I will never be the person who says, “Now I’ve heard it all” because whenever I think I have heard it all (figuratively speaking of course), I read something like this and sit jaw-dropped.
I’ve not been everywhere in the world but the places I have visited have helped to shape my opinions and understanding of other cultures. I guess in essence, I have learned to appreciate differences that I do not believe in. It’s the light version of ‘to each his own’. I find other cultural ideologies to be of great interest. This latest find however, I do not.
It is the Islamic version of ‘an eye for an eye’, which, in this case, would be the intentional infliction of paralysis. A Saudi judge in Cairo is currently seeking a hospital where doctors would damage a human spinal cord, causing permanent paralysis as punishment for causing the paralysis of another.
The family of the currently paralyzed victim has requested an equivalent punishment be inflicted upon his attacker, and, under Islamic law, such a request is deemed a normal legal right, and more times than not, granted. There is other restitution the family can seek which is known as blood money, but they are adamant about equal punishment.
I can honestly say I do not know what to think about this. I have always considered myself a relatively open-minded person (except when others disagree with me) and whether I agree with the cultural reasoning or not, I’ve always been able to appreciate it for it’s fundamental significance, however, I have never been a believer in ‘an eye for an eye’. As much as I’ve thought about this story and as hard as I’ve tried to understand or make sense of it, I just cannot.
I realize now had I been around in the 1930’s and 40’s, I would have made a great Gandhi follower. An eye for an eye and the whole world goes blind…
Related Articles
- Saudi judge considers punishment by paralysis (msnbc.msn.com)
- Saudi judge weighs ‘eye-for-eye’ punishment of paralysis (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
- “A judge in Saudi Arabia is considering a medical procedure to damage a man’s spinal cord as punishment.” and related posts (genevalunch.com)
- Report: Saudi judge considers paralysis punishment (sfgate.com)
- Saudi judge considers paralysis punishment (theglobeandmail.com)
- Saudi judge considers paralysis punishment (mysanantonio.com)
