ABU DHABI // A labourer admitted strangling a woman to death, telling a court today that she had forced him to have sex with her.
MN, from Bangladesh, told the Criminal Court the woman had appeared at his labour camp and demanded he repay a debt he owed her, claiming that he had made her pregnant and that she had been forced to abort the baby. The two soon started to fight.
"We were wrestling on the floor, then I pressed on her neck for around 5 to 7 minuites, when I saw blood come out of her mouth and nose I stopped, and she was dead," said the labourer.
"Did you have sex with her before she died?" asked Chief Justice Sayed Abdul Baseer, head of the criminal court.
"She forced me," replied the labourer. "When I returned from vacation she invited me to her room, closed the door and forced me to do it. I told her I was newly wed and this was not right but she insisted."
"How did she insist, did she hit you with a shoe?" asked the judge.
The labourer said she undressed him, threatened to make a scene and get him in trouble if he did not comply with her demands. The intercourse took place in the afternoon, while the fatal fight occured in the evening.
Six other Bangladeshi men were accused of not reporting the crime, a charge they denied. They, along with a seventh man, also denied helping the killer evade the authorities.
One of the men said he did not the killer and had never met him before. He said he knew the killer's brother, who works as a cook in Khalidiya police station.
The case was adjourned until November 27 while the killer is appointed a lawyer and the blood relatives are contacted.
hdajani@thenational.ae
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
