herself after she was forced to marry her rapist has spurred outrage among Morocco’s internet activists and calls for changes to the country’s laws.
First, it’s nice to see that many Moroccans find issue with this barbaric law. Secondly, what took them so long? It’s not as if one night while everyone slept this law was written and snuck into the books. This custom is long and storied within the Arab and Muslim world, which, of course, leads us to Mr. Schemm’s analysis on the law.
Schemm reveals:
In many societies, the loss of a woman’s virginity outside of wedlock is a huge stain of honor on the family.
In many parts of the Middle East, there is a tradition whereby a rapist can escape prosecution if he marries his victim, thereby restoring her honor. There is a similar injunction in the Old Testament’s Book of Deuteronomy.
Notice the author’s strained attempt to not connect any dots by saying “many parts of the Middle East.” The entire Middle East is made up of Arab-Muslim nations. The degree to which they follow Islamic law and customs varies. However, almost all share a tradition and where government is sometimes silent, local customs and tribes often dispense the justice.
How they go about in obtaining authority to do so has very little to do with the Book of Deuteronomy or any part of the Holy Bible for that matter. (As if all religions are equally barbaric or essentially the same; therefore, judgment should be withheld). It has everything to do with Arab culture and the Islamic code of law.
For Schemm to brush aside those glaring facts shows that he is very stupid or hopes that his readers are. Either way, it’s inexcusable for this kind of journalism to exist without criticism.
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