to Benhur

Submitted by Nora (United States), Jul 7, 2010 at 19:13

No, I did not judge you personally. I don't know you. I was talking about Shari'a Law and Muslims lacking freedom and many human rights. Of course you are much freer because you are a man. You do not know my country because each state in America decides on using the death penalty or not. It's not a national law. Interestingly enough, in one state where there is the option of death penalty, one man chose which way he wanted to be executed and it was carried out according to his wishes.

You seem to be in denial of of what is going on in Muslim nations. I have pages of atrocities of this nature on my web site. How can you deny how women are treated and the attempts for equal rights in Muslim nations? Here's one sample from your own country a few years back, maybe it will ring a bell:

In Batman, Turkey, there was a case of Aysegul (a 17 year old) who threatened to shoot herself with her father's shotgun unless her father agreed that she could marry the man she loved. Speaking with radio DJ Mustafa Seven, Aysegul said that she would rather die than marry her cousin, as her father was demanding. The DJ went to her house and talked her out of committing suicide. Fortunately, he was able to get the girl's parents to change their minds.

In the past year more than 100 women attempted suicide (28 succeeded) in this town alone. And the suicide rate has risen more than 50 percent since 1993. Compared to the West, where most suicides are by men, 80% of suicides are by women in Turkey, with 75% of those being between the ages of 17-25. Associated Press reports that "girls as young as 13 are sometimes married to sexagenarians against their will and many girls are not allowed out of the house by their fathers or husbands." Some suicide victims were women who had rumors spread that they were no longer virgins or women who gave up their virginity to men they hoped to marry in order to escape their poverty. War has also contributed to the growing number of suicides. And the increase of television has shown these young women that there are lifestyles elsewhere where they could fit in and not suffer in silence. In China (where there are almost 500 suicides A DAY - AP), Afghanistan and Iran the rate is equally high - especially true in countries where cultures are traditional and repressive against women.

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