Dr. Hayat Sindi is a Saudi Arabian medical scientist and a woman who has earned respect for extraordinary accomplishments in a country that denies women basic liberties. She is not only an award-winning scientist but one of the first female members of the Consultative Assembly of Saudi Arabia. Ranked by Arabian Business as the 19th most influential Arab in the world and the ninth most influential Arab woman, it is not surprising that Harvard University has brought her to the country as a visiting scholar. However, a nasty lawsuit in King County has raised deeply disturbing allegations about Sindi’s efforts against women who she accuses of hacking her emails. According to counsel for one of those women, Sindi worked to have another woman flogged for writing on Facebook that she had had an affair with her husband. On the other side is Samia El-Moslimany, a women’s activist and photographer who lives in the U.S. and Saudi Arabia, who is fighting to keep Sindi from forcing the disclosure of the women, who would face medieval Sharia justice in Saudi Arabia.
All of this began when El-Moslimany posted statements on social media in 2012 alleging that Sindi had had an affair with her husband. Sindi responded with a Saudi defamation case and, according to an affidavit submitted by El-Moslimany’s lawyer, she wanted El-Moslimany flogged. The effort backfired. A Saudi judge decided last year that El-Moslimany should spend four days in jail for the public defamation while Sindi should spend two months in jail for forming an illicit relationship with El-Moslimany’s husband. Neither has served their sentences.
Sindi however has continued to try to force disclosure of the names of the women commenting on the Internet under the claim that she was hacked. A King County Superior Court judge decided Friday not to sentence a Burien woman to jail or to levy a $500 fine for each day of withholding the names in light of the danger to these women.
Judge Mariane Spearman denied Sindi’s request to hold El-Moslimany in contempt of court because Sindi’s new lawyer could not specify which Facebook comments might be a basis for investigating any of the women.
The idea of a Harvard academic fighting to have women flogged for alleged defamation is deeply troubling. The fact that Saudi Sharia law allows for medieval justice does not excuse a demand for such justice over the exercise of free speech. Even if such speech was defamatory, it should not be a criminal matter subject to flogging. Whatever the truth of the adultery, it should not be relevant to Harvard or anyone else other than those involved in these families. However, flogging for posting matters on the Internet raises significant issues of due process and free speech.
Should Harvard be involved in such dispute when one of its faculty seeks to have women flogged under Sharia law or this is simply a private matter under the laws of another country?
Trooper
Are you going to have a little discussion with Nicky regarding the Jewish mafia? Sounds pretty anti-Semitic to me.
You know what I wonder about? I wonder if Nicky ever dreams of a dinner invitation to the Turley’s and while Leslie is serving the salad, if he intends to ask her about FDR’s Jewish mafia?
And to prove the sheer hypocrisy and lunacy of Republicans, they WANT the President to be given MORE power to wage war. What about the “Imperial President” meme?
Bailers
Complete Idiocy.
This is the kind of lunacy we see from the rightists on this blog the last few months.
Po would never warn innocents of an terrorist attack. He has made his attitude clear to those who want to see where he is coming from in his pernicious world view.
The anti-Semitic left will of course applaud him as they have done in this thread.
Maybe someone could print up a new name tag for Pogo the former Healer of Mercy, as Executioner in Residence. He was so quick to call for the execution of Dr. Sami Al- Arian, he could barely contain himself.
Wade,
Completely out of line.
pogo:
are you sluring wadewilliams?
“I have seen the enemy and it is radical Islam.”
po go,
I’m not certain the Klan would want to hang around this bunch.
Professor Turley,
It’s a fine group you have gathered here today.
I hope your children read these comments and then you can explain to them about your thoughts on setting up “Kamps” and the Jewish mafia.
Great read: http://www.theatlantic.com/features/archive/2015/02/what-isis-really-wants/384980/
If you have access to a color printer, maybe you could make Inga a badge, too.
Avoid Comic Sans when selecting the font, however.
It lacks the seriousness you deserve.
wadewilliams:
how so?
A slur from Pogo should be worn like an Honor Badge.
Edward says:
“they just gleefully condemn Christianity.”
Well they sure as hell don’t suggest setting up camps for them and talk about some mythical Jewish mafia.
What an ignorant bunch.
“po is a better American than most here.”
The postmodern liberal speaks.
And the wolf is a better granddaughter than Red Riding Hood.
po is a better American than most here. We’ve even got someone who, while saying ‘not me’, suggests setting up camps for Muslims is perfectly understandable. Such people were guards in the camps in Poland.
Dust BQ:
this one is better.
Comment at 7:12
That comment is not representative of a ‘hater’.
It is hateful, ignorant, unsubstantiated, bigoted, racist, full of bile.
PO would grab some marshmellows