Kelly L Razzouk  08/21/2009 05:43:30 PM  From  DB/Inbox:  Kelly L Razzouk

Cable 
Text:                                                                      
                                                                           
      
UNCLAS        AMMAN 01885
CXAMMAN:
    ACTION: POL
    INFO:   RSO ECON RAO DCM AMB PA

DISSEMINATION: POL
CHARGE: PROG

APPROVED: AMB:R. STEPHEN BEECR
DRAFTED: POL:KRAZZOUK
CLEARED: DCM: LM, POL: JW, POL: RH, POL: GH, AID: EH, CON:DA, RSO: MM

VZCZCAJI738
PP RUEHC RUEHEE RUCNDT
DE RUEHAM #1885/01 2321421
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 201421Z AUG 09
FM AMEMBASSY AMMAN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5781
RUEHEE/ARAB LEAGUE COLLECTIVE
INFO RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0088

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