A few weeks ago, I posted a piece about a woman in Bangladesh who was lashed for having committed the “grievous crime” of getting pregnant as the result of a rape. And while I take absolutely no pleasure in writing about violence against women (or violence in general), I stand by my statement that events like these need to be discussed… as otherwise, the appalling treatment of women in some parts of the world will forever be swept under the rug. That being said, I find this story especially hard to take… so fair warning.

In Turkey, the body of a 16-year-old girl was found recently, buried under a chicken pen near her family’s home. It is thought that she was the victim of a so-called “honor killing.” Every aspect of this story would be awful in its own right… but all together, it’s almost unbearably sad. The victim was allegedly murdered by her father and grandfather. The “crime” that led to the honor killing? The “grave sin” of talking to boys. And possibly the most horrific part: the victim was killed by being buried alive. An autopsy revealed a “large amount of soil in her stomach and lungs,” meaning she had been alive when buried. No narcotics were found in her system… meaning she had been fully conscious and aware as well.

I can’t stop thinking about how scared this girl must have been… and how horrible her final moments probably were. The father and the grandfather have been arrested and are likely to be charged with murder… but it says a lot about notions of patriarchy and male dominance that these murders are condoned by some. Without the idea that women are somehow “less than” men, and therefore must bend to the will and whims of men, despicable incidents like this and the aforementioned rape case wouldn’t exist, much less be tolerated in some circles. If you’re interested in learning more about the plight of women and girls across the world, check out Amnesty International’s Violence Against Women program here. And leave your thoughts in the comments section!

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