Honour killing story: Döndü S. (2010)

Döndü S.
Born: 1992
Strangled: 15 March 2010
Residence: Stolberg (near Aachen)
Origin: Turkey
Children: she was pregnant
Perpetrator: her husband Borak/Burak S. (at the time of the crime 20 years old)

Döndü breaks off her internship as a saleswoman, goes to Turkey in December 2009 and gets married. Bride and groom were born in Germany but hold Turkish passports.

A few months later, her husband kills her: On March 15, 2010, the Turk strangles his wife at about 3 a.m. in their shared apartment in Stolberg. At that time she is four months pregnant.

Not until the afternoon is the body found. Döndüs' uncle had kicked in the door and alerted the police.

The perpetrator flees to Cologne, but is caught and confesses to the crime. His wife reportedly said during the argument that she wanted to divorce him.

In August 2010, the trial begins before the Juvenile Chamber of the Aachen District Court.

In September 2010, the perpetrator is sentenced to 9 years in prison under the juvenile justice system. After the trial, it comes to fights between the families.

What is an honour killing?

An honour killing is a murder in the name of honour. If a brother murders his sister to restore family honour, it is an honour killing. According to activists, the most common reasons for honour killings are as the victim:

refuses to cooperate in an arranged marriage.
wants to end the relationship.
was the victim of rape or sexual assault.
was accused of having a sexual relationship outside of marriage.

Human rights activists believe that 100,000 honour killings are carried out every year, most of which are not reported to the authorities and some are even deliberately covered up by the authorities themselves, for example because the perpetrators are good friends with local policemen, officials or politicians. Violence against girls and women remains a serious problem in Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Iran, Serbia and Turkey.