A Saudi woman sentenced to six months in jail and 200 lashes after being gang raped has vowed to challenge the ruling in a case that has received wide publicity, embarrassing the Saudi government. The case "sums up the major problems that the Saudi judiciary faces," said the young woman's lawyer, Abdel-Rahman al-Lahem.This is a case where basic human rights considerations should take precedence over whatever hidebound reactionary interpretation of Islam or Saudi considerations of "traditional values" lead to such a thing. The rape victim is Shi'a, the rapists Sunni.
Saudi Arabia ... applies a rigorous doctrine of Sunni Islam.
It imposes strict segregation of the sexes and a host of restrictions on women, who may not mix with men other than relatives or drive cars.
The 19-year-old's identity has not been revealed but she has become known as "Qatif girl," after the Shiite-populated area of Al-Qatif in the Eastern Province she hails from.
After the rape in October 2006, she was sentenced to 90 lashes for having been in a car with a man who is not a relative.
The Higher Judicial Council granted a retrial but, on November 14, a court toughened her sentence to six months in jail and 200 lashes.
Here is a recent New York Times report on the case, Ruling Jolts Even Saudis: 200 Lashes for Rape Victim by Rasheed Abou-Alsamh 11/16/07
Tags: authoritarianism, qatif girl, saudi arabia
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