I first posted about this in the
Rape - Whose Fault Is It?, but while it relates strongly to the theme of that thread, I think it deserves its own.
Marte Deborah Dalelv is a 24 year old Norwegian woman who was raped by a colleague on a business trip to Dubai. Immediately after escaping her rapist, she reported the incident to the police who responded by jailing her. She has been imprisoned for sex outside marriage which is illegal under sharia law. The fact this sex was forced on her against her will doesn't seem important.
This happened four months ago. She has now been sentenced to 16 months in prison and is having trouble paying her legal fees. Her employers, The One Planet, who should have helped her out have instead
fired her.
I want to post about it here in its own thread because I think more awareness regarding this will put more pressure on Dubai to release Marte so she can come home. Also, this should be an important reminder that women especially should be careful when travelling abroad to countries where women are oppressed. Me and my wife have taken Dubai off our list of holiday destinations.