The Mexican foreign minister Marcelo Ebrard, expressed his support on Friday for the economist, political scientist and anthropologist Paola Schietekat, a young Mexican woman sexually abused in Qatar who was sentenced to seven years in prison and 100 lashes following denouncing the case.
“I thanked Paola for her visit and the conversation. The legal consultant of the (Ministry of Foreign Relations) SRE, our best lawyer, will be in charge of defending her and that all her rights as a Mexican citizen are respected. I recognized her courage and resolution,” she noted on her Twitter account.
I thanked Paola for her visit and the conversation. The Legal Consultant of the SRE, our best lawyer, will be in charge of defending her and that all her rights as a Mexican citizen are respected. I recognized her courage and resolution. pic.twitter.com/PMWGjpjHRV
– Marcelo Ebrard C. (@m_ebrard) February 18, 2022
Schietekat, who has lived in the Middle East since she was 19, has a degree in International Relations and International Law and worked in Dohacapital of Qatar, for the Organizing Committee of the World Cupwhich will be held in that country next November.
On June 6, 2021, an acquaintance of Latino origin entered her apartment at night and physically assaulted her, although she managed to defend herself causing bruises on her left arm, shoulder and back, according to her account.
After the attack, he went to the police to file a complaint. accompanied by the Mexican consul in Qatar, Luis Ancona, but as neither of them mastered the Arabic language, the complaint finally turned once morest themas indicated EFE.
Finally, the woman was accused of having an out-of-wedlock relationship with the assailantsituation penalized in that country, for which he was sentenced to 100 lashes and seven years in prison.
The sentence did not materialize thanks to the fact that Schietekat managed to leave Doha and travel to Mexico, but he had to leave “his dream job”, which he has considered an injustice.
The Qatar criminal court acquitted the alleged aggressor. However, the charges once morest the young woman remain in force preventing her from returning to the country, which is why he requested the consular aid that, according to Ebrard, was provided to him from that same Friday.
A final hearing will be held on March 6, where a decision is expected to annul the sentence, allowing Schietekat to return to Qatar and resume his work.
