The world has another honor killing. This time the family of Naile Erdas, 16, decided that the family honor demanded that she be killed after she was raped and impregnated. This case, however, has a positive element: a Turkish court has handed down an appropriately harsh series of sentences of the father, mother, brother and two uncles. It is a great credit to the Turkish legal system and should be a model for other Islamic countries in the region.
The court sentenced the murder victim’s brother to life in jail for the 2006 murder and the girl’s father, mother and two uncles were given life sentences for instigating the murder . A third uncle was given for 16 years and eight months for failing to report the murder.
Erdas became pregnant after the rape but concealed her condition until she was hospitalized for a severe headache. When the family learned of the pregnancy, they tried to bribe the doctors to get her back. To their credit, the doctors held on to the girl and called the police. The police, however, were less responsible and took the word of the father that she would not be harmed. They released her one week after she gave birth. The brother then killed his sister a few hours after her arrival.
We have seen a steady stream of such honor killings often with the implied or express support of local authorities. This sentence is a rare and courageous act for the Turkish court.
I went almost through the same thing. Munchausen I might get my family with. They are true cannibols.. eating up my money, time and life. Everyone in my nieghborhood hated them and my real friends tried to save me.
So wouldnt holding and forcing someone to have sex be a disgrace for the rapists family? It seems to me like it would be just as shameful for the rapists family. And the rapist should be charged for the rape and also the victims murder as well because he knows what the outcome would be for the girl once her family found out she had been raped. You know that he was well aware that the girl would be killed so her familys honor wouldnt be tarnished. He should be charged with her murder and be castrated so he could never spread his evil again. What happened to the innocent baby after all this?
ken, is abortion in the US illegal? I haven’t heard that.
Not sure which is worse, this crime or aborting 20 million babies a year….but for some reason one and not the other get’s Turley attention.
Guess which one.
Shame the liberals look to people that do this as allies against conservatives.
I guess when you are an award winning blog, it gets worlwide attention. Congrats to Prof. Turley. It was a useful response by the Turkish attorney that provides us with additional expert information concerning the issue at hand.
Turkish Lawyer:
Thank you very much for the update on Turkish law. This blog certainly has broad range!
Before the current Turkish Criminal Code came into operation in 2004, Article 462 of the old Code granted a sentence reduction of up to seven-eighths to male and female perpetrators of honor crimes if the victim were caught in the act of committing adultery or “illegitimate sexual relations”, or if there was evidence beyond doubt that the victim had just completed such an act. Thankfully, this injustice was redressed by Article 82 of the current Code, which now expressly covers honour killings and sets a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.