I was very pleased to stumble upon the website of my former colleague Rana Husseini, who is currently working on a book on honor crimes. I really can’t wait to put my hands on this intensive piece of work. According to her site, the book:
… will provide people with a credible source based on real-life experience tackling a sensitive issue which is often susceptible to misconception. The book is entitled Murder in the name of honour and is expected to be published in the next few months.
It should be good. I can’t wait!
I haven’t read Rana’s book but I’ve written back and forth with her for a few years, just basically as a fan. Rana is a very intelligent woman, she could find a job reporting pretty much anywhere she chose. She could be a journalist at the New York Times, USA Today, or anywhere had she chosen to do so. She hasn’t because she cares about the women in her country and simply wants them to be free to live peacefully and without fear of being murdered for the most ridiculous of “crimes”. Like you and myself, Rana also has bills to pay, a car to buy gas for, she has to eat, and so on, you cannot fault her because she gets paid to do what she does. That doesn’t mean she cares any less about the matter. Police officers, firefighters, doctors all get paid to save lives, but does that make their causes any less important?
All she wants is to make sure the issue is not clouded by myths or fraudulant claims. All you have to do is chat with her a couple of times to see just how passionate she is about the matter. I live all the way in the US and can see that in her. How can you actually live there, and not notice that?
i agree with barood and furqan, and i’m pleased people are noticing some of the problems with the so-called activists in jordan. i was concerned maybe parts of the younger generation weren’t noticing.
for one, rana works for the jordan times, so she is paid to report on honour killings. it is her job. she has made a career out of being an activist, she has personally gained from it by winning awards and accolades and trips to speak about the problem, so it is by now a conflict of interest for her to really care about this problem going away. if it goes, so does her platform, and she probably doesn’t really want that to happen. she has lost her way and isn’t prepared to admit it. what have she and that whole movement done lately to actually help anyone except themselves? maybe a decade ago speaking out was novel, but there is more to be done than just talk. that is old. and anyway others at the jordan times wrote about this subject before rana was even a journalist. nujoud goussous was a half generation ahead of rana in writing about these crimes, but her articles were always heavily censored. then rana came along and stole her thunder in a desperate grab to claim that she was there first.
some of my friends are journalists and they told me it is considered unprofessional in that field to publicly express your own views of anything you write about because it hinders your credibility as an objective reporter. they say her agitating on this really works against her in their eyes. i have also heard at least three senior members of the royal family express doubts about her sincerity in caring and discuss her inherent conflict of interest, so it seems she may have credibility problems with them.
lastly i know a number of women who work in this area. they say there is too much infighting and little agreement among themselves as to how to work this problem. they also think there are a few women seeking to draw attention to themselves as do gooders and losing sight of the whole point. they want to be stars, and they don’t want anyone else working what they see as their turf. i find this petty and hateful considering the stakes here and the lack of progress they’ve achieved. lives are hanging in the balance. it’s no joke.
i would like to see more people use their critical thinking skills in assessing this problem. stop the petty infighting, quit trying to elbow away others to steal the limelight for yourself, put your head down and get to work. this problem is solvable, as some of you have noted. start by changing the laws and treating these murders as any others. even iraq and pakistan and turkey do that much. my fear is that jordan is falling far behind while the people who are paid to address this problem are busy trying to grab the glory for what so far have been dismal results.
in the end, i don’t think the so-called activists will be the ones to change anything. any reform will have to come from people who have the power to change things. and these people don’t. they’ve so far only served to be a big distraction. but it’s heartening to see people are beginning to notice and ask questions. there’s plenty of dishonesty in this whole area.
I believe in education to develop our society to have better life for women and men.I hope there are books talk about honor killing with cheap price and writtine in arabic language.I can say there is not books talk about honor killing in arabic.
II am totally against honour killing but what is benefit of book talk about it. I am sure 100% the book will not reach Jordanians who do need to read book. However No one can prevent honour killing .it happens even in Europe. The problem is here, there is the low which give an excuse for killer I don’t thing there is a point to change the low Because that would not do anything. I am from countryside in south of Jordan and from big clan. I know the system how it works there. This habit no one can stop it until people have got what they want. They believe the only justice comes from Islamic rules where there are punishment s and rules to prevent adultery or corrupting society as west. In my village after 7 Pm, women would dare to walk alone in high street alone although it is safe place. Men and women get married through matchmaker and can not alone meet before wedding day. I have been away from my village for long time living in west but that can not change me .I would say I can understand who kill his women for honor but I am against. it. There is contradiction here but do not blame people who can find an alternative to adopt a new understanding about women.
I really cannot believe the criticisms hurled at Rana Husseini. She is the one person in the country who has been single minded and brave enough to tacke this subject. She is not a member of the Royal Family or of the Royal Court but is trying to put pressure on everyone by writing about these crimes otherwise we would never know anything about them. May I ask any of those who have criticised her what they have done to try and prevent these crimes or to change the law?????? T
Hareega, what do you mean thanks to her effort we know the extent of honor crimes? fact is Rana and her look a likes did a great job of throwing sand in our faces. the problem was and continues to be this: the royal court needs to issue a decree to end the discrimination in the punishment of male vs. female murderers. that’s what makes honor crimes unique. that’s all. nothing more. end the law the allows for this discrimination, and “honor killing” ends tomorrow.
WHICH PART IF THIS DID RANA FOCUS ON????
PLEEEEEZEEEE STOP THE NONSENSE RANA, AND SHOW SOME INTELLECTUAL HONESTY!!!
The reason I want the book to be in English is because I want the audience to be Arabs particularly Jordanians. If it was in English those who will read are non-Jordanians or Jordanians who understand English very well and I think that’s a small group of Jordanians.
Hareega,
I believe the book is in English but I’m not sure.
Barood, easy on the woman. She’s not our prime minister and she’s not a politician either. thanks to her efforts we know better about the extent of honor crimes in Jordan and she encourages others to do something about it.
If six female members in our corrupt Parliament did not do anything about honor crimes (and of course the war in Iraq) I don’t think she can.
Natasha is the book in Arabic or English? I hope it’s in Arabic
STOP THE BOGUS CRUSADE!!!! RANA IS DISHONEST!!!
If she cares about “honor killing” she should direct her energy to convince the royal court to pass a decree to abolish discrimination in punishment between male and female murderers.
It’s very convenient for Rana, like other neo-liberal intellectual opportunists, to focus her energy on the grassroots when ALL IT TAKES IS ONE ROYAL DECREE TO END IT ALL!!!!!!
Crimes of passion will never end. They committed are in Jordan, there are committed in USA, they are committed in France. What makes Jordan and a few other countries unique is that fact the law of the land gets the male killer off the hook lightly. ONE WORD FROM THE ROYAL COURT AND “HONOR KILLINGS” the phenomena is no more.
Than what about money Rana takes from the neo-con RAND Corporation??? How come she never condemned their support for the war on Iraq and the American mass slaughter of Arab women in Iraq, Lebanon, and Palestine let alone their silence vis a vis the oppression of Saudi women, in the KSA, America’s closest ally in the region?
STOP NEO-LIBERAL INTELLECTUAL DISHONESTY!!!