Death by Stoning, Inhumane
Amina Lawal Kurami, a woman in her thirties from Katsina, northern Nigeria, will face the death penalty for committing adultery. The Islamic court which practices Shar’iah law in northern Nigeria condemned Kurami to be stoned to death in August 2002. This sentence is scheduled to be carried out once her baby finishes being breastfed. In contrast, her ex-lover, Yahaya Mohammed who denied having sexual relations with Kurami will face no punishment. Afterwards, Kurami made an appeal to another Islamic Court to overturn the Katsina court’s sentence, but they denied her plea.
1Kurami’s sentence is not only inhumane, but discriminatory simply because she is a woman. By allowing Kurami’s former lover Mohammed to go unpunished, this ruling sets a double standard for the behavior of men and women. Stoning is cruel and tortuous punishment as the victim is killed slowly often in front of family members.
Olusegun Obasanjo, the president of Nigeria, denounced the punishment issued by the court. However, Obasanjo will not be able to overrule the court’s decision because the federal government does not have power over the regional courts in Nigeria.
2 Human rights activists hope the sentence will be appealed as the international community continues to denounce Kurami’s punishment by supporting Obasanjo and by advocating women’s rights. All across the globe, people are outraged at the treatment of Amina Kurami and are signing petitions on her behalf. In fact, Amnesty International and Merton Amnesty Group gathered 1.3 million signatures to present to the Nigerian High Commissioner in London to condemn this act.3 Additionally, human rights groups, former President Bill Clinton and Oprah Winfrey are among a few actively condemning this barbaric act.4 As the world continues to unite in condemning this act, the court’s ruling will hopefully be appealed, before her sentence is carried out. It is indeed a harsh punishment for the crime committed.Another example includes a man, "Ado Baranda . . . to be stoned in May for the rape of a girl nine years of age."
5 Although Baranda committed a crime, stoning will not take away or correct the situation. Instead, Baranda could be rehabilitated or punished by a method that does not include pain and torture. Unfortunately, Nigeria is not the only country where stoning serves as a form of punishment. Iran, Sudan, Nigeria, Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates all stone individuals guilty of adultery, prostitution and those with murder charges. "In May 2002, in Pakistan a raped woman, Zafran Bibi, was labeled an adulterer and sentenced to be stoned … even though she did not willingly consent to the sexual act."6 Women such as Zafran Bibi are left unprotected although they themselves are victims of crimes. The supporters of stoning use it in the name of Islam, "but … it is not Islamic and the Koran does not make references to it."7 The international community is now condemning the barbaric practice of stoning.Action:
Support the appeal of Amina Lawal Kurami’s case by signing the letter for Oprah Winfrey’s petition at http://www.amnestyusa.org/oprah/ .
8Follow the advice of Amnesty International by asking your congressional representative to support Resolution 351, which denounces Nigeria’s punishment of stoning.
Call Women for Women International at 1-800-839-5680 and sponsor a survivor of human rights abuses.
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