3 years today since the murder of Marwa El Sherbiny

Some events are just too tragic, too grim, too significant to forget. Can you imagine someone being murdered – not by bullets, but by 15 knife wounds – in the middle of a courtroom, right in front of the judge and all the other legal assistants? What if I told you that the murderer was actually on trial, and the victim the plaintiff?

What if you were told that this did not happen in a developing country with a poor legal system, but in Western Europe?

You must already be shocked, and having a hard time believing this. Still it truly did happen, exactly 3 years ago today. But if you know more about this horrendous case, your disbelief will turn into sheer astonishment and shock.

The murderer – Alex Wiens – was a man, his victim was a 32-year old woman.  But that’s not all. The woman who was murdered was 3 months pregnant, and her 3 year old son and her husband were both present in the courtroom when they saw their beloved being butchered to death.

The murderer was standing trial accused of racial slurs and harassment. His hateful words and threats happened outside of the court, but the enactment of his threats was executed right in the middle of a court of law. Doesn’t this border on the unimaginable?

Would you expect her husband to watch quietly – just like those responsible for security in that so-called safe haven of justice – while his wife was being stabbed to death? Of course not. He jumped up and tried to intervene. Did he get any assistance from those who were supposed to protect an innocent pregnant woman from the vicious attacks of a hateful racist? No.

Guess what they did: they shot the husband down, not the killer, and he sustained such serious injuries that he lay in coma in a hospital for two days. He sustained 16 injuries from the murderer’s 18 cm blade to the head, neck upper body and arm, and a shot wound in his upper leg from the court’s security personnel.

Marwa was pronounced dead at 11:07 am on July 1st, 2009. This is exactly 3 years ago today. She became the victim of an Islam-hating murderer. The press in Germany kept a very low profile on the case, and when they reported it, it was full of factual errors.

As Anja Seeliger said later on in The Guardian, “The German media initially reported on the case at the back page”, and “The German federal government, which had kept silent for a week, issued words of sorrow” only after thousands of Egyptians protested in the streets of Cairo. Other European and American media barely granted any attention to the entire case.

I was so moved and devastated by the horrendous tragedy of this gruesome murder, and so angry with the lack of international outcry, that my emotions and thoughts culminated in a musical piece that I called ‘Song for Marwa’. It is a way of trying to create something that helps us remember. I want Muslims in the world, and indeed, all humans who care for justice, never to forget how this young mother and wife had to lose her life through the negligence of the authorities, and the evil of racism.

Yes, Marwa was the victim of anti-Islam hatred, and that is only one of the reasons why this horrendous crime must continue to be remembered. The West is in the political grip of politicians and political parties who fan the flames of hatred against Islam and Muslims to serve their agendas.  It is no coincidence that they try to put the lid on a case as that of Marwa El Sherbiny, which would otherwise illustrate how their hateful criminal words can lead to crimes with real-life victims.

As the last words of the song say, simple but heartfelt:

“We will remember you, always remember you, lady rest in peace – in Eternity”.

Doc Jazz

To learn more, read:

Murder of Marwa El Sherbiny on Wikipedia

A Murder that Germany Ignored – The Guardian