Silenced Women–Modern Lessons from an Ancient Murder

Silenced Women–Modern Lessons from an Ancient Murder

In the second century A.D., the pregnant wife of a prosperous Greek politician died from a vicious assault.

Appia Annia Regilla Atilia Caudicia Tertulla, or Regilla, was born into an affluent Roman family in 125 A.D.; she married the Greek politician Herodes Atticus, also from an affluent family, around 140 (when she was 15); and 20 years later, when she was 8-months pregnant with their 6th child, she died from a brutal beating which included a fatal kick to her stomach.

This is a case of domestic abuse that resulted in murder. A wife was beaten to death by the order of her husband. An unborn child, just weeks from birth, was killed by a father’s command.

Read More: Silenced Women–Modern Lessons from an Ancient Murder

See Also: The Murder of Regilla: A Case of Domestic Violence in Antiquity

The Case of Mistress Mary Hampson

From the Daily Mail comes a harrowing tale of marital abuse from the 17th century:

A pamphlet detailing the beatings, threats and intimidation endured by a Yorkshire housewife more than 300 years ago has been uncovered by academics at the University of Huddersfield.

In the work, which dates from 1684 (A Plain and Compendious Relation of the Case of Mrs. Mary Hampson, as it Now is: And Formerly Printed for the Satisfaction of a Private Friend, But Now is Set Forth by Her Relief), a woman named Mary Hampson lists the catalogue of abuse she suffered at the hands of her overbearing and violent husband.

Although Mrs Hampson eventually escaped her abusive spouse, she first endured being beaten and starved and a violent incident involving a gun - all of which is detailed the 1684 pamphlet.

In her new book, The Case of Mistress Mary Hampson, academic Dr Jessica Malay includes the full text of the 1684 pamphlet plus extensive extra material, which examines the episode in depth and rounds out the story of Mary, who died in 1698, after a few short, final years of relative peace and prosperity.

For more on the story see:

University of Huddersfield: A shocking, often violent saga of marital abuse

Stanford University Press: The Case of Mistress Mary Hampson
Huddersfield Daily Examiner: University of Huddersfield expert uncovers domestic abuse story - from 1684

Georgia Newsday: Story of 17th century battered wife uncovered in 1684 pamphlet

The Ghost Rapes of Bolivia

Six days ago a most disturbing article was posted on the website VICE, written by Jean Friedman-Rudovsky entitled "The Ghost Rapes of Bolivia".


From Jean's article:
"For a while, the residents of Manitoba Colony thought demons were raping the town’s women. There was no other explanation. No way of explaining how a woman could wake up with blood and semen stains smeared across her sheets and no memory of the previous night. No way of explaining how another went to sleep clothed, only to wake up naked and covered by dirty fingerprints all over her body. No way to understand how another could dream of a man forcing himself onto her in a field – and then wake up the next morning with grass in her hair.

Then, one night in June 2009, two men were caught trying to enter a neighbour’s home. The two ratted out a few friends and, falling like a house of cards, a group of nine Manitoba men, ages 19 to 43, eventually confessed that they had been raping Colony families since 2005."

Menno Simons, a 16th century Protestant Reformer from 

whom the Mennonites get their name

Jean's article goes on to report a disturbing case of mass rape and other violence against the women (and in some cases, men and boys) of the small Bolivian community, dating back (from today's date) over eight years. It is a disturbing indictment against the masculine views of this community towards this horrid situation - and one which in this day and age seem almost medieval.

For Jean's article on VICE, please use this link: The Ghost Rapes of Bolivia


For items posted on this blog that also focused on this tragedy, please see:
Victims of Mennonite “Old Colonies” in Bolivia posted 27th August 2011
Bolivia - Violence Against Women and Girls posted 28th June 2009


See also:
History of the Mennonite Church
Mennonites on wikipedia

Epidemic of Rape in Peru

From RH Reality Check:

Peru, while famous for its modern culinary delights and ancient civilizations, also has a far less flattering distinction: it has more reported cases of rape and sexual violence than any other country in South America. Eight in ten of these victims are minors.

Researchers estimate that 35,000 pregnancies occur every year in Peru as a result of rape. Women and girls in this situation are faced with two options: seek an illegal abortion and risk going to jail or carry the pregnancy to term and suffer the psychological and physical trauma that go along with giving birth to your rapist’s child. Women who can prove that a pregnancy is the result of rape receive a “reduced” sentence of three months in jail (the standard prison sentence for illegal abortions in Peru is two years). Perversely, this reduced sentence does not apply to married women who are raped by their husbands, even though marital rape is a crime under Peruvian law. Doctors who perform abortions in cases of rape face up to six years in prison.

