Son testifies saying she used to lock sister in bin
An Emirati woman in Abu Dhabi is facing charges of torturing her four-year-old daughter to death after doctors proved she died of brain hemorrhage and her son testified his mother was beating his sister and locking her in the bin.
Mariam died a day after she was admitted to hospital suffering from weakness, fatigue, vomiting, skin paleness and bruises on her body.
Suspecting the girl had been tortured, doctors decided to carry out an autopsy, which revealed the girl had died of brain hemorrhage due to severe beating on the head.
Mariam’s five-year-old brother later confirmed the doctors’ suspicions when he told police investigators that his mother used to beat his sister, lock her in the dust bin at home, continuously rebuke her and leave her at home alone most of the time.
He said his mother was also starving his sister by not giving her any food for a whole day.
When she was faced with the charges, the mother appeared indifferent, saying it was the only way she knows to deal with her daughter.
She said she did not mean to hurt her, claiming that the girl fell on her head on the day she was admitted to hospital.
But doctors rebuffed her claims after discovering Mariam had been beaten on the head many times.
“Mariam’s father told police that he was not interfering on the grounds raising girls is the responsibility of mothers. When he was asked why he did not take his daughter to hospital to treat her loss of weight, he said he thought she was not suffering of any health problem and that she was just lean and skinny,” the Arabic language daily Al Khaleej said, adding that the parents stood trial on Thursday.
