The crime of the child is a commission that opens the file of domestic violence in Egypt

Hassan Masri-Cairo

A horrific crime has shaken the Egyptian public opinion in the past few days, and opened the file of domestic violence, which has increased recently, where a girl died of torture by the grandmother to punish her for involuntary urination.

The crime took place against the child Jannat Mohammed, who did not exceed her fifth spring.According to official investigations, the grandmother tortured her granddaughter using a sharp machine that was protected by fire, putting it on her genitals, as well as severe beatings, in an attempt to prevent her from bedwetting.

She was evacuated to hospital, where she was found to have severe burns, bruising, pelvic and back traces and swelling of the feet, especially the left gangrene, which required amputation. However, the child died a few days later.

Investigations showed that the child and her elder sister from blind parents separated four years ago, and moved to the custody of the grandmother by judicial ruling because of the loss of their mother's eyesight, and that her elder sister Amani (6 years) was not free from torture, which the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood decided to transfer to a trusted family or One of the nursing homes, besides Al-Azhar adopts her condition.

During the prosecution's investigation, the child Amani said that the grandmother was torturing them for the most trivial reasons in the father, adding: "She was saying I will cut off your flesh because you forget your father and dust because he was Mladkm, even though Baba was choise with us and all his family."

Sadness prevailed on Facebook and Twitter, where she made headlines calling for the execution of the child's killer, which was also demanded by the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood.

Attorney General Safaa Abdel Fattah, the grandmother of the girl, referred the child to the urgent criminal trial, accusing her of beating and torturing her two granddaughters, and causing injuries that killed one of them.

Causes of domestic violence

The incident is a paradise that casts a large shadow over the rates of violence against children, where official statistics showed that there are about 11 thousand complaints, including domestic violence by 35% and sexual violence 56%, according to press statements to Sabri Othman, director of the child helpline of the National Council for Motherhood and Childhood.

According to experts and psychological analysts that the high rates of divorce in Egypt due to poor economic conditions that make the costs of marriage difficult, which increases the rates of spinsterhood, and fear of spinsterhood many hasty in the decisions of marriage without adequate study and thus divorce, according to behavioral psychologist Mohamed Hani.

Hani pointed out in his interview with Al-Jazeera Net that there are many strange behavioral patterns of Egyptian society have emerged during the past period, due to the high rates of poverty and ignorance, and the tendency to use the soft forces of films, serials and descending art, in a way that perpetuates violence and wrong behaviors.

The Secretary-General of the Egyptian Coalition for the Rights of the Child, Hani Hilal, said that the Child Law should be reviewed in article 7 bis A of the Child Law, which stipulates that the right to discipline is permitted by law and that the child should not be subjected to any form of abuse.

Hilal added that violence against children is rampant in society due to the high rates of divorce, separation and the absence of social responsibility among the people, pointing out that the prevalence of poverty and ignorance in Egyptian society is one of the reasons for such tragic crimes.

He stressed that as a result of domestic violence against children and family disintegration, many children are fleeing homes, putting them at risk of stealing organs, working as beggars, or becoming criminals.

Azza al-Ashmawi, secretary general of the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood, said that violence against children in Egypt is increasing, especially domestic violence, which is attributed to increased family disputes and divorces.

According to the Egyptian Agency for Mobilization and Statistics, divorce rates rose last year compared to 2017, where the number of divorces recorded 211 thousand 521 cases last year compared to 198 thousand and 269 cases in 2017, raising the divorce rate from 2.1 per thousand in 2017 to 2.2 per thousand population 2018.