Honour on Trial by Paul Schliesmann

so. Enea had become Sahar's confidante and was extremely concerned for the girl.
    "At one point in time she told me no one spoke to her at her place," said Enea. "She said she couldn't have a normal life of a young girl, see her friends, things of that nature." Sahar also told Enea that nothing could be done to help her as she talked about the ostracism and physical abuse she was experiencing.
    "It was during that time that she also told me she had taken medication — lots of medication," said Enea. One of the sisters was at home and went to their mother to tell Tooba about the trouble Sahar was in. Tooba told the sister not to bother her about Sahar. It was her "aunt" who came to her assistance — Rona, her adopted mother. According to Rona's diary, Tooba said, "She can go to hell. Let her kill herself." The story was enough for Enea, who took Sahar to Vice-principal Fortin to make the report to social workers.
    In 2008-09, Enea had less contact with Sahar, though she did occasionally teach her. In June of 2009, she found Sahar to be desperately afraid. "She told me that her father was supposed to come back from a trip and she was afraid her brother … was going to tell her father she was a whore," said Enea. "I said, 'Do you want me to do something?' She said, 'Yes.'"
    Enea called child protection authorities once more. The agency told her to take Sahar to the school psychologist and arrange to find her a shelter. Enea said they found some shelters but, for some reason, Sahar never went to one. The school year was winding down fast and, when Sahar met with a school psychologist, the talk turned to how to get a job, not about finding a safe place of refuge.

Sahar's boyfriend…
    WHY would Sahar's younger brother accuse her of being a whore? By June of 2009, Sahar had a steady boyfriend named Ricardo Sanchez whom she had been dating for about four months. Sahar saw Ricardo as her ticket out of the oppressive household. There had already been suspicion about whether Sahar was dating. Sometime during the 2007-08 school year, Tooba went to the school to talk to teacher Claudia Deslauriers. One of Sahar's younger sisters was there to translate for their mother.
    "The mother came to see us to determine if Sahar had kissed a boy — whether she had a boyfriend," Deslauriers recalled. "She seemed to be really angry."
    Deslauriers had seen Sahar at school with a boy but she was concerned about giving Tooba this information. The teacher and Sahar had already spoken on one occasion about bruises and scratches she had seen on the girl's arms and told her no one had a right to harm her. Deslauriers weighed how forthcoming she should be with Tooba.
    "I told her that no, she didn't kiss any boy. I didn't want Sahar to encounter any problems after our meeting," Deslauriers said. "The mother said to us that she did not accept that her daughter would have kissed a boy, as it was not falling within the parameters of her values."
    By June 2009, Sahar was in a full-blown relationship with Ricardo, a native of Honduras and about three years her senior. Zainab knew Ricardo from night school, where they were learning French, and had introduced him to her sister.
    Ricardo's nickname for Sahar was "Natasha." That's what she told him her name was when they first met and it was some time before she revealed her true name.
    One time he, too, noticed bruises on Sahar's leg and arm. She said she had fallen at school but Ricardo wasn't buying her story. He thought the marks looked like they had been produced by a blow — "like when somebody hits you." Sahar never told Ricardo the same stories of abuse she had told her teachers. All he knew was that their relationship had to be a secret, owing, he thought, to their religious differences.
    Their time together was also limited by the curfews Sahar's parents had placed on their children. She was frustrated and hatched a plan with Ricardo to run away to Honduras and live with his family