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A PREGNANT SUDANESE teenager has been handed a one-month jail term for “indecent acivity” after being gang-raped, according to her lawyer.
“But the sentence was suspended because she is pregnant,” Samia Hashmi told AFP.
The woman was also fined 5,000 pounds (€640).
A man whose video of others having sex with the pregnant Ethiopian teen created a rare case of Internet controversy in the conservative nation was sentenced to 40 lashes the lawyer said.
Hashmi said three men who admitted to having sex with the woman were sentenced to 100 lashes while another man who filmed the acts received the 40-lash penalty for distributing indecent material.
“He was also fined 10,000 pounds and if he doesn’t pay he will be jailed for six months,” the lawyer said, adding two other men were acquitted after the trial in Khartoum.
The video published on social media showed sex acts and some of the men laughing.
Despite the popularity of mobile messaging service WhatsApp in Sudan, this was a rare case of such a crime being publicly flaunted in the conservative nation, where women risk flogging for leaving their hair uncovered under morality laws which took effect after the 1989 Islamist-backed coup by President Omar al-Bashir.
The Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA Network), a regional association of women’s groups, said the 18-year-old pregnant woman was lured to an empty property and attacked while house-hunting last year.
Arrests were made after publication of the video in January, SIHA Network said on its website.
Hala Elkarib, the group’s regional director, said the verdict reflects the substantial challenges victims of sexual violence face in pursuing justice.
“It will also serve to prevent future victims from speaking out and seeking assistance and entrenches a culture of impunity for perpetrators,” Elkarib said.
- © AFP 2014 with additional reporting by Michelle Hennessy.
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Looking at the Police, the Judicial system, the people, I think Mauritius would be one of the last places on earth I would visit !
It’s a good thing the French didn’t say that about Ireland after our high profile case in west Cork…
Yea because we’re overwhelmed with French tourists every year………..
Only about 400,000 every year… our fourth largest tourist market.
She wasn’t a tourist and he wasn’t irish.
Who wasn’t Irish? The case is unsolved… Do you know something the Gardaí don’t?
Why should they Peter. Do you no something the rest of us don’t no???
If Mauritius is interested in justice they should break up that cabal of police officers who secured a confession through the use of torture on Avinash Treebhoowoon. Seems over 80% of convictions in Mauritius are secured through confessions.
Right he should ! And the police should hold the husband for further investigations
The two defendants have admitted to stealing ,but they walk free,justice has not been, if the judgement is they are not guilty, then the case should be investigated again, somebody killed her!!!
Dumbest post so far I’ve read on this and there’s a fair few on boards.ie as well….did you even read up on this trial Peter? It’s fairly obvious you didn’t ..maybe you should and give your brain a chance to think before opening your mouth.
@Peter
You are a fool, ignorant and inhuman. I hope you never get on to a jury of any kind. They may be, may be found innocent of murdering but they were in her room, they did steal. To me, the police screwed up here. This case should be opened again, for Michaela, her husband and her family. Justice has to prevail here.
They may have stolen from the room, but thats no reason to charge them with murder.
If the police had done their damn job properly and not be in such a rush then the right people would have been caught
Im not one bit surprised. Police job was a farce. Poor family though.
What a bunch of crap. The trial should be made void and an appeal lodged. The Judge has blundered while giving his last instructions to the jury prior to them retiring and this has had a great impact on the jury’s decision.
There wasn’t a shred of evidence against the accused men so it’s difficult to see where the judge blundered in giving instructions to the jury. A more important question is why the bellboy wasn’t questioned in court. He, along with Michelle’s husband, found the body yet only his statement was introduced.
THe judge told the jury they are not politicians and were not there to send the world signals about the island’s police or judicial system. This has had great impact on jury’s decision and that is why the whole verdict should be annulled and debated again before the Privy Council. The DPP must lodge an appeal before the latter court in UK.
Judge Prithviraj Fekna told the jury before they retired to make their decision to ignore the wider implications of the trial, and focus ONLY on evidence presented in court.
“”You have been told that this will have an international ramification and will affect the image of Mauritius… this is not your role. You must not allow yourself to be influenced by this, you are not politicians, you have to base yourself on what has happened.”"
Reads to me like a standard instruction from a judge to a jury in a high profile case.
As I said in another thread Fotocrat, your whole attitude seems to be “they’re guilty because everyone knows they’re guilty – why would we need any evidence?”.
The Ian Bailey case springs to mind…
I have been commenting and making MY own opinion according to what has been reported read in the press. And anyway, the whole process has only been a joke, sadly yes, and also a shame for the nation of Mauritius and its incompetent, protectionist and corrupt authorities at the highest level. I reiterate that It’s high time for a public enquiry into processes and procedures within the Mauritius Police itself, which is under the authority of the Commissioner of Police who has to report directly to the Prime Minister only.
POLL:
Should a private investigation lead by volunteer experienced Criminal Investigators be launched to find the culprit(s) in late Michaela’s murder case?
Red/Green thumbs will do.
Apparently my comments are “potentially libellous” so i will have to rephrase.
If these two guys are Not Guilty, but the room was definitely accessed by staff member(s) key card, then does it not appear that the murderer may very well be still working at the Lux Grande Garb hotel? In my opinion potential customers should know this.
Hotel records indicated that someone gained access using a FALSE electronic key card at 3.42pm, two minutes before Michelle entered the room. Then there’s the reports of ‘skin tissue’ under Michelle’s fingernails as she fought off her attacker(s). No DNA from the cleared men was found in the room.
Her poor family. Something does not add up here – 8 weeks of evidence reviewed and digested in less than 2 hours? That’s fishy to start with.
Nothing fishy at all about it, that’s plenty of time to come to a decision, especially when you consider that chances are they’d have been reviewing it daily on personal levels, and weighing new evidence as it came, up against old, chances are a lot of their minds would have been well made up before they went of to deliberate.
The McAreaveys should sue the cops for making a cockup of the whole thing. Idiots
When Enda Kenny stood up this morning and said justice was not done. It’s a pity the journal didn’t have the balls to report on it. Fair play Enda
why fair play to enda?
it is not for him to be making any comment on this (he has no problem not making comments on plenty of other things)
if he had to make a comment why not ‘justice hasn’t been done yet’? which would have been a true and fair comment?
I’m going to be watching that damages case. Hopefully if he is awarded money Michaela’s husband John will take a civil action for damages under the less stringent ‘balance of probabilities’ legal system… Then new evidence might be uncovered that might just lead to a new criminal prosecution … Hopefully their laws provide for this…
Actually he should take a civil claim against the investigating officers.
It was their inability to do the job properly that lead to the sham of a trial.
All the two workers have been guilty of is going into the room to steal, not actually murdering her.
lux*
That woman has a huge forearm
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