Save Hussein! UN pleads for teen sentenced to death over rapist husband

The United Nations and human rights organisations are urging Sudan to pardon a teenage girl sentenced to death for killing her husband as he tried to rape her.

Noura Hussein is facing death by hanging after a Sharia court found her guilty of premeditated murder for stabbing her husband as he raped her in April.

Last week, the court sentenced her to death. The UN Women, UN Population Fund and UN Office of the Special Advisor on Africa have appealed to President Omar Hassan al-Bashir for clemency.

“Reports indicate that she was forced against her will into marriage at the age of 16. She was raped by her husband while his three male relatives held her down,” said a joint statement.

“Speaking as the voices of women and girls of the world, we plead with the government of Sudan to save the life of Hussein.”

Equality Now, that pushes for gender rights also wants the State to ensure that all victims of violence, particularly women and girls, get justice that they deserve.

They are demanding that all criminal charges against Noura be dropped and any further legal action to have her executed ceased.

A change.org petition titled Justice for Noura, was set up on April 10 and has gathered over 530,000 signatures.

In addition, the agency is calling for the review of the Penal Code on rape; specifically that marital rape be made a criminal offence ensuring that the law complies with Sudan’s Constitution and international human rights obligations.

They want laws that protect women and girls from all forms of sexual violence including early and forced marriage.

In the recent past, activists from around the world rallied together to push the Government to free a young woman who had been gang raped and later imprisoned on claims of fornication.  Equality Now expects a similar move in the Noura Hussein case.

They have sought audience with President Omar al-Bashir for clemency and argue that the spirit rather than the letter of the law be followed and that Sudan adheres with international standards for women’s rights.

In other African countries such as Kenya, women who have experienced rape and domestic violence are provided with psycho-social support to help them overcome the trauma.

Reports indicate that Noura has been subjected to both physical and mental abuse by her family and husband, a violation of Articles 14 (protection of children) and 15 (no marriage without free and full consent) of the Sudanese Constitution.

The document further provides that the ‘State shall protect women from injustice and promote gender equality,” and that “all persons are equal before the law and are entitled without discrimination, to the equal protection of the law.”

Sudan is also obligated under several international legal instruments to prevent citizens from assault and to ensure that both men and women are treated equally in the eyes of the law.

The said instruments are the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights as well as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

However, in Sudan, marital rape is not recognized as a crime and girls can be married off as soon as they reach puberty, which could be as young as nine or 10 years. The girl’s father is allowed to consent to her marriage at this age.

As such, Noura is likely to be deemed legitimately married under Sudanese law, regardless of whether she has consent or not despite it being in violation of the Sudanese Constitution and international law.

In this context, no crime has been committed against Noura and therefore, the self-defence claim against murder would not stand.

This is why the court hearing the case did not consider her to have been defending herself against rape, forced or child marriage.

The family of a deceased person also has the right to ask for execution of the culprit or payment; the family of Noura’s husband requested for her execution.

Additional reporting from Reuters