A coalition of women’s rights groups have launched a campaign to challenge this cruel violation of human rights. The campaign, Dejala Decidir (“Let her decide”), seeks to introduce a new law that decriminalizes abortion in cases of rape (currently, abortion is only permitted when the woman’s life or health is at risk). The groups, led by partners of the International Women’s Health Coalition—PROMSEX, Demus, Catholics for the Right to Decide-Peru, Manuela Ramos, CLADEM-Peru, and Flora Tristán—need to collect 60,000 valid signatures to petition Congress to consider the bill.

Pakistani Women Has New Nose After 32 Years

From Gulf News:

After six years of abuse, Allah Rakhi was in the process of walking out of her marriage when her husband struck once again. Snatching a knife, he sliced off her nose. “You’re no longer beautiful!” he shouted.

He then slashed at her foot - a brutal punishment for leaving the house without his permission.

“A woman is only a woman inside the home, outside she’s a [expletive]!” he yelled at Rakhi as she lay bleeding on the dusty street just outside her home.

That was 32 years ago. All that time, Rakhi hid her disfigured face under a veil. Then in March, a surgeon took up her case. He cut flesh from her ribs and fashioned it into a new nose, and in the process, has transformed her life.

Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme

From The Guardian:

A man whose daughter was murdered by her violent boyfriend has handed in a petition at Downing Street calling for a change in the law to protect women from domestic abuse.

Michael Brown, from Batley, West Yorkshire, travelled to London as part of a campaign to introduce "Clare's Law" named after his daughter, Clare Wood, who was killed by her boyfriend in February 2009.

The law would allow women to find out if their boyfriends or husbands had a previous history of domestic violence.

Clare Wood met her boyfriend, George Appleton, on Facebook, unaware of his long history of violence against women, including repeated harrassment, threats and kidnapping one of his former girlfriends at knifepoint.

He strangled Clare Wood and set her on fire before going on the run, before taking his own life.

At an inquest into her death, which was held last year, coroner Jennifer Leeming said women in abusive relationships has a right to know about the violent past of the men they were with. A verdict of unlawfull killing by strangulation was recorded as the cause of her death.

Bangladeshi Women & Dowries

From IOL News:

Farzana Yasmin sought a divorce just hours after her wedding when her new husband's family demanded dowry payments.

Despite the stigma of divorce in Bangladesh, she is not worried about her future.

She wants other women to be brave enough to maintain their dignity in the face of dowry demands that have destroyed the happiness of millions of women in the Muslim-majority South Asian country, and led to numerous deaths.

Violence related to dowries has resulted in the deaths of more than 2 000 women in Bangladesh in the last decade.

The government outlawed the practice over 30 years ago, but it persists and is still taking a heavy toll.

In the first nine months of 2011, dowry-related violence caused the deaths of 268 women compared to 137 the previous year, according to Bangladesh Mahila Parishad women's rights organisation, based on monitoring of media reports.

Smita Jadhav - Increase in Dowry Deaths

From DNA India:

The new head of the women grievance redressal cell of the Pune Police, Smita Jadhav, handles a sensitive posting. As an incharge of the cell, Jadhav and her team have to counsel warring couples to try and bridge the gap between them. A student of history from the Fergusson College, Jadhav has plans to make the women aware of their rights. Chaitraly Deshmukh spoke to Jadhav to know about her future plans for the women’s cell.

As many as 48 married women in their 20s have fallen prey to the greed of their in-laws following mental and physical harassment over dowry in the last 11 months. What is your opinion on this?

"It is a shocking figure as we are in the 21st century and the city is witnessing increasing number of dowry deaths. Most of the women are in the age group of 20 to 30.

Women have fallen prey to dowry demands. Most of them are educated and belong to good families. Many women do not come forward despite knowing that laws have been made to protect them. Yet, they choose to remain silent and silence kills them. They sometimes approach us but later disappear. We cannot keep a track of each and every case but we make it a point to follow-up serious cases."

See also:

Death & Dowry in India

Dowry in Ancient Times & the Role of Women in Indian Society

Sil Lai Abrams - No More Drama

From The Grio:

As a magazine columnist, motivational speaker and published book author (No More Drama, Sepia Press Publishing, 2007), you'd figure this sista is simply "too put together" to have been caught up with a man who would raise his voice at her, let alone his fists.

A former runway model, Sil Lai's posture, even while nestled comfortably in an armchair in her living room, is astute and refined. She has no problem telling you she is 41. But her well-kept figure, vibrant demeanor and unblemished, caramel skin tone gives the appearance of a young woman many years her junior.

But during our hour-long interview in her Park Slope apartment in Brooklyn, she recalled a less-than-confident 22-year old version of her former self who struggled with low self-esteem and bouts with alcoholism. She also was a single mother to a young son while pursuing a demanding modeling career with no familial or financial support.

