JORDAN: POTENTIAL HONOR CRIME VICTIMS JAILED FOR

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 001885 SENSITIVE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL KWMN KJUS KMPI JO CASC SUBJECT: JORDAN: POTENTIAL HONOR CRIME VICTIMS JAILED FOR THEIR PROTECTION REF: A. AMMAN 1674 ¶B. AMMAN 1673 ¶C. AMMAN 1618 ¶D. AMMAN 1558 ¶E. AMMAN 1318 ¶F. AMMAN 471 ¶G. 08 AMMAN 3280 ¶H. 03 AMMAN 6027 ¶1. (SBU) Summary: During a visit to Jordan's Juwedeh women's prison on July 23, PolChief, Consul, RSO, and Emboffs met with the prison warden and prisoners to discuss Jordan's practice of administratively detaining women at risk of becoming victims of honor crimes. Jordan uses its Crime Prevention Law of 1954 to allow regional governors to send a woman to protective custody if the governor believes her life is in danger. An incarcerated woman's detention may continue if there is no male guardian to guarantee her safety, or as in one particular case, she lacks the funds to repay her dowry. Human rights advocates decry this practice of involuntary and prolonged detention and hope Jordan will create shelters for women at risk rather than condemn them to indefinite prison sentences, while those who threaten the women remain free. End Summary. JAILING THE VICTIMS -------------- ¶2. (SBU) On July 23, Embassy staff toured Juwedeh prison where approximately seventy women are currently being held in administrative detention, seven of them because of honor crime threats. The warden emphasized that women in the prison are well cared for and benefit from services including a market, beauty salon, and religious and vocational training. When pressed by PolChief, the warden said that women in protective custody are brought to the prison after a warrant is issued by a regional governor who believes they are at risk of death at the hands of family members. Once imprisoned, they will only be released if the governor signs an official release form upon receiving signed assurances from family members that the woman will not be harmed. According to the warden, the woman herself must also sign a document indicating that she would like to be released. Without the concurrence of the governor and a male family member, a woman herself cannot terminate her administrative detention. Two women have remained in protective custody for ten years. ¶3. (SBU) Many of the women currently placed in protective custody are there for their "safety" because they have been accused of adultery. One engaged woman was brought to the prison when her fiance found out she was pregnant with another man's child. Currently, both the woman and the father of her child are in administrative detention. They have been in Juwedeh for two years and, according to one of the guards, will remain there until an agreement can be reached with the ex-fiance. The woman gave birth while in custody, and her child was placed in the orphanage run by the Ministry of Social Development. (Note: While Juwedeh does have a nursery for children, the PSD has stated this facility is meant to house "legitimate children." End Note.) LAWYERS FIGHTING TO FREE THEM -------------- ¶4. (U) A major concern with the administrative detention process is the fact that a woman must stay in prison until a male relative "guarantees" her safety. Often, these guarantors kill the women days or even hours after assuming custody. This occured on July 9, when a woman, who was housed in Juwedeh prison for three months, was released to her 20 year-old brother. Hours later, he murdered her by stabbing her with a kitchen knife and smashing her head with a rock because he saw her talking to a man, an act he found "immoral." ¶5. (SBU) One Jordanian NGO, MIZAN law group, has long advocated on behalf of these women and spoken out against the use of administrative detention. MIZAN has managed to secure the release of several through mediation between the woman, her family members, and the regional governor. In a discussion with PolOff, MIZAN director Eva Abu Halaweh said she is currently working to secure the release of one of the women, Nariman, whom PolOff visited in Juwedeh. Nariman was put in administrative detention after she was found with a man who was not her husband. She has been in detention for two years and does not believe her life is in danger. She would like to divorce her husband and be released from the prison but the sticking point with her husband, is raising 500 JD (700 USD) to pay back her dowry. The husband has said he will ensure Nariman's safety if he receives this money. MIZAN is currently in contact with the governor that sent Nariman to prison as well as with her family to ensure the family will not harm her should she be released. (Note: Before securing the release of a woman, MIZAN meets with family members and conducts counseling sessions to ensure that the woman will not be in danger. To date, MIZAN claims to have a 100 percent success rate, ensuring the safety of all the women they helped release from prison. End Note.) WHEN SHE COMMITS THE MURDER, DOUBLE STANDARDS APPLY -------------- -------------- ¶6. (SBU) Article 98 of the Penal Code allows for six month prison sentences when a defendant commits a crime in a "fit of fury." It has been used to allow men who commit honor crimes to benefit from reduced sentences. (Note: While this Article is supposed to apply to men and women equally, Post is unaware of a case where a woman has benefitted from its application and received a reduced sentence. End Note.) ¶7. (SBU) PolOffs met with one prisoner at Juwedeh, Eman, convicted of murdering her husband. She murdered him after years of abuse and after she tried reaching out to her family for help but said, "doors were slammed in her face." She said one day she could no longer endure the abuse and lashed out against him "in a fit of fury." She was sentenced to capital punishment, which was reduced on appeal to 15 years. She has served two years in prison and during that time has been prohibited by her in-laws from seeing her two children. She continues to hope that her husband's family will drop the charges against her, which would result in her serving a reduced sentence of seven-and-a-half years, equal to the sentences of many men convicted of honor crimes. IS PRISON THE ONLY OPTION? -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Human rights activists in Jordan continue to demand that the government set up a special home/shelter for the women who are currently administratively detained in Juwedeh for their own protection. More than 20 years of advocacy have failed to produce results. (Note: Juwedeh is the only prison for women in Jordan, housing both administrative detainees and criminals. End Note.) ¶9. (SBU) Comment: Post's visit to Juwedeh prison reinforced some of our fears about the use of administrative detention. The fact that a woman can face indefinite detention in prison though she has committed no crime continues to be a concern that we will persist in raising with Government of Jordan officials. Disturbingly, there are no specific grounds or criteria a governor must abide by to administratively detain an individual. For instance, there are reports of orders issued in response to a fabricated story from a jealous neighbor or jilted lover. Additionally, it was troubling to learn that 700 USD is all that stands in the way of freedom for some young women. Post will reach out to organizations who may be willing to provide financial support. The fact that PolOffs were encouraged to visit Juwedeh was significant and represents the PSD's attempts to portray its prisons in a positive light. Post will continue to press the Government of Jordan to work with NGOs to establish a shelter to appropriately protect victims instead of punishing them and end administrative detention. End Comment. Visit Amman's Classified Website at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman Beecroft