The Saudi government is sentencing a 24-year-old man to paralysis as retribution for stabbing his friend when the two were teens.
Ali al-Khawahir reportedly stabbed his friend in the back when he was 14-years-old, paralyzing the teen from the waist down. In return, his victim wants one million Saudi riyals, the equivalent of $270,000, or retribution.
Amnesty International is outraged by the sentence: �Paralyzing someone as punishment for a crime would be torture,� said Ann Harrison, Middle East and North Africa Deputy Director at Amnesty International.
�That such a punishment might be implemented is utterly shocking, even in a context where flogging is frequently imposed as a punishment for some offences, as happens in Saudi Arabia.� Although al-Khawahir�s mother says she feels sorry for the victim and that he deserves millions in compensation, it is not something they can afford.
�Ten years have passed with hundreds of sleepless nights. My hair has become grey at a young age because of my son�s problem,� she told the Saudi Gazette. �I have been frightened to death whenever I think about my son�s fate and that he will have to be paralyzed.�
Retribution sentences have included eye-gouging, tooth extraction and death for murder, according to Amnesty. If the paralysis sentencing is carried through, it would go against the UN Convention against Torture, which Saudi Arabia is a part of.
Student Holds Own Funeral So She Could �Enjoy It�

Zeng Jia, 22, wanted to experience her own burial service while she was still alive. So she spent a fortune on a full-blown ceremony with mourners, flowers and photographers.
To make her body look more convincingly dead she hired a team of make-up artists who specialise in making dead people look more lifelike.
Zeng, from Wuhan, Hubei province, China, said: �It struck me that people spend all that time and effort on someone when they are gone and they cannot appreciate it. �I wanted to see what people would think of me so I decided to hold my funeral while I could enjoy it.�
Mourners at the service filed past Zeng�s open-casque coffin, decorated with chrysanthemums, to sprinkle petals over her body.
And a man in military dress uniform stood guard as the service was conducted. After lying in state for an hour ďż˝ complete with a Hello Kitty doll on her chest and origami doves hanging above her coffin ďż˝ Zeng got up to join her own wake.
She added: �Experiencing death has made me appreciate life more keenly.�
Source: natonal post
Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. |