There is no good that came of this womans hoax. She gave aid and comfort to those who would deny honor killings.
She is suspect in a FBI investigation, that means she has been a very naughty girl.
For god’s sake man she dumped her kids off an unsuspecting neighbor for three solid months. I’m sure the Feds were real happy when those kids finally showed up at the Consulates’ door.
More to the point what kind of damage have those kids sustained now they have entered the maw of Children’s Services?
Personally I hope the Feds nail this witch to the wall.

First, honour killings are tragic and criminal. Whether the number of victims is “low” or “high”, the act is very clearly wrong and forbidden in Islam.

But this is a discussion of a documentary film and a woman who misused a cause; watch the film if you haven’t already and see for yourself how she invokes the cause at random. I don’t buy it coming from her.

So when you say:

It’s fine to be angry and disappointed when you’ve been lied to and about. But is it worth it to take your eye off the ball for years at a time when people are dying?

I’m not really sure what your point is. Who is taking their eye off the ball exactly? From what I can see, people, including yourself, are still working hard to see this criminal practice eliminated, and you are to be commended for it. The Norma Khouri scandal really shouldn’t change that, even though she has misrepresented facts for her own personal gain.

If you have details regarding those Jordanian laws regarding honour killings I would be interested to find out more.

Thankyou,

Noor Hammad

P.S. Khouri made a lot of money selling the product of her lies. What could that money have done to combat the situation of honour killings in Jordan? I doubt she gives it a thought.

The comparison of the number of “honor” killings in Jordan with violence figures elsewhere is an apples and oranges comparison. Jordan’s “honor” killings figures are believed by some reputable sources to be the highest per capita in the world. And “honor” killings in Jordan by no means represent the sole form of violence there. In the West, there are laws that punish all kinds of murder. In Jordan, there are three laws on the books that protect the perpetrators in “honor” killings, so much so that they are treated as misdemeanors and the average sentence is just six months. Lastly, Jordan’s population is only about six million. No reasonable person would expect the number of cases of violence there to be as high as more populated Western countries.

One of the casualties of Norma’s deceptions seems to be the truth. The baby is getting thrown out with the bath water.

As mentioned in the review, honour killings are discussed in the film, but it’s ultimately a look at Norma Khouri, the con artist — not the cause.

I don’t find it at all surprising that those who genuinely work to eliminate the brutal practice of honour killings are mightily disgusted and annoyed by Khouri. I don’t think the baby has been thrown out with the bathwater. I think many still work to change the status quo — but this is in no small part thanks to Khouri.

Although her book is fictional, the fact remains that “honor” killings do occur in Jordan (some sources claim it has one of the highest per capita rates in the world). They occur more or less in the manner of the fictional Dalia’s (some are even more baseless and brutal). And there have been few, if any, actions taken in Jordan that would better protect these at-risk girls and women. The laws don’t protect them (in fact, there are three penal code articles on the books in Jordan that offer leniency to the perpetrators). There are no women’s shelters that will accept them. And, according to research I recently conducted in Jordan, approximately one in five Jordanians believes Islam tells them they must avenge affronts to family honor by killing. Islam says no such thing but, clearly, there is an opportunity in the mosques and in the schools to correct this misperception.

Ellen R. Sheeley, Author
“Reclaiming Honor in Jordan”