Pregnant Woman Raped And Burnt In Kuwait, Man Arrested

On Sunday, Jan. 22, the interior ministry informed through Twitter that Kuwaiti security forces had succeeded in apprehending a suspect in the rape and murder of a Filipina ex-pat.

“After less than 24 hours… criminal security forces managed to resolve the case… where the accused [person] has been detained,” the tweet said. “Investigations continue to determine the circumstances of the incident and legal action in this regard will be taken.”

On Saturday, Jan. 21, a burnt body was discovered along al-Salimi road and the accused was arrested the next day. Al Arabiya reported that the victim's skull had also been smashed.

According to reports, the woman was raped, slain, then burned.

To help identify the victim, her fingerprints were examined.

The autopsy revealed the woman was pregnant, according to Al Arabiya, citing Kuwaiti newspaper al-Rai.

According to reports, investigations revealed that the crime was committed “by a juvenile who raped the [woman] and burnt her body.”

During the course of the investigation, the suspect is said to have confessed to the crime.

Gender-based violence (GBV) crimes, including honor killings, are on the rise in Kuwait, bringing to light the damaging gender perspective that is rooted in Kuwaiti society and its legal system.

Honor killings by male relatives or other men have escalated as a result of the enormously toxic masculinity encouraged by a patriarchal system, with each instance inciting greater fear and rage among women.

Honor killing and ‘sharaf’ are viewed to be interlocked and mutually supported practices in many parts of the world. ‘Sharaf’ is an Arabic word that translates to honor in relation to the sexuality of a woman’s chastity and the responsibility of the male to guard his female relatives.

For women to live their lives free from violence, the country needs education programs to promote gender equality and the implementation of corrective measures and laws to eradicate GBV/honor killing.

People in Kuwait hope change takes place with the recent parliamentary elections that reversed the lack of women representation in the last few parliaments. However, until now, nothing has changed and the question remains whether MPs will be able to cooperate to end GBV as well as honor killing and implement the necessary reform measures.