Of course it does mean more nagging.
Posted on 07/01/2002 11:51:17 AM PDT by mhking
[ The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: 7/1/02 ]
Some of Iran's suffering wives look to a new solution -- husband killing
The Associated Press
But after 30 years of marriage, she had had enough. She arranged to have her husband, Hedayat, killed, authorities say. Ferdows, who has been convicted of murder and sentenced to death, is one of at least 20 Tehran women accused of murdering their husbands since February. Initially, the reports of the slayings were largely unnoticed. That changed as the number rose and Iranians began to see the killings as signs of social stresses. "Husband killing is a new phenomenon in Iran's male-dominated society. It means economic hardships and social crises are reaching a crisis point," said Mohammad Ahmadi, a sociologist. He cited a number of problems in Iranian society that lead to frustration and desperation: forced marriages, philandering by husbands, impotence, poverty and no healthy entertainment in a country whose Islamic laws ban socializing between men and women who are not closely related. Others blame restrictive divorce laws that leave women feeling murder is the only way out of a bad marriage. In Ferdows case, she accused her husband of abuse. "During 30 years of matrimonial life, Hedayat always beat me. He was a doubter and skeptical of everything and didn't trust me. He had made the life hell for me," Ferdows told authorities, who have identified her only by her first name. Ferdows paid a man the equivalent of $3,750 to stab her husband to death three years ago, prosecutors said. The crime wasn't exposed until this February, when police found her husband's remains in an abandoned building. She had told people her husband abandoned her. Both Ferdows and the hit man were convicted and sentenced at a closed trial in April. Word of the outcome leaked out a few weeks ago. The punishment for women who murder their husbands is death. Some have already been convicted and executed. Others are on death row and some are awaiting trial. They come from all social classes. "Divorce is the first solution for women to get rid of an undesirable troubled life. But why did these women ignore this option and resort to something that carries the death sentence?" asked the monthly magazine Zanan (Women). While Iranian men can divorce almost at will, a woman who wants a divorce must go through a legal battle that can take up to 20 years, said lawyer Sara Irani. Even then, she said, it might end with the woman failing to dissolve the marriage. Under Iran's Islamic laws, a man is allowed to keep four wives at one time, a right not granted to women. Even if a husband is having an affair, he can claim to have undertaken a "sigheh," or temporary marriage. It's a contract allowed under Iranian law that allows a man and woman to be "married" for any length of time they choose. Critics call it a form of legalized prostitution. Nor does a wife trapped in a violent marriage have much recourse against her husband. "A woman has to bring four men witnesses confirming violence against her by her husband," Irani said. "How is a woman in Iran expected to keep four men in her bedroom to witness her husband beating her?" Irani, who is also a writer on women's affairs, said that husband killing is the "outcome of humiliation and discrimination against women" and that the recent surge in cases should pressure the country's leaders to improve legal protection for women. Ahmadi, the sociologist, said that in a country where there is virtually no sex education, unhappy marriages and domestic violence also can arise when husbands and wives don't know how to please each other. "Many couples don't have enjoyable sex," he said. Abdosamad Khorramshahi, a lawyer, sees social changes contributing to the killings. "Previously, we had a socially closed society. Women were not allowed even to get out of the home without the husband's permission. Now, things have changed. They are more outspoken and courageous. Women have become aware of their rights and are fighting for equality," he said. According to official figures, 44,000 Iranians were divorced last year, a 12 percent increase from the previous year. At the same time, registered marriages were down 4.5 percent.
TEHRAN, Iran -- Married at age 13 to a man 18 years her senior, Ferdows was the wife that Iranian society expected her to be: obedient, and silent, despite the beatings and humiliation.
Of course it does mean more nagging.
Yes, I did. What's your point?
Earplugs Bro.....Or learn to do the tune-out....
And we certainly aren't stupid enough to leave the bodies in an empty building.................
Only Ellen Degenerate knows the answer to that question.
Actually, most middle-class, educated Islamic men do not want four wives either. I'm friendly with several Muslims at work. And, I've been told, that unless the man is very wealthy, he cannot afford more than one wife. Not to mention, all the extra children.
Moreover, unless he is a cruel tyrant, middle-class, educated Islamic men find having four wives extremely taxing. They NEVER stop fighting among themselves and are always asking the husband to resolve some petty dispute. And, the competition among the children can be very draining.
Basically, more than one wife works only for wealthy men, where there is no shortage of anything. So each wife and her children can be happy.
Of course, there are evil, tyrannical husbands, but that is true everywhere ...
And if they're smart, they quit fighting among themselves and gang up on the poor guy. Plus there's the 4 mother-in-laws.
They've got a religious word to justify any strange desire. Wanna kill someone? Its a jihad. Want to cheat on your wife? Its a singheh.
"Is it dark in the trunk, Earl?"
LOL! I just LOVE the Dixie Chicks, and that song!!
Dream on!
Dream on!
Yep. Zero times four is still zero.
So true. Each wife has her own meddling family - grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc. And, yes, they do gang up on the poor fellow from time to time. Unless a man has a lot of money, it does not work.
In all my encounters with Muslim's over the years, I have never met one whose father had more than wife. Whenever I ask about it, Muslims widened their eyes and shake their heads at the mere thought of the scenario.
But, of course, I'm meeting educated Muslims who emigrated from Islamic countries. Their families back home are not traditional Islamic ones.
BTW, I don't think women are so powerless in all home situations. Based on what I've been told, the women have a lot of power in the home.
It's outside the home that they are powerless.
In fact, there are times that handling ONE wife proves to be too much!
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