It took just three weeks into their relationship before he displayed the signs of an abuser: controlling her every step, intimidation, using abusive language, etc. Two years would pass before Scott laid his hands on her. It took place while they were moving into their new apartment in The Bronx.

National Day of Remembrance and Action in Violence Against Women in Canada

From the Red River Valley Echo:

Dec. 6 is the National Day of Remembrance and Action in Violence Against Women in Canada.

This day coincides with the sad anniversary of the deaths of 14 women who were tragically killed in Montreal because of their gender.

None of the victims who went to class at L'Ecole Polytechnique could have guessed that they were a target.

That day, on a cold late December afternoon in 1989, a young man named Marc Lepine lashed out with a semi-automatic rifle.

As soon as he entered a classroom, he separated the women from the men, lined the women along the wall, and then killed them one by one.

In addition to killing 14 female engineering students, he injured eight other women, and also four men who tried to stop him.

Then, he killed himself.

This tragic event has come to be known as the Montreal Massacre.

A police investigation later revealed that Lepine was on a mission. In his pocket, they found a list of 15 other female targets in various professions.

In his eyes, they were all guilty of the same thing. They were all women who chose non-traditional careers and dared to be leaders in their fields.

Since then, over 170 women have died through acts of violence in Manitoba. It's these kinds of senseless acts that make places like Genesis House in Winkler so necessary.

Egypt: Suicide or Honor Killing

From the Belfast Telegraph:

Officially, Egypt has no "honour" killings. Young women may commit suicide, yes, but they are never murdered. This is the government line – and of course, it is a lie. The files in Azza Suleiman's Centre for Egyptian Women's Legal Assistance office – and in those of other NGOs in Cairo – tell the truth. In May of 2007, a farmer in southern Egypt decapitated his daughter after discovering she had a boyfriend. In March of 2008, a man identified only as "Mursi" electrocuted and beat to death his 17-year-old daughter because she had received a phone call from her boyfriend. "Mursi", a farmer from Kafr el-Sheikh in the Nile Delta, admitted he "beat her with a large stick" before finishing her off with electric shocks; the murder was only discovered when the body turned up at the local hospital.

Azza Suleiman's work provides much bleaker material. Incest is a major problem which no one will discuss, she says. Recently, an Egyptian man admitted killing his daughter because she was pregnant. But he was the father of his daughter's unborn child. It was a case of incest. But he killed her to protect the family's "honour". Four other women have recently been murdered by their families because they were raped. The Christian Coptic community – perhaps 10 per cent of the Egyptian population – has closed itself off from any "honour" killing investigations even though Christian girls have been murdered because they wanted to marry Muslim men. "Christians cannot talk about this outside the church," Azza Suleiman complains. "We have tried to open up shelters, but the government will not allow it. They say: 'Please, no talk of incest.' And 'honour' crimes are often also related to inheritance."

UK: The Haven a Haven

From the Birmingham Mail:

Statistics show one in four women will experience domestic violence from a violent partner at some point in their lifetime.

In Wolverhampton, The Haven has five refuges for women and dependent children and is able to cater for nearly 50 people at a time.

That care package involves more than a safe roof over their heads, says family support worker Charlotte Lloyd. Women are also offered counselling, signposting to other services and outreach support when they are able to move on.

No More Tears

From the Miami Herald:

Today, her four-bedroom Plantation home is the headquarters of No More Tears, a nonprofit Ali founded in 2006 to help immigrant women in South Florida escape domestic abuse.

The women (46 so far) hail from distant lands -- India, Russia, Guyana -- and nearby countries including Cuba and the Bahamas. They come from many faiths, and often arrive in South Florida via arranged marriages. They're cleaning women. Homemakers. Teachers.

Ali, 34, finds them apartments and rounds up donated furnishings. She lines up jobs or training, registers their kids in school and baby-sits when needed. All the while, she inches the women toward independence.

``It is like they are being held captive. They don't have a say,'' she says. ``It's ridiculous that this is happening in the United States. We have to learn about it and do something about it.''

Rise in Female Suicides

Two rather disturbing reports on women driven to the edge.

From ABC News:

Government statistics in Afghanistan have raised concerns that a growing number of Afghan women are attempting suicide.

The government says every year about 2,300 women or girls attempt to kill themselves, mainly due to mental illness, domestic violence and poverty.

Rachel Reid, Afghan analyst from Human Rights Watch, has told Radio Australia's Connect Asia program there are a range of issues facing women in Afghanistan.

The report shows a several-fold increase in suicide attempt compared to 30 years ago, including more than 100 cases of self-immolation at Herat City Hospital in the past year, and an increase in the number of women using pharmaceuticals to kill themselves.

And from the Indian Express:

Three married women have committed suicide, in separate incidents, following alleged mental and physical harassment by their husbands and in laws over the last two days.

