News of the latest crime in Jordan, where a 14-years-old girl lost his life, has prompted angry calls to execute her 23-years old brother, who killed her with a knife stab in the back.
A 14 year old Jordanian girl was killed by her 25 year old brother for making a social media account without permission.
— Tim Roland ثورة المرأة (@The_Danish_Brit) May 9, 2020
If you lack a good reason to be a feminist today, here's one.
Last Friday, Jordanians were appalled with details of a crime, in which a young man reportedly stabbed his younger sister in the back, after learning that she had created a Facebook account for herself using his mobile phone, resulting in her immediate death.
According to the Jordan Times, the Criminal Court prosecutor charged the young man with manslaughter, after he threw a kitchen knife at his sister following "a heated argument."
I’M HORRIFIED! Murder is murder no matter what EVEN if it was for a fucking “شرف” which is a word that does not refer to its actual meaning anymore! NO RELIGION OR ETHNICITY OR WHATEVER THE FUCK IT WAS IS ALLOWED TO END SOULS EVER!
— Blue (@BlueeAnas) May 9, 2020
#نطالب_باعدام_قاتل_اخته
Responding to the news, many users expressed their anger towards yet another family crime against women in the country, calling on authorities to take more severe measures to protect women's lives in Jordan.
Twitter users launched the hashtag #نطالب_باعدام_قاتل_اخته (We demand the execution of sister's killer) and tweeted against comments that defended him.
To the people saying " there must be more to the story we dont know", maybe there is, maybe there isnt, THAT DOES NOT AND I REPEAT DOES NOT JUSTIFY MURDER.#نطالب_باعدام_قاتل_اخته
— Jude awwad (@Judeawwad) May 8, 2020
On Facebook, a user who introduced himself as a cousin of both the victim and the offender, said that his cousin "didn't mean to kill his sister" and that it was all "an unfortunate accident following a regular sibling argument."
His comment, in addition to many others justifying the incident by the pretext; "the young man's fear of his sister's privacy" triggered many angry reactions on social media.
Like he is innocent now? This does not make him less guilty.. Plus why would he throw a knife on his sister unless he wanted to kill her #نطالب_باعدام_قاتل_اخته pic.twitter.com/aC5Dlmnj4k
— فاطمة (@fatuxcc) May 9, 2020
Many users blamed the crime and the behavior of the killer's defenders on patriarchal concepts that are still strong in the Jordanian society, where men believe "they have to control and protect" the family's reputation and female's lives.
الأخ اللي قتل أخته (14سنة) لأنها انشأت لها حساب على إحدى مواقع التواصل الاجتماعي، ما كان من الممكن أن يقوم بهذه الجريمة لولا نوع التربية الذكورية التي نشأ عليها في البيت وأعطته كل الصلاحيات أن يمارس على أخته كل أنواع التسلط والوصاية الذكورية التي تصل إلى حد تأديبها بالقتل!
— حنان الوادعي (@Hananalwadee) May 9, 2020
Translation: "The brother, who killed his 14-year old sister after she joined a social media website, couldn't have committed this crime if it were not for the male-dominant values he was raised by at home, ones that grant him permission to control and supervise his sister and gives him the right to discipline her even if that meant killing her."
According to Solidarity Is Global Institute, SIGI, a local women's rights organization, 7 Jordanian women have lost their lives to domestic violence in 2020 so far.
