By Bronwynne Jooste
Najwa Petersen, convicted of masterminding the murder of her husband Taliep,could receive lengthy jail time because she used other people to help with the crime.
According to past research, women who use third parties to do their bidding often get heftier sentences than men who commit the same crimes.
And while most women who take their partners' lives have a history of abuse, Najwa's motives seem to have been jealousy, fear of rejection or an attempt to secure her own financial position.
In Swellendam millionaire businesswoman Ruby Marais is standing trial for allegedly organising a hit on her husband Basie.
The state says Ruby contracted three others to murder Basie and then financially benefited from his death.
In October, Atlantis widow Carmen Fortuin was sentenced to 22 years in prison for arranging the murder of her taxi boss husband Leonard.
In both the Marais and Fortuin cases it was alleged that the husbands were abusive.
Psychologists say the majority of women murder their partners because of abuse or for financial reasons. In the Petersen trial evidence was led that Taliep had lost R4-million of Najwa's money in business transactions but experts say Najwa's reasons for killing her husband were far more complex than money.
They say she is one of a group of more calculating female murderers.
Collet Ngwane, researcher with the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation, said their studies had shown that women who murdered their partners often served longer sentences than males who committed the same crimes.
"The argument is that men more often commit the crime in a fit of rage. In the case of women, it is more premeditated. If they are hiring a third party, they have time to appreciate their actions."
Najwa's case has some similarities to that of Dina Rodrigues, who was sentenced to life in 2007 for organising a hit on six-month-old Jordan-Leigh Norton, her boyfriend's daughter from a previous relationship.
No evidence that Taliep had ever physically abused Najwa surfaced during the long trial, although it had emerged that Najwa stabbed her musician husband in April 2006, months before he was killed.
Unisa criminologist Professor Anni Hesselink told Weekend Argus Najwa's motive could have been jealousy, or fear of public shame if Taliep had chosen to leave her.
"She was a wealthy, prominent woman with standing in the community. It could have been humiliating if Taliep had left her. It might have been a case of 'I'll show you', if he was considering leaving her."
In court Najwa's cousin Riefaat Soeker, who lived in a granny flat at the Petersen's' premises, testified that the couple had been sleeping in separate bedrooms and that Taliep had spoken about "getting another place".
She added that although the court ruled that Najwa was mentally fit to stand trial, she could have been "emotionally unbalanced".
Hesselink said the reason the case had received such widespread attention, apart from the fact that Taliep had been a living legend, was that Najwa's action was seemingly unnatural.
- This article was originally published on page 14 of Cape Argus on 7 December 2008.
CSVR is a multi-disciplinary institute that seeks to understand and prevent violence, heal its effects and build sustainable peace at the community, national and regional levels.
