Awad El-Morr Quotes
We cannot and should not repeal Article 17. We have to allow for the individualization of punishment and we have to take into consideration the emotional state of the perpetrator when he committed the crime. This prerogative is given to judges in the West as well.
Article 17 of the Egyptian criminal code allows judges to reduce or even suspend sentences after a conviction. That has been used to effectively exonerate murders where “honor killing”—the killing of a woman or man whose alleged behavior was contradictory to existing mores, thus bringing dishonor upon the family. Women who were suspected of adultery or even dressing immodestly were murdered by husbands, brothers or fathers without any serious criminal punishment. Some have called for repeal of Article 17.
Awad El-Morr, Chief Judge, Egyptian Supreme Constitutional Court, Quoted on Al-Ahram Weekly Online, February 14-20, 2002
Sourced by: Eigen's Political and Historical Quotations
This clause is a real puzzlement to non-Muslims throughout the world. What it means is that a person is allowed to murder certain other people—the “blood” was permitted. These include homosexuals, heretics. blasphemers, and those individuals who have had Fatwas—Islamic legal opinions—calling for their death as enemies of Islam. So if a Muslim cleric issues a fatwa calling for the death of someone, anyone who can kill the person will be exonerated. Under Sharia, a Muslim who murders his own daughter or sister because she violated the sexual taboos of Islam, is exonerated because in this case the blood of the victim was permitted. It is the same for murdering a homosexual, or someone who converts from Islam to Christianity.
Jordanian Political Party. In much of the Islamic world “honor killing” is allowed and/or condoned. Males may murder their wives and other female relatives whose sexual behavior brings “dishonor” to the family. To make matters worse, many females are killed on the basis of rumor or innuendo. The Jordanian Royal family has for several generations been a modernizing force.
The Justice was trying to justify the inclusion of Sharia as fundamental to the legal system of Pakistan. In addition he advocated allowing the unelected, uneducated, village elders to judge crimes and dispense punishment. This has led to horrendous abuses including a case where a young woman was sentenced to be gang raped because her brother had been seen alone with the daughter of a local wealthy, powerful village man who felt that his family had been dishonored and the only “justice” was to dishonor the family of the brother. There are thousands of cases each year where a system of justice and law of over 1000 years ago is allowed to be used in a modern nation and even worse, ancient tribal customs of revenge are allowed to control legal decisions without any judges or elected officials being involved in the matter.
This quotation is surprising to many because the National Association of Evangelicals is a very conservative organization which is usually at the right wing of political and social issues. However, religions are generally more complex with nuanced positions compared to political parties. On the issue of Prisons, the National Association of Evangelicals is at the left wing of the political spectrum.
