February 23, 2008

• Fawza Falih Mumammad Ali

  I don’t have time to post my typically long blog today, I have to be at work relatively early, but I figure that just allows me to devote this entire post to a petition.

  As some of you may be aware, many countries of the world still single out women as Witches and kill them. The truth is that very few of these women actually practice anything even remotely resembling witchcraft. Most are used as scapegoats to take their property or to simply get them out of the way if they are considered a burden. While it’s difficult for any of us to do anything about this widespread problem, occassionally an opportunity comes our way to at least try to help an individual.

  In a letter dated February 13, 2008, Christopher Wilcke, a researcher with Human Rights Watch, exhorted King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud to halt the execution of Fawza Falih Mumammad Ali. The letter stated she was sentenced to death by beheading for the crimes of witchcraft, recourse to Jinn, and animal slaughter. Human Rights Watch argued that Falih should not be executed because the crime of witchcraft is not defined by Saudi law, the judges failed to ensure a fair trial, and Falih was unable to defend herself because of “significant procedural flaws throughout the trial”.

  There are a couple petitions floating around, but if you would like to help convince King Abdullah to grant a stay of execution for Fawza, here is a link you can follow to sign one of the petitions. Please let other people know as well.

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  February 23rd

  Terminalia was the last festival of the Roman year. Honoring Terminus, the god of boundaries and frontiers, neighbors would meet where their fields adjoined to bedeck the stone boundary markers, termini, with garlands and make offerings of corn, honey, and wine. Anyone who accidentally or intentionally moved these stones was accursed.

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  • 12:44 pm
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