AFL: All-Girl Umpires in SA League

From the Southern Times Messenger:

THE first all-female umpiring panel will soon hit the ground for a Southern Football League game to help raise the profile of women umpires.

Eight young women will umpire the A-grade match between Port Noarlunga and Aldinga on Saturday, August 14, in a first for South Australian footy at this level.  One of the organisers is ump Steph Morrison, 21, from the Combined Southern Leagues Football Umpires Panel.

“We were out with girls having a movie night when we got into discussing how we could promote female umpires and we decided to start with our local leagues,” Morrison, of Glengowrie, said.

Last month, she was invited to be part of an umpiring team that made history in the Barossa Light & Gawler Football Association when all but the two goal umpires were women.

Morrison said the group had come up with the idea of an all-female panel early in the season but decided to hold off until the SFL’s White Ribbon round.

Amnesty Unimpressed By "Action"

From the NZ Herald:

Amnesty International has condemned the Pacific Islands Forum leaders for being all talk and no action on reducing violence against Pacific women.

After the forum, which concluded in Vanuatu yesterday, Pacific leaders commended themselves for their action and acknowledged a recommendation to set up a reference group on gender-based violence in the future.

But Amnesty International said this was "weak and disappointing".

"Governments need to step up action," said Hannah Harborow, the Amnesty International Australia co-ordinator of the Stop Violence Against Women Campaign.

"Last year they pledged to eradicate gender-based violence. There hasn't been a lot of movement in the last 12 months. This year we wanted concrete facts about what they will do."

Pacific researcher Apolosi Bose said the forum was simply paying "lip service" to the issue. "Culture is often used as an excuse for inaction on this issue, but it is not a Pacific tradition to rape, torture, abuse or murder women and young girls."

Sisters To Sisters

From the Jamaica Information Centre:

Sisters to Sisters, a charitable organization made up of women in the various areas of public life, including Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture, the Hon Olivia "Babsy" Grange, has donated approximately $8 million to the Women's Centre Foundation and the Bureau of Women's Affairs.

The presentation took place Friday (July 30) at the Women's Centre, Trafalgar Road, Kingston. The cheques were collected by Executive Director of the Women's Centre Foundation, Beryl Weir, and Executive Director of the Bureau of Women's Affairs, Faith Webster.

Jezebel Misses the Big Picture

From Registan:

TIME magazine’s current cover features the mutilated but still beautiful face of Aisha, an 18 year old Afghan woman whose Taliban husband, a man who literally bought her as a slave when she was just 10 years old, cut off her nose and ears as punishment for fleeing his abuse. Overlaid on Aisha’s striking picture is the headline: ‘What Happens if We Leave Afghanistan.’ Inside, journalist Aryn Baker writes about what has changed for women in Afghanistan since 2001, and what has not. The professional women she interviews, and survivors like Aisha, express alarm at the prospect of the Taliban returning.

There’s nothing untrue in the article, and, unlike so many other journalists, Baker doesn’t condescend to the Afghan women she interviews. Yet, the cover photo and the article have generated a storm of controversy in the blogosphere, with Irin Carmon of Jezebel and Derrick Crowe of Return Good for Evil leading the criticism with long arguments against the TIME’s choices.

Canada: Funding For Missing Women in Limbo

From the Province:

After announcing in March that it would spend $10 million on the issue of murdered and missing aboriginal women in Canada, the federal government has sat on its hands, doing nothing, federal Liberals charged Wednesday.

Speaking in Winnipeg at the site of the three-day Assembly of First Nations national meeting, Liberal MP Anita Neville called the Conservative government's response since its announcement "tepid."

"Nothing has been forthcoming and we're waiting," she said.

It's believed that 580 aboriginal girls and women have been murdered or gone missing in Canada since 1970, more than half of them since 2000.

"It is, in our view, sexualized, racialized violence, and it requires a comprehensive strategy," said Neville, speaking at a news conference along with federal Liberal aboriginal affairs critic Todd Russell.

Neville said Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff has promised a public inquiry into the matter.

Canada: Women in Need House III

From the Edmonton Journal:

Located inside a hidden, highly secured Edmonton-area home, WIN III is the only shelter in the country specifically designed for immigrant women fleeing domestic violence.

The five-bedroom home, which can house two families or four women at a time, is the brainchild of Edmonton Women's Shelter Ltd., operated by Changing Together, a local centre for immigrant women, and staff say it's been full since they opened three months ago.

"To see women who thought they had no place to go come in and say 'Thank you for accepting me' -- that's the moment you know this project is important to our community," explains Sandra Danco, Edmonton Women's Shelter director.

Edmonton is home to more than 143,000 immigrants, just over half of them female. The United Way says one in 10 immigrant women in Canada is a victim of violence.