A Brutal Murder, A Fitting Metaphor
Ynetnews reports on the brutal death of an Italian artist and peace activist.
A 33-year old Italian artist, Giuseppina Pasqualino, also known as Pippa Bacca, was found dead in Turkey on Saturday, after having been raped and murdered. Paqualino was hitchhiking towards Israel dressed in a wedding dress in an appeal for peace.
The woman was last seen on March 31 in the mainly industrial city of Gebze, while hitchhiking to Israel in the wedding dress as part of her “Brides on Tour” project aiming to plead for peace in conflict areas. She disappeared after using her credit card around noon. Police found her naked body hidden in bushes in a forested area near Gebze, after questioning the man suspected of the murder late Friday, the governor’s office said.
Police tracked down the suspect when he switched on Pasqualino’s mobile phone, having inserted his own SIM card, an Italian Embassy official said. The official asked not to be named because he was not authorized to give information on the police investigation.
The suspect, identified only by his initials M.K., Had previously been convicted of theft, Anatolia reported. He was being questioned in police custody and no charges had been filed.
According to reports, M.K confessed to having picked up Pasqualino in his car, after which he drove into the forest, where he raped her and strangled her to death. Afterwards he attempted to bury the body.
Determinedly working for art
Pasqualino’s fiancé said in an interview that the artist was “very loyal. Unfortunately, she happened to meet the wrong man in the wrong place at the wrong time.” He also commended the Turkish police on a job well done.
The artist’s mother said, “We were hoping she had been kidnapped by the Kurdish. We were trying to contact Muslim officials until we found out she had been murdered. We weren’t particularly worried because she had been hitchhiking for a lot of time, and thus was capable of avoiding risky situations. She was a determined person when it had to do with working for art.”
Besides being a brutal murder and a senseless waste of life, what an appropriate metaphor for the whole Middle East “peace process.” Israel is the trusting bride in white, blindly following the path of “peace”, while her enemies want nothing more than her rape, murder, and belongings.
Also note the telling quote from the victim’s mother.
“We were hoping she had been kidnapped by the Kurdish.”
About the Author
An Australian immigrant to Israel, Aussie Dave has been blogging since early 2003.Filed Under: Uncategorized
Another worthy quote is from one of her sisters:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7344381.stm
“Her travels were for an artistic performance and to give a message of peace and of trust, but not everyone deserves trust,” another sister, Maria, told the Italian news agency, Ansa.
Thats horrible.
I don’t think there is any strong message to take from this, just that she clearly had no idea what she was doing.
Hitchhiking in a wedding dress in the middle east, it’s a sure way to get yourself killed. I mean it’s probably a sure way anywhere, wearing a wedding dress, sane people would pass you by thinking you are crazy, crazy people would stop and think vulnerable victim.