CAIRO: One-hundred and twenty-nine women died due to crimes of violence in the second half of 2009, bringing the annual toll to 301 victims, according to a human rights report released Wednesday. The report, published by the Land Center for Human Rights, referred to incidents of violence against women that have been published in local newspapers during the second half of 2009; it points to a campaign of abuse and violence against women that amounted to 256 crimes of violence, of which 129 were fatal. Reported incidents of abductions and sexual assault against women reached 33, three perpetrated by members of the family and 30 by members from the outside community. Eleven of the total claimed the victims lives. The report cited 10 cases of domestic abuse and 44 cases of spousal dispute; 29 of the latter were fatal. Meanwhile, poor health care amounts to 29 of the recorded cases, of which 11 caused death. Suicide attempts reached 22, 17 of which succeeded in taking their own lives. Other categories included road accidents and premeditated murder, which claimed the lives of 14 and 50 women respectively. According to the report, violence against women is still on the rise. In the first half of 2009, 232 crimes of violence were recorded, of which 172 caused death, as opposed to the 256 cases reported in the second half. In 2009, 301 women died out of a total of 488 recorded cases of violence. On cases of familial sexual assault, the report included details of the three incidents, all of which took place in August, October and November. The first is of a student who attempted to rape his step mother, which eventually led to her death. The second is of a father who impregnated his daughter and the third is of a father who attempted to rape his three daughters. On the other hand, cases of sexual assault by members of the community were attributed to sexual assault, harassment and revenge. The report sheds light on the increase in gang rape and abductions, citing 22 cases of two to six men abducting women for the purpose of rape. In most cases, the attackers kidnap their victims for a period longer than two days as they take turns at raping them, after which they leave them on the street. The report also points to taxi and toktok drivers who kidnap women to rape them alone or in the presence of other men. In addition, 16 women have been subjected to violence from police officers, government personnel and people in high ranks, according to the report. Such violence resulted in physical and psychological damage and is manifested in detention, discrimination, lashing, sexual harassment and the lack of access to education and employment. Of the 16 cases, seven women are housewives, according to the report. The rest are either employees or students, which include journalists, helpers, a teacher, an accountant, a lawyer, a housing manager and a head of a school. The report calls on amending existing Egyptian legislation to abide by international standards that ensure women are not discriminated against. In addition, the report calls for criminalizing all acts of violence against women under the penal code. The report also called on school curricula and media outlets to promote non-violence and equality among all members of society.
