The crux case centres on a woman called Nishal, a 26-year-old Moroccan immigrant to Germany with two kids and a psychotic husband. Since their wedding night, this husband beat the hell out of her. She crawled to the police covered in wounds, and they ordered the husband to stay away from her. He refused. He terrorised her with death threats.
So Nishal went to the courts to request an early divorce, hoping that once they were no longer married he would leave her alone. A judge who believed in the rights of women would find it very easy to make a judgement: you're free from this man, case dismissed.
But Judge Christa Datz-Winter followed the logic of multiculturalism instead. She said she would not grant an early divorce because - despite the police documentation of extreme violence and continued threats - there was no "unreasonable hardship" here.
Why? Because the woman, as a Muslim, should have "expected" it, the judge explained. She read out passages from the Koran to show that Muslim husbands have the "right to use corporal punishment". Look at Sura 4, verse 34, she said to Nishal, where the Koran says he can hammer you. That's your culture. Goodbye, and enjoy your beatings.
I know the writing style is biased and aggressive, and that I need a bigger, clearer picture of what's happening -- was the German judge using this as an example, an extreme method of getting fellow law-makers in Germany and the EU to recognise the complete and utter madness that is fundamentalist Muslim (or any religious...) Dogma in regards to woman's lack-of-rights? Or does this judge not care? Does she perhaps hate Muslim's, so she's willing to have them suffer? What's going on?
Maybe after stuff like, oh I don't know, Baden-Baden for instance, the Germans are now hyper sensitive to accommodating other religious views and integrating them into contemporary German culture. But how far down can a country sink, compromising their own concept of human rights, in order to suit the archaic views of an immigrating populous?
I'm supposed to be finishing a sketchbook. I'm too angry to breath.
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2 comments:
Ms. Black, the judge has been removed from the case, thank goodness. The Muslim community leaders were appalled by her decision and spoke out against it, as did the Greens, Christian Democrats, feminists and every other decent person in the country.
The opinion columnist fulminating against multiculturalism is cherrypicking outrages to make a bigoted point.
Yes yes, I know all that jazz -- that's why I mentioned the writers aggressive language turned me off, if you will, to what their message was.
That aside -- I am still pissed off that: one person can hurt another person for no logical reason, and there is some law, any law, that says it's okay. That's the problem.
The judge? I am willing to see it as some fucked up example -- I'm not sure, because it's impossible to find any media information that isn't sensational and based on 'omg crazy Germans' or 'omg crazy Muslims'. It's sad when culture overtakes intention.
We're all Sneetches